Higher education opportunities in the UK for Sylhet students have narrowed.
At least fifty universities in the UK have stopped admitting students from Sylhet. According to those concerned with 'student visa processing', universities have imposed this stricture for three reasons. They commented that real students are suffering serious losses.
Reasons include - Not completing the course in the UK for higher education. Moving illegally from the UK to other European countries and changing visa categories while studying.
It is known that various universities in the UK take students from Bangladesh through various education groups. These UK education groups are accepting applications from interested students through different Bangladeshi agencies.
A large number of students from Bangladesh have settled in the UK due to the easing of educational visas in the last 2-3 years. A major part of it was from Sylhet.
As there are more people from the Sylhet region in the UK, students here are also more interested in going to the UK for higher education.
As a result, at least 10,000 students from Sylhet went to different universities in the UK in the last year.
Most of the students go to study in the UK by paying 6 months' tuition fees. Many of them have stopped going to university because they could not afford the cost of studying there. Some have changed their student visas to different types of work permits including caregivers.
Besides, many have illegally migrated from the UK to various European countries including France and Portugal. As a result, universities are facing a student crisis. Even if they start the semester by filling up the number of seats, they have to face difficulties for the students who have been sent from Sylhet.
That is why UK universities have become strict about Sylhet students from the next May session.
Talking to various student consultancy organizations, it is known that some agencies including UK's Oxford Education Group, Study Group, Cambridge Education Group, and QA have announced not to accept applications from Sylhet students.
There are at least fifty universities in the UK under these groups, said Md Ferdous Alam, President of 'The Foreign Admission and Career Development Consultant Association of Bangladesh', Sylhet.
According to sources, students have to take an English language proficiency test to go to the UK for higher education. For this, students have to give the 'International English Language Testing System-IELTS' or 'Oxford International English Language Testing Center-OIETC'. OIETC is preferred by students who are relatively weak in English as it is easier than IELTS.
It is alleged that many people take unfair advantages while giving the OIETC exam. Because of this, UK universities no longer want to give importance to OIETC. Meanwhile, those who gave OIETC sitting at their homes are not accepting their results. From now they are going to take the exam in the presence of their center and representative. However, questions have also arisen about whether students will be able to get admission to UK universities with OIETC in the future. As a result, genuine students are now turning to IELTS.
Regarding the current situation, Md Ferdous Alam, president of 'The Foreign Admission and Career Development Consultant Association of Bangladesh', Sylhet, said, 'At least fifty universities in the UK have announced not to take students from Sylhet due to various reasons. But genuine students and those who can afford the tuition fees need not panic. The doors of many universities are open for them.