UCB Guild of students has responded to the government’s technical consultation on proposals to introduce a levy on international students.

Representing over 3,000 international students, we have raised serious concerns about the impact the levy will have on our international students.

Under the current proposals, English Universities would be charged £925 per international student, with the first 220 students exempt from the Levy. Whilst the government places this cost on Universities, we believe it is inevitable that the burden will fall on international students. This not only increases the costs for international students, but can undermine the attractiveness of the English higher education system

We believe that the model used to calculate the costs and impact of the levy is flawed and that the impact is a lot severe than the initial government estimates. This would cause financial strain to universities and would have an immediate impact on the teaching and learning environment for students.

Soham Chougale, Education Officer, Trustee of UCB Guild of Students’ Union, said:

“International students are not a revenue stream to be tapped; they are partners in our campuses and communities, and any levy that treats them as cash cows undermines the very values UK education claims to champion”

We recommend using Canva to do this, as there are plenty of free to use templates available – they should be eye catching, easy to read, have your name (and photo ideally) and a few main points from your manifesto.

Please note that your manifesto will need to be checked by the Guild Elections team to ensure it follows Elections guidelines before any campaign materials can be posted, including digital campaign materials.

You will need two versions to fit the correct screen dimensions – one Portrait (1920 x1080) and one Landscape (1080 x 1920). These materials also need to be spellchecked before submitting, so we’d recommend getting a friend to double check it for you!

We can also Spellcheck this for you if you don’t have someone you would feel confident to check this over for you – Get in touch with a member of the Guild Team if this is something you need.

Once your manifesto has been checked and approved, and your two versions have been spellchecked, email your two files to C.Johnson@UCB.ac.uk with the subject line ‘Elections Digital Campaign Materials’ followed by your name.

As with all other campaign materials – do not attempt to submit your digital posters before your manifesto has been approved. Equally, please do not attempt to submit your materials before the start of the campaigning (even if your manifesto has been approved) as it will not be added to the screens until the start of campaigning, and files sent early may be lost.

Lastly, remember to be polite to UCB staff throughout your campaign – Elections is many people’s first impression of you, make sure it’s a good one!