EduLife

Students 'risk dropping out' if bill passed 20 Aug 2011

Hundreds of students could have dropped out of university last year without help from students' associations, which are now under threat from a parliamentary bill, the national students' organisation says. Today is the two-year anniversary since ACT MP Heather Roy's contentious Voluntary Student Membership Bill was drawn in a ballot. The Labour Party has been accused of filibustering to slow the bill's passage. According to Mrs Roy, it would need the two members' days left before Parliament rises to get it into law. But the New Zealand Union of Students Association is hoping to stave off the bill with a compromise. Co-president David Do said at least 1900 students across the country made use of advocacy services last year, many of whom could have dropped out of university if they had not had access to them. "If students are not able to get the help they need on campus ... there is a risk [of] some of them dropping out." Though this figure was a fraction of the more than 350,000 tertiary students, it was imperative services continued, as it was impossible to know when someone might need them, he said. Advocacy was offered on issues including serious academic grievances, problems with examination and grading, immigration, tenancy, and harassment and discrimination cases.If the bill passed in its current form, it was likely some associations would collapse, Mr Do said, with a conservative estimate of service loss across all associations placed at 48 per cent by a PricewaterhouseCoopers report. Mrs Roy said students would not be left without welfare services or at risk of dropping out of university under the bill because, even if services disappeared, individual universities would take on services. "I don't accept that implication at all." Associations that served their student populations well would survive, she said. Waikato University student Josh Scarrow, 21, was left homeless in his second year, after the flat he shared with five other students burned down. At $400 each, most flatmates could not pay the bond so Waikato Students Union gave those who needed it an interest-free loan. They also provided $50 each in supermarket vouchers and helped with free legal advice. "We managed to be in a new flat within a week of the last one burning down ... I wouldn't have been left high and dry but it was definitely easier and there's other people who don't have the parental safety net." While the straight-A student, currently doing his Masters in environmental microbiology, maintained high marks, he doubted that would have been possible without the association's help. Mr Do said NZUSA were proposing a less extreme version of Mrs Roy's bill which would still have universal student membership but make the student opt-out much easier. But Mrs Roy said student unions had behaved "disgracefully" over letting students opt out previously. Ref-The Dominion Post

EduLife

New Zealand quick student visas on way

International students may be able to bypass the immigration department when getting visas under a new scheme to increase enrolment. Immigration New Zealand chief executive Nigel Bickle said that "trusted institutions" could get the power to make visa decisions for students – as was done in Britain. "We hope with investment and technology, more high-value and low-risk students will be able to get visas without ever having to interact with Immigration. Automated decision-making will be the future," he said. The move supported the department's 2015 Vision, "to be recognised as a trusted partner delivering outstanding immigration services and bringing the best people New Zealand needs to prosper". The "ambitious yet realistic" bid to speed up student-application processing times domestically and globally was vital to staying competitive in the market, he said. "The processing of student-visa applications occurs in all parts of the world and it is vital that we stay competitive in delivering fast and accurate decisions in all of our visa processing locations." The current "service standard" was to process 80 per cent of all student applications, all over the world, within 30 days. As at March 2011, 89 per cent of student applications across the board were being processed within 30 days on average. By this time next year, Immigration hoped to improve that to 90 per cent in 25 days. Immigration was going to take a more "innovative and risk-based" approach including "upping its game" in the critical markets of China and India, he said. "Expanding these markets will help the export education sector grow into a $5 billion-dollar a year export earner which it has the potential to do." Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology's International director Beth Knowles said quicker visa processing was important to secure enrolments. "You can lose a student to other countries if it takes too long. It's a very competitive industry with other countries," she said. "I think it is very positive Immigration is looking at lots of different options." At present CPIT could renew straightforward visas online, however some visa renewals had to be done through Immigration and could take time. "That is not a good thing for the institution because the student is already here ... because they might want to study for the next semester but they cannot attend classes," Knowles said. Lincoln University international marketing director Ian Douthwaite said he welcomed the long-term risk-based, high-trust vision. "Immigration policies and processes are always an important factor in influencing students' choice of study destinations. We're pleased with the way Immigration New Zealand has worked steadily to improve processes and service delivery and how they consult with the education sector and listen to our needs when making changes," he said. Canterbury University's pro-vice-chancellor, student services and international Nello Angerilli said the university was supportive of measures that enabled high-quality international students to choose New Zealand. Ref - The Press