Will Brexit Change The Way You Study?
With so much uncertainty surrounding Brexit and the UK’s place within the European Union, a lot of students are questioning whether or not there will be changes to the way that they study. There’s a lot of things up in the air at the moment when Brexit is concerned, with studies being a major concern for many young people. There’s no yes or no answer in regards to whether or not Brexit will change the way that you study, as so much is still unknown about how and when it will go ahead. So, it’s best to assume that there will be at least some minor differences.
Studying in the EU After Brexit
At the moment, students in the UK can study elsewhere in the EU with relative ease. That’s because there are processes in place to allow EU residents to move freely from one country to another, immigrating if they wish. This simplifies studying in the EU and therefore students have been heading abroad to further their education for many years under the Erasmus programme. However, Brexit is threatening to change some aspects of this.
Residents of EU countries are able to study elsewhere in the EU as ‘home students’, which means that they are treated in the same way as UK students. Home students benefit from paying lower tuition fees than other international students. Currently, 5% of students in the UK are from other EU countries. This contributes a lot to the UK economy and the job market. As well as students, there’s a large number of academic staff from the EU working in the UK. This works both ways, as a there are a lot of UK residents working and studying in other countries within the EU.
There has been a lot of concern in regards to whether any of this will change with Brexit. As the UK will no longer be part of the EU, there’s the assumption that students will not be able to more freely to study as they can now. There’s also the assumption that UK students wishing to study elsewhere in the UK will be forced to pay higher fees as international students. At the moment, it’s unclear as to whether UK students will still be able to study as home students.
Luckily, there have been some assurance for EU students studying in the UK. Those who are currently receiving students loans from The Student Loan Company, will continue to do so until the end of their course. Similarly, EU students applying to a university in England, Scotland and Wales in 2017/18 or 2018/19 will still receive their funding. They will also be eligible for home free, loans and grants.