Over 60 Nigerian students, whose names were shared with BBC, are pushing for support from the university. The sudden switch in the university’s tuition fee payment plan, cutting it from seven installments to three, has really hit the students hard financially. This push came after the university took strict actions against those who couldn’t make payments, like locking them out of their accounts and dropping them from their courses.
Some students who missed payments were even contacted by debt collectors working for the university. Adenike Ibrahim, a student who was close to finishing her dissertation after two years of study, faced serious consequences after missing just one payment. Even though she had paid 90% of her tuition fees and attended all her classes, she was kicked out of her course and reported to the Home Office.
Ms. Ibrahim described the university’s refusal to negotiate as “awful” and talked about the emotional toll it took on her and her son, who has been really upset by the whole situation. The Home Office told students, including Ms. Ibrahim, that they had to leave the UK because they were no longer studying at the university. The letters, seen by the BBC, set a deadline for the students to leave the country and said there was no right to appeal or review the decision.
One master’s degree student, who wanted to stay anonymous, felt really distressed after getting his letter, saying he even thought about suicide and couldn’t bring himself to eat or drink. Another student, Esther Obigwe, talked about her failed attempts to tell the university about her financial struggles. In the end, she was barred from her studies and told to leave the country. Ms. Obigwe, who saw herself as a really active student, found the whole experience really disheartening. She talked about how it seriously affected her mental health, leading to her taking antidepressants and struggling with sleep and appetite for over two months. Ms. Obigwe highlighted the financial sacrifices made by the students to study in the UK, expressing confusion and frustration over the harsh treatment they received despite their dedication and commitment to their studies.
