High fees are forcing more and more Bulgarians to study online at English universities
The dream of studying in England, which is famous for its prestigious universities, is no longer achievable for the citizens of poor countries in the EU. According to the British Interior Ministry, data on education visas show a serious decline in new students arriving in the UK. The reason is that after the country’s exit from the European Union they
lost the right to
apply for
student loans
in the UK, and to pay lower fees than their British counterparts rely on. At the same time, they were burdened with a number of additional fees, making it impossible for them to follow the Island.
The UCAS Admissions Office has announced that applicants for undergraduate programs in Eastern Europe in 2021 have fallen by about 70%. For students
from Bulgaria
are granted
only 185 visas,
from the Czech Republic – 177, and from Hungary – 214, while before Brexit from these countries came several thousand young people each year. A total of 1,100 people from Poland and Romania have been approved, compared to 8,500 for the 2019/2020 academic year. In comparison, interest in English universities from citizens of richer countries such as France, Germany and Spain remains high. Almost 10,000 visas have been issued to them.
Most Eastern Europeans can no longer afford to pay the high prices for studying in England, from which it also loses, as it is deprived of valuable talent, commented the international education site Studyinternational.
To mitigate the effects of Brexit, some British universities have frozen tuition fees for European students and offered them financial aid, but this is not enough.
“Now a year of study costs about 26,000 pounds for EU students, and scholarships are limited to a maximum of 5,000 pounds. This makes it impossible for many to study in the UK, because even if they study part-time, their income will still not be enough for fees and rent, ”said Hungarian Stella Zifova, who is studying at the University of Exeter.
While Britain was part of the EU, European students had the same rights as British students. They paid a tuition fee of up to £ 9,250 a year. In addition, they could get good student loans for her, as well as money for rent and maintenance. Their return began when they graduated, started working, and reached a certain income. For Bulgaria it was 12,000 pounds a year.
This has not been possible since last year. Europeans faced
double and triple
higher fees
to follow,
like all other foreign students. In addition, they were barred from entering the country freely. They need a visa, which costs 348 pounds, and health insurance of about 470 pounds a year.
“Unfortunately, these conditions suggest that you really have to be from the richer western part of Europe to have a better chance of studying here,” said Nick Hillman, director of the British Institute of Higher Education.
It is therefore not surprising that more and more European students are choosing to study remotely in order to save at least the cost of accommodation in England or move to other countries that offer English language programs at more affordable prices.
“Because of the pandemic, British universities moved their lectures online, which led to the return of many Bulgarian students to their homeland. Some of them completed their distance learning and this allowed them to adapt to life in Bulgaria and see it as a viable option for continuing their education or starting a career, “said Jeanne Le, who is part of the platform. Together in class.
Distance learning is a global trend, but most young people still prefer the present form, as it provides a number of additional opportunities. For Bulgarians seeking to study English, countries such as the Netherlands, Ireland and Denmark have proved to be a good alternative in recent years. According to the data of the consulting company for education “Integral”
the candidates
for the Dutch
universities from
Bulgaria are
increased from 80%,
while those for English have halved. This is not surprising, as studying in them is significantly cheaper. The annual fee is just over 2,000 euros, with favorable student loans and a monthly accommodation allowance of up to 400 euros if students come from low-income families and combine their studies with work up to 56 hours a month.
Denmark also supports young people who need to study and work. In addition, studying for European citizens is free. From next September, however, the country will suspend much of its English-language programs, such as computer science and software engineering, to cut spending on European students.
Therefore, some will probably have to look for opportunities to study in countries such as Austria and Belgium, where higher education is also very accessible. For Bulgarians, studying at Austrian state universities is free. They charge only about 20 euros per semester for administrative services. In Belgium, the fee is just under 1,000 euros, which explains the ever-increasing number of candidates for these countries after Brexit.
Ireland is also enjoying a growing interest in its higher education. The semester fees in its educational institutions are around 3,000 euros, but favorable benefits and scholarships are given for European citizens experiencing financial difficulties.
The observations of the consultants from “Integral” are that in the conditions of pandemic and global uncertainty Bulgarians prefer not to take risks in terms of their education. In addition to the decline in those wishing to study abroad, those who decided to do so applied in more than one country. They usually combine Britain with the Netherlands or Denmark and Belgium, and more and more often with the United States. Due to their higher price before Brexit, American universities were considered less profitable than English ones, with which they traditionally compete for the first places in the world rankings for the best universities in the world. However, with the abolition of preferential conditions in the United Kingdom for European citizens, it is now more profitable for them to study some specialties in America, especially when it comes to prestigious schools such as Harvard and Stanford, as they received knowledge and diplomas open up more career opportunities and good pay.
English universities have also been criticized recently for procrastinating too long
to return
completely to
present
education,
which was stopped because of the pandemic. Even the British Minister of Education, Nadim Zahawi, has called on students to oppose their leadership if they continue to offer them only online lectures, given that they have signed up for regular study and pay thousands of pounds a year for it. The British authorities lifted coronavirus restrictions in universities last May, but a hundred of them are taking advantage of their academic autonomy and continue to offer only distance learning. They explain it with their desire to protect staff and students from infection, but there are suspicions that in this way they are trying to reduce their costs against the background of declining revenues.
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