International Student Route Study in the UK

As a part of the Student Route visa process, the Home Office/UKVI will assess whether a student is 'genuine' before granting Student Route leave. The interview selection process is random and does not mean that if you are called to interview that there is something wrong with your application.

We hope that this guide will give you an insight into some of the questions you could be asked during your interview. These are not necessarily the exact questions that you will be asked and you may not be asked them in this order, but we hope that this will give you an idea of the information that they hope to obtain from you.  They may also ask you additional questions that are not related to your study choices or living in the UK, be ready for any questions.

The interview will also be a further test of your English, so whilst this may be a daunting prospect, try to stay as calm as possible during your interview so that the hard work that you have done to ensure that your English is at the right level shows during the interview. Do not be afraid to ask the interviewer to speak more slowly or clearly if you are struggling to understand the question asked due to a poor video connection or particularly thick accent. It is important to remember that you must not lie during your interview by providing an answer that you believe the interviewer wants to hear instead of what is true.

We cannot provide you the answers to these questions, as they must be your own personal responses, but we hope that you have, and will, carry out more research about the course that you have decided to study, the city of London and around the Tower Hill campus and your visa requirements.

We wish you the best of luck for your interview and look forward to meeting you soon!

International Student Support Team

Intention to Study Questions:

Why do you want to study in the UK?

You might want to talk about what you have learnt about the British education system and how this will enhance your education

Why would you like to live and study in the UK and in particular London?

How this experience will benefit you. 

What are the benefits of studying in the UK compared to your home country or other countries?

What attracted you to the UK?

How would study in the UK differ from studying in your home country?

Why did you decide to come to the UK rather than for example Australia or the USA? 

How did you choose which university to study at in the UK?

What research did you carry out?

Did you use an agent; what drew you to their recommendation to study at Arden?

Is the course that you are going to study particularly well taught at Arden? 

Why have you chosen to study at Arden University?

Here you could talk about the University or about the city and its location within the UK. 

Which other universities did you consider?

Did you look at other options?

Why did you choose Arden over other universities? 

Where is Arden University, Tower Hill Campus?

Perhaps take a look at some British websites; do you know where your campus is?

For London see: https://www.visitlondon.com/ or https://www.ucas.com/study-in/study-london

Remember London is an expensive city, have you considered this? Given you cannot work while you are in the UK, are you happy about the cost of living in London, this issue may come up during your interview

For Birmingham see: https://www.ucas.com/study-in/study-birmingham or https://visitbirmingham.com/ 

Do you know roughly how large the University is?

Have you had chance to do some research about the University?

Make sure you take a look at our International study brochure and our website; https://arden.ac.uk/

What facilities do you expect there to be at Arden University?

Have a look at our website for more details of the Tower Hill study centre: https://arden.ac.uk/where-to-study/london/tower-hill-study-centre

Or for Lock 14 in Birmingham: https://arden.ac.uk/where-to-study/locations/birmingham

What attracted you to the UK, London/Birmingham and the University? 

Do you know anyone who has studied in the UK?

The Home Office would not expect this to be the main reason that you come to the UK to study, but your friends or family may well have told you more about the country or even the city you have chosen to study in, making your choice easier. 

Why did you choose to study this course and how does it relate to your previous study?

What attracted you to study this course?

What do you hope to achieve by studying it?

How will it enhance the subjects that you have already studied? 

What qualification will you receive?

Make sure you are aware of your course details; check your offer letter, CAS statement or check the University website: [link to courses list pages on the website] 

How is your course assessed?

Research - check course details on our website

Is your course assessed by exam, coursework, etc? 

How long does your course last?

Make sure you are aware of your course details, check your offer letter, CAS statement or check the University website:

Is there an opportunity to extend your course?

How will the course you have chosen help you in your chosen career path?

Is it a necessity to have a qualification in order to follow your career path? 

Do you know what level your course is?

Are you studying a Bachelors (BA or BSc), Masters (MA or MSc) or PhD?

They could also be referring to the NQF level of your course. NQF stands for National Qualifications Framework and is a way of defining the level of a course; the higher the level, the more advanced the course.

• If you will be studying at Bachelors level this would be level 6.
• If you will be studying at Masters level this would be level 7.
• If you will be studying at PhD level this would be level 8. 

Did you consider studying any other course?

It will be fine to say that you did, but you must then be able to justify what made you decide on your final choice. 

Will you need help finding accommodation?

Have you looked into accommodation options at the University or in the city of London or Birmingham?

What option do you think you will choose?

Do you know how you will get to the University if you have already found accommodation? 

Can you explain any gaps in your years of study or work?

If there have been periods of time in which you have been working? Why are you now looking to come back to study? Would this study benefit your current profession or enhance your future prospects?

Also if there has been a gap between now and your previous course of study, what were you doing in this time and why are you now ready to return to study? 

Do you understand what your responsibilities will be as a Student Route visa holder?

Take a look to the UKCISA website at the guidance that tells you more about protecting your Student Route visa status https://www.ukcisa.org.uk/Information--Advice/Visas-and-Immigration/Protecting-your-Student-status

Financial Questions:

What is your current occupation (if currently employed)?

How does your chosen course of study relate to the work that you have been doing? If it differs greatly then explain why you have made a change.

Do you feel you would be better suited to another line of employment or is further study something that you have always wanted to do? 

Do you have relatives who have studied at a similar level or have studied overseas?

It may be that a family member has studied overseas and they have recommended this to you.

If not, explain why you are the first from your family to want to take this route.

How will study in the UK benefit you? 

Do you think your course is appropriate for someone of your age?

If you are a mature student you may be required to explain why you are choosing to continue your studies at this point.

Will the further study benefit your current employment?

Or is this something that you have been saving up for and wanting to do for a long time? 

Who is financing your studies/cost of living in the UK?

You or your parents?

If your parents are financing your studies, you may be asked to discuss how they are able to do this.

Remember documents confirming their financial status may be included with your application. 

What is the profession of your financial sponsor and what relationship are they to you?

You may be asked what job the person who is sponsoring you has, to justify how they can continue to support you in this way. 

Do you have evidence of the financial status of your financial sponsor?

g. bank statements for the last 6 months, bonds, investments etc.

These should have been submitted with your application. 

Are you able to verify the genuineness of these documents?

If the Home Office contact the school, college or bank that produced the documentation submitted would the school, college or bank confirm that they are genuine?

Do you foresee any issues in the Home Office contacting the institution? If so have a covering letter ready that provides contact details for the institution involved. 

Can you prove that this money is available for your study?

You should already have documentation in the form of bank statements, or your parents’ bank statements (with proof of their relationship to you) ready to form a part of your application.

Are these original documents?

Will the Home Office be able to contact the bank to verify these statements? 

Would you be able to pay your tuition fees in one full amount?

If not what arrangements have you made to ensure that you can pay at the appropriate times? 

Have you checked the University refund policy?

This may be asked and you can obtain a copy of the refund policy from our Finance department or online. 

Do you know how much accommodation will cost in the UK? 

Do you know how much your living expenses will be?

You may be asked about general living expenses more information; https://www.ukcisa.org.uk/Information--Advice/Studying--living-in-the-UK/How-much-will-it-cost-to-study-in-the-UK

Do you know whether you are entitled to work part-time in the UK?

As an Arden University student, you will not be able to work during your studies – you should be aware of this at your interview

Useful links:

Arden University              https://arden.ac.uk/

Living in the UK                UKCISA - international student advice and guidance - Studying in the UK? Click on ‘Info and Advice’ and see the drop down ‘Studying and Living in the UK’

Term dates                         https://arden.ac.uk/studying-with-us/why-arden/blended-learning

About London               https://www.visitlondon.com/    https://visitbirmingham.com/

British Council                  www.educationuk.org/UK/Life-in-the-UK

Home Office                      https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/student-visas

A guide to the Student Route visa process:

This guidance will assist you in applying for your visa to study in the UK through the UK Visas and Immigration’s ‘Student Route’. We hope that it will provide you with all the information you require to make this a smooth process. However, we will be on hand throughout your visa application journey to assist you with any queries that you might have.

To be be issued a student visa you will need to achieve 70 points, by meeting the requirements detailed in the following table, this details the requirements and the evidence required to meet these;

Evidential requirements:

The evidence that you will need to provide with your application are;

• CAS – ‘Confirmation of Acceptance to Study’: This will be issued to you by Arden University
• Qualifications: These will be the qualifications accepted by Arden University that meet our entry requirements. They will be listed on your CAS. You should submit your original qualifications, with certified translations if these are not in English.
• SELT: This is your Secure English Language Test, as listed on your CAS
• If you are relying on your English as assessed in a previous successful Tier 4/Student route visa application, the CAS used in that application.
• Financial documentations: As detailed below

Your Finances:

The Home Office has specified the amount of money that you will need to show before they grant you the 10 points towards your Student Visa. If you are studying in the UK (inside London) for the first time you will need:

Financial Evidence Requirements:

• The Student Guidance states that a banking or building society record would normally:

• • be on official stationary or an electronic record
  • be printed or electronic (not hand written)
  • include the account holder(s) names
  • include the account number
  • include the date of the statement
  • include information about the bank, such as contact details or a branch code
  • show transactions and amount held over time (although this is not the normality in all countries)

• Bank statements must be from your or your parent’s personal account. You cannot use business bank account statements. If you wish to use a legal guardian’s bank statement you must include either your certificate of adoption or a court document naming your legal guardian(s). You cannot use an affidavit
• If you are using your parent’s bank account, you must include your original birth certificate and a letter from your parents giving their permission to use the funds
• If any of your documents are not in English, you will need to include a translation by a professional translator with your application
• You need to have enough money in your bank to pay for any remaining tuition fees and the cost of living in the UK
  - Cost of living in Central London = £1334 per month
  - Cost of living in the rest of the UK = £1023 per month
• You must have saved at least enough to cover the cost of living for each month of your course up to a maximum of 9 months
• The bank statement needs to show that you have held enough money (see above) every day for at least 28 consecutive days prior to the closing balance of your bank statement
• The bank statement must be no more than 31 days old on the day that you submit your visa application. The date of your visa application is the day you pay for your application online
• If the bank statement is not in GBP,  it is advisable to include a print-out of a currency conversion using oanda.com

Issue of CAS:

Having collated your evidential documents relating to;

• Finances
• English Language.

These should be submitted to Arden University for review as a part of your application to study. If they are approved we will issue you with a Confirmation of Acceptance for Study or CAS. This document will provide information about your offer for study as well as a code that you will need to input when making your visa application online.

Making your online application:

You can your application online at; https://www.gov.uk/student-visa

You will note that his links provides you with details of requirements, as listed above. It then gives you the option of applying, you should choose the option; Applying from ‘Outside the UK’. By clicking on this link, you will be able to proceed with your application. You cannot do this until you have received your CAS from Arden University.

Additional documentation:

Alongside the documents that we have listed above, you will also need your passport to make your application, this needs to be in date and have two blank pages within it.

If any of your documents need translation into English, translation will need to be provided with any evidence that you are asked to submit. This should contain;

• Confirmation from the translator/translation company that it is an accurate translation of the original document
• The date of translation
• The full name and signature of the translator, or of an authorised official of the translation company
• The contact details of the translator or translation company.

Application cost:

There are various services available:

• Standard service - £490
• Priority service - £990
• Super Priority service - £1290

Immigration Health Surcharge:

In addition to the above you will need to pay £470 (per year) to cover the cost of National Health Service costs for your time in the UK. This payment will ensure that you have access to the Health Service in the UK during your course of study.

To calculate the correct charge for the length of your stay you can use this UKVI tool; https://www.immigration-health-surcharge.service.gov.uk/checker/Type

This may all sound very daunting, however we will have a specialist team to help you every step of the way. We will be on hand to check documents should you need us to and advise you around any queries arising as you make your online application for a student visa.

Next steps – credibility interview preparation:

After you have submitted your application, you may be called for an interview. As a part of your application process at Arden University, we will contact you to prepare you for this interview which looks to check your intention to study in the UK – to show that you are a genuine student. Again this is nothing to worry about and we will be on hand to help you in preparing for this.

All information correct at time of drafting (5/7/2022)

TB test requirements:

The UKVI require visa applicants from certain countries to certify that you do not have Tuberculosis prior to entering the UK, this includes nationals of China, India, Pakistan and Vietnam.

The process requires an x-ray to be taken to confirm you are not carrying TB and then obtaining a certificate to confirm the same from a listed clinician.

You can find out more about the test requirements and whether you are required to take the test at https://www.gov.uk/tb-test-visa

As a Student Route visa holder there will be certain responsibilities that you will have to enable you to retain our visa during study. Similarly, as a Student Route licence holder, Arden University will also have responsibilities which they have to meet. By working together and understanding these responsibilities, we the University and you the student can ensure that your visa status is fully protected during the course of your student journey.

This guide will define your responsibilities and the University’s and will describe how we will meet these in practice;

Correct as of 5/7/2022

Preparing for your arrival to the UK:

Student Route Enrolment guide:

As a Student Route visa holder, you will only be able to enrol at Arden University when you have arrived in the UK. This page will describe the steps to enrolment.

1. BRP collection:

You should collect your BRP prior to the expiry date of the vignette in your passport or 10 days after arriving in the UK, whichever is the later. Your UKVI letter will confirm which Post Office you need to collect your BRP card from. Our International Support team will assist you in travelling o the Post Office to collect your BRP card. To collect this you will need;

1. Your passport with stamped and dated vignette;
2. Your BRP collection letter, which you would have received when you were granted your visa;
3. CAS letter

There are measures in place to allow for delay to collect BRP due to Covid-19, you can find out more about this on our Covid-19 guidance pages; [link here]

2. Bring original documents as stated in CAS to Tower Hill study centre reception. These documents will include, but may not be limited to;
   1. Original qualification certificates;
   2. Passport with dated and stamped vignette, if this is not dated and stamped you will need confirmation of arrival in the form of an arrival card – so please keep this document when you arrive in the UK;
   3. Original IELTS certificate;
   4. Financial documents as listed in CAS;
   5. Your BRP;
   6. Police Registration certificate if required (unless we have arranged for collection post enrolment)

You must ensure that you check the documents listed in your CAS to make sure that you bring these to the UK with you, unfortunately we will not be able to enrol if you do not have your original documents with you.

3. The International Support team will check your documents, take copies of these to keep on file and then allow you to access your online enrolment at the Study Centre.
4. You have enrolled! You should now hav eyou student card and access to the ILearn platform to access your online material.
5. Police Registration; your vignette and BRP will tell you if you need to register with the Police. If this is the case, the International Student Adviser will assist you in the process. To register with the Police you will need;
   1. 2 recent colour passport photographs – NB these need to be UK passport photo size;
   2. Your passport;
   3. Your vignette;
   4. Your BRP;
   5. Fee of £34.00

You can find out more information about this at https://www.gov.uk/register-with-the-police/how-to-register which tells you the information that the police will take about you.

Essential next steps on arrival:

Register with a Doctor;

It is important that you register with a doctor or ‘GP’ General Practitioner when you arrive in the UK. It is best to choose a GP practice close to your student accommodation. You can use the NHS website service to locate a GP at Find a GP - NHS (www.nhs.uk) . You should not wait until you are unwell to register with a GP, you should register as soon as you can.

Opening a bank account;

We advise that you open a UK bank account when you arrive in the UK. This will make it easier for you to withdraw funds and use a debit card for payments in the UK. Most banks will open basic bank accounts, some may have specific bank accounts for International students.

There are some bank which offer Sharia compliant accounts, you can find out more about this here; https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/savings/types-of-savings/sharia-compliant-savings.

To open a bank account you will normally need;

• Proof of your address in the UK;
• Proof of your address in your home country;
• Your passport;
• Your Student Route BRP card;
• Funds to make an initial deposit in your account;
• Arden University student status letter – which will confirm your enrolment with us.

You can get more guidance at https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/banking/basic-bank-accounts

Banks are required to make checks on the immigration status of their customers, as such you should note that if your bank believe that you are in breach of your visa they may report you to the Home Office and freeze your bank account. Before you leave the UK you should inform your UK bank.

You should also inform your bank of changes to your details such as address or any other personal details.

Cost of living in the UK;

Understanding the costs of items in the UK and specifically London, will help you budget during your study. A great tool for this exercise is at How much it costs to live at university - Which?

The UK offers a wide range of discount services for students, so that you can save money during your study. This includes offer on travel, whether this is local or national. A few of these are listed below;

• London Underground: https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel/18-plus-student-oyster-photocard
• National train travel: https://www.16-25railcard.co.uk/
• Shopping discounts: https://www.studentbeans.com/uk https://www.isic.org/ https://www.nus.org.uk/

Another great way of finding out best ways to live in the UK is to speak to fellow students, or our support team. You can also get in touch with [details of student’s union here]

Food shopping: There are a range of supermarkets in the UK, these range from budget; Lidl, Aldi to expensive; Mars and Spencer’s, Waitrose, with many in-between; Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco’s. As a part of your induction our student support team will introduce you to local stores in the area around the Tower Hill campus, this will give you a good opportunity to find out more. In addition, as you will be living in London you should find many stores offering items that you would find in your home country and restaurants and cafes that you can find your home cuisine from – hopefully making your stay easier.

Culture shock:

Moving from your home country to the UK can impact the way in which you feel. At first, you may feel very excited about your new surrounds, but sometimes due to the way in which the UK differs from your home country, you may start to fee uneasy. This will feel frustrating and uncomfortable at first, but we hope that it is something that you will overcome.

Why might I feel this way? You will find that everything in the UK is different to the way things are at home; the food, the weather, the way people dress, speak and of course learn! This in addition to missing your friends are faily can affect your mental health.

So how can I feel better?

1. You should see this type of feeling as the norm, a lot of your fellow students will feel the same,
2. You can also always speak to the International Student advisor about how you’re feeling or [link to mental health at Arden]
3. Make sure you bring mementos of home, such a photos and have these in your accommodation
4. Keep in touch with friends and family at home
5. Find some food from your country, the most commonly missed thing for an International student is the food they usually eat at home. London is a very multi-cultural city, so search out where you can find food from your home country – and enjoy!
6. Take regular exercise, ask the Student support team about gyms nearby and how you can join. Or walk, take in the city by foot.
7. Eat healthily and maintain a balanced diet.
8. Most importantly, do speak to someone if you are feeling down, we are ere for you and understand how you may be feeling.

International Student Support and Compliance team: This team is based in the Registry and student support team. With many years’ experience in International student support, we are here for all your needs and to make your time at Arden the best it can be! We will provide you with the pastoral and visa support that you need from the point that you make your application, during your studies and after you complete your course. The type of queries and issues we deal with are;

1. Queries about living in the UK;
2. Accommodation support;
3. Enrolment and induction;
4. Visa advice, pre-arrival and on course;
5. Visa compliance – ensuring you are meeting the requirements of your Student Route visa;
6. Supporting you with any welfare needs during your stay in the UK;
7. And many more!

Our International Student Support and Compliance adviser will be on hand at the Tower Hill Study Centre on most days, we are also contactable by email at internationalstudentsupport@arden.ac.uk.

For any visa and immigration queries you can contact us at studentroutesupport@arden.ac.uk