Thank you for this comment @phdstudentha because it gives us the perfect time to unpack why we use the term migrant student.
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https://twitter.com/phdstudentha/status/1924491040221761819
This binary idea that is employed (migrant= poor) versus rich international students is actually problematic thinking.
A few points to consider:
1. No matter what your economic status is, EVERYONE is affected the #HostileEnvironment policy in and outside of UK higher edu.
A few points to consider:
1. No matter what your economic status is, EVERYONE is affected the #HostileEnvironment policy in and outside of UK higher edu.
A few years ago we had a case of a migrant student who came from an upper middle class background in Central Asia. Their father was made redundant during a Covid-19 lockdown. Their mother was disabled & needed urgent, round-the-clock care.
As a result of of all these issues, migrant student's parents could no longer pay for his tuition fees (£20,000) and maintenance. Migrant student fell into homelessness & could not pay the full amount of his tuition fees.
The migrant student began receiving weekly emails that failure to pay tuition fees on time would result in them being withdrawn from their programme & would mean their student visa would be revoked.
In order to support themselves, this student was working two gig economy jobs (one at a warehouse, the other in food delivery). In order to avoid homelessness, he was living in a double room with a friend and splitting the rent with this friend.
On fundamental thing to note- the #HostileEnvironment policy affects right to rent for migrant students. Most landlords ask up to 6 months rent in advance. Without funds & a valid visa, the is no ability to rent a flat in the UK. We outline this further because ...
...if a student is dealing with being unable to pay tuition fees on time & being told that their student visa can be revoked, they'd also are likely to find themselves homeless & unable to pay rent much less show that they have right to rent if their visa is going to be revoked.
To make a long story short, this student's father had to take out a very exploitative loan in order to pay the remainder of his £20K tuition fees. When the family was dealing with debt, job loss, & now more debt, this student may have come from a privileged background...
...at least in their home country. However, here in the UK they were precarious, both economically and in terms of their visa status. The student was adamant that they needed to pay their remaining tuition fees to graduate, get a grad visa in order to get a job in the UK.
A UK job wasn't just about experience for this student- it was about keeping his family financially afloat, to pay for his mother's medical expenses, and to help his father as he looked for employment again.
This is an example coming from a student who you would consider rich.
This is an example coming from a student who you would consider rich.
This leads us to this point:
2. Being a migrant is about structural xeno-racist violence that causes the very precarity & poverty that any of us can experience.
2. Being a migrant is about structural xeno-racist violence that causes the very precarity & poverty that any of us can experience.
Unlike British people, because of increasing xeno-racist policies, if a migrant loses their student status and/or job, no recourse to public funds (NRPF) kicks in meaning that we are prevented access to public funds. This only heightens precarity further.
Similar to the fact that anyone could be disabled, we also need to understand that wealth is not often stagnant, particularly for racialised students coming from developing countries.
Some of the Nigerian students that we support last year who were dealing with visa weaponisation by their universities for being unable to pay their tuition fees as a result of the naira collapse would have considered themselves middle class to upper middle class.
Yet, when their currency was completely devalued, they had to use food banks to survive. The Western manner that class is used in such cases that we've seen over the years does a complete disservice to the complexities in the matter.
To conclude- binary thinking about migrant students on erases the complexities of class & precarity. UCU & NUS doesn't care about these complexities. We do. Let's unpack & explore these issues further than rehashing tired points that embolden fascists further.
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