Toussaint Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 We moved back to the UK in February 2014, we were in Australia for 6 years. My daughter has been refused student funding and places on apprenterships and just everything else she has tried. She has had her WACE assessed as 4 A levels grade C or above, ( it costs quite a bit to have them assessed more accurately) , she was awarded a place on the degree of her choice but then the wheels came off, the problem stems from living out of the country, she is now considered a foreign student, therefore liable for full fees and not eligible for a student loan. This is despite us keeping our house, bank accounts and other interests in th UK and being long term tax payers. Has anyone else encountered these issues and does anyone know of a solution? She is desperate to start moving her life forward. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob64 Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 Were you on a temp visa or permanent resident? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toussaint Posted July 6, 2015 Author Share Posted July 6, 2015 Were you on a temp visa or permanent resident? Dual citizenship, we were not expecting to return anytime soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PomCop Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 It's the residency requirement. You need to be in the country for a minimum of three years. Usually, this timeline starts if you've spent either 6 or 12 months out of the UK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob64 Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 You will need to live back in the UK for three years for domestic fees and student finance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bell123321 Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 Sorry to echo what others have said, she needs to have been living in the UK for 3 years prior to going to university otherwise she is seen as an international student. Sorry not the news you wanted to hear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caramac Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 What does she want to do? As the others have said, it's the residency requirements, sadly, but could she look at going to mainland Europe/Ireland? There are universities which teach in English, but only for certain degrees - it wasn't an option for the degrees our older two are doing, for instance. I'm not certain what their residency requirements are, but I think they're more relaxed than here. Might be worth looking into? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diane Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 I think there might be a loophole if she goes and lives and works in Europe (outside the UK) for - possibly 3 months?? I'm not sure but worth looking into. There has been a lot of discussion on here about this issue, and it is what has stopped a lot of our kids (I mean, kids of people on here - I don't have that many!) returning to the UK to do their Uni. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 Could she do a degree in mainland Europe? (Antwerp etc...) without restrictions. There are lots of excellent rated ones..I would love to know the position on this too as may be in a similar situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toussaint Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 Thank you for all your responses, she is a bit restricted as a single mum, she is also approaching 21, the move back has disrupted her education somewhat. What is infuriating is the government will throw a lot of my money at her in the form of income support, housing benefit and tax credits should she choose to claim them all as she is in low paid work, but there seems little in way of helping her towards financial independence. There has been a lot of recent discussion about her / us returning to OZ for this and other reasons. My youngest will be ready for UNi in two years, it's less than half the cost in oz plus you can normally stay at home and commute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I would speak to the individual universities. A number can offer special assistance in cases like this. For example, I was able to do a second degree that meant I could not get funding because the uni agreed to direct fund me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diane Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 There has been a lot of recent discussion about her / us returning to OZ for this and other reasons. My youngest will be ready for UNi in two years, it's less than half the cost in oz plus you can normally stay at home and commute. Make sure you do your research into whether a similar thing would affect your youngest if you came back here for her to go to Uni. I seem to remember a question on my kids' HECS or Uni application about the date they arrived in Australia and whether they had been living here all that time. Also, the whole living-at-home thing I think misses one of the vital points about Uni life. I really think kids here miss out by not living on campus as they would do in the UK. My boss's daughter is planning on going to Uni in Norway by the way - the degree course is free, in English, and I think you just have to post some sort of returnable bond ($20k from memory) which is refundable on completion of the course. Don't know all the details but definitely look into some alternatives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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