KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 — Malaysians studying or planning to further their education in the United Kingdom will not come under scrutiny following the recent UK regulations on foreign students.
“There are almost 17,000 Malaysian students studying in Britain who can be assured this announcement was definitely not directed at them as all of them are studying at well-known universities,” British High Commissioner Vicki Treadall said.
She said the statement by Home Secretary Amber Rudd was a measure of protection for foreign students as to not be trapped by bogus universities and colleges.
“The only aim of the new restrictions was to safeguard the educational market from being used for wrong reasons,” Treadall said, adding that by doing so would reduce net migration.
“Malaysian students would not be affected by the new restrictions,” she added.
On Tuesday, Rudd announced major new restrictions on overseas students, including two-tier visa rules affecting poorer quality universities and courses.
She also said a review of student immigration rules should be tailored to the quality of the course and educational institution.
Treadall said the British government would scrutinise and make sure foreign students apply to legitimate colleges and universities that meet the educational standards the British government expects.
“There are numerous cases where foreign students have applied to study in United Kingdom and find out that their ‘colleges’ or ‘universities’ are merely a room in a shop house and this cannot continue any longer,” she explained.
She said the British and Malaysian governments hold good ties which are viewed as beneficial for the development of the educational platform.
“We have seen the Malaysian education blueprints and Britain wants to be part of delivery solution as this will be a win-win situation for both parties.”
United Kingdom & Eire Council of Malaysian Students chairman Daniel Subramaniam told Malay Mail Malaysian students may not feel much of a change because the majority of them in the UK are there for full-time higher education.
“The proposal to restrict or measure the hiring of non-British workers will certainly make it harder for Malaysian students who plan to apply for jobs in the UK.”
Daniel said since the announcement was recent, the council did not have time to gather feedback from students.
“Some students I’ve spoken to, feel they would not be affected as they are attending courses offered by quality universities,” he said.
“At the same time, some felt the new policy would also mean that Malaysian students who graduate from the UK in the future would be limited to those from these quality universities and would mean that the image of a UK graduate for Malaysian employers would improve.”
