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For tens of thousands of Chinese students, the route to a British education begins at one of the universities’ “strategic partners” or “official agents” in Shanghai and Beijing.
The agents are promoted on the universities’ websites, potentially directing a valuable stream of business towards a select few companies operating in offices across Asia.
The Daily Telegraph discloses how these agents, acting for dozens of universities, were apparently prepared to relax entry requirements in the increasingly aggressive push for students.
Universities are competing for Chinese students, with vice chancellors regularly found globe-trotting. When David Cameron travels to “developing nations”, senior university figures are usually to be found on the official plane.
The presence of international students on British campuses helps enrich the university experience - and boost the country’s economy and international status. But there are growing fears that this may have been accompanied by a decline in academic rigour as some universities struggle to balance their books.
Over the past few weeks, undercover Daily Telegraph reporters have visited agents in Shanghai and Beijing, posing as representatives of a fictional Chinese businessman whose daughter wanted to attend a British university.
At seven agents, the daughter was offered a place at top universities, despite A-level grades that were below the usual entry requirements stated in the prospectuses for British students. Several agents offered to draft personal statements and advice was handed out on navigating a way through the tightening British immigration system.
At Index Education Services, which sends 300 students a year to study in Britain, a fictional A-level student with three Cs was told by an agent that she would be able to study maths at the University of Kent, which usually requires 320 A-level points to study mathematics, the equivalent to ABB.
“She needs to write, but we can also write a personal statement and reference letter. We also do that,” said the agent.
A few days later the reporters visited Wiseway in Shanghai, which is a company listed on many British university websites as an “official” representative in China. An agent said the student could study economics or business degrees at Leeds or the economics or accounting and finance courses at the University of East Anglia.
A spokesman for Index Education said it was an “official representative for over 70 British universities … therefore we are able to offer professional counselling to students when they come to us”.
However, she said it was not responsible for university admissions. “Offers should be made directly by the admissions team based at the university,” she said. Fonton said the information it had given to the reporters about where the student could study was correct, but it was up to the universities to decide whether they accepted a student. Johnny Chan, the deputy general manager of Wiseway in Shanghai, said the agent “might have replied that it was quite possible” for the student to get a place at the universities, but that the company “does not have admission authorities”.
Lisa Zhang, the head of the iLongre office in Shanghai, said the agent thought the student’s grades were higher than BBB and that it was up to the university if they accepted the student.
A spokesman for the University of Leeds said: “Wiseway is not an official representative of the University of Leeds, and as such we cannot be held responsible for any claims made by them. We will deal with these allegations. We would never make an offer of BBB for any student for these courses.”
Gavin Douglas, the head of student recruitment at the University of Sheffield, said “Agents are not empowered to make offers to applicants but provide information to prospective students and their families on the ranges of courses available, entry requirements and accommodation and so on. It is not correct to imply that the university has a different set of standards for students recruited from overseas. The requirements published on the university’s website are typical offers and for the 2012 entry are listed as requiring ABB at A-level (or equivalent) for the majority of Management School undergraduate courses, with other courses listed at BBB.”
A spokesman for the University of Kent said, “The published entry level for maths at Kent is ABB. UK/EU students wishing to apply to the university for 2012 entry will be asked to meet this requirement as will any international students.
“The university admits all students on the basis of academic ability. It is not in the interests of the university to admit students, be they UK or international, without the academic ability to complete the programme.”
Original source here
The agents are promoted on the universities’ websites, potentially directing a valuable stream of business towards a select few companies operating in offices across Asia.
The Daily Telegraph discloses how these agents, acting for dozens of universities, were apparently prepared to relax entry requirements in the increasingly aggressive push for students.
Universities are competing for Chinese students, with vice chancellors regularly found globe-trotting. When David Cameron travels to “developing nations”, senior university figures are usually to be found on the official plane.
The presence of international students on British campuses helps enrich the university experience - and boost the country’s economy and international status. But there are growing fears that this may have been accompanied by a decline in academic rigour as some universities struggle to balance their books.
Over the past few weeks, undercover Daily Telegraph reporters have visited agents in Shanghai and Beijing, posing as representatives of a fictional Chinese businessman whose daughter wanted to attend a British university.
At seven agents, the daughter was offered a place at top universities, despite A-level grades that were below the usual entry requirements stated in the prospectuses for British students. Several agents offered to draft personal statements and advice was handed out on navigating a way through the tightening British immigration system.
At Index Education Services, which sends 300 students a year to study in Britain, a fictional A-level student with three Cs was told by an agent that she would be able to study maths at the University of Kent, which usually requires 320 A-level points to study mathematics, the equivalent to ABB.
“She needs to write, but we can also write a personal statement and reference letter. We also do that,” said the agent.
A few days later the reporters visited Wiseway in Shanghai, which is a company listed on many British university websites as an “official” representative in China. An agent said the student could study economics or business degrees at Leeds or the economics or accounting and finance courses at the University of East Anglia.
A spokesman for Index Education said it was an “official representative for over 70 British universities … therefore we are able to offer professional counselling to students when they come to us”.
However, she said it was not responsible for university admissions. “Offers should be made directly by the admissions team based at the university,” she said. Fonton said the information it had given to the reporters about where the student could study was correct, but it was up to the universities to decide whether they accepted a student. Johnny Chan, the deputy general manager of Wiseway in Shanghai, said the agent “might have replied that it was quite possible” for the student to get a place at the universities, but that the company “does not have admission authorities”.
Lisa Zhang, the head of the iLongre office in Shanghai, said the agent thought the student’s grades were higher than BBB and that it was up to the university if they accepted the student.
A spokesman for the University of Leeds said: “Wiseway is not an official representative of the University of Leeds, and as such we cannot be held responsible for any claims made by them. We will deal with these allegations. We would never make an offer of BBB for any student for these courses.”
Gavin Douglas, the head of student recruitment at the University of Sheffield, said “Agents are not empowered to make offers to applicants but provide information to prospective students and their families on the ranges of courses available, entry requirements and accommodation and so on. It is not correct to imply that the university has a different set of standards for students recruited from overseas. The requirements published on the university’s website are typical offers and for the 2012 entry are listed as requiring ABB at A-level (or equivalent) for the majority of Management School undergraduate courses, with other courses listed at BBB.”
A spokesman for the University of Kent said, “The published entry level for maths at Kent is ABB. UK/EU students wishing to apply to the university for 2012 entry will be asked to meet this requirement as will any international students.
“The university admits all students on the basis of academic ability. It is not in the interests of the university to admit students, be they UK or international, without the academic ability to complete the programme.”
Original source here
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