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Mr Kailash Deoli had been a successful marketing manager in a Dehra Dun electrical company for several years before deciding things had begun to get stagnant, and that it was time to do an MBA abroad.
It was London-based TASMAC, a branch of the Pune-based TASMAC Group, that he chose, mortgaging his home for an education loan to raise the £6,600 he needed for the degree, not including living expenses. The college offered full and part-time MBAs validated by the University of Wales as well as BAs. “I thought because they were an Indian company communication would be easier, that they'd look after us,” he said with a grim smile on his face as he sat outside the entrance of the college in Wembley, London, which he can no longer enter. On the locked front door, a message states that the school had been closed down with immediate effect, blaming new visa regulations in the UK.
It's been exactly two weeks since students got an e-mail (signed by an unspecified Director of the school) informing them that the school was shutting down. Yet, they remain in the dark about their future, says Mr Deoli. At a meeting just after the closure, students were informed of their limited options. These included joining other schools accredited by the University of Wales but further fees will have to be paid, and a semester redone; something that many students will find near-impossible.
Exploring options
Whether all students can be accommodated by these courses isn't clear yet, and TASMAC is exploring the possibility of offering students transfers back to India too. For Mr Deoli, who would have to retake the second semester he has just completed, neither option is tenable and for those from other countries (according to the Indian High Commission, 101 of the over 500 students are from India) the latter seems particularly unfeasible.
Working in the meantime isn't a possibility either, under the students' visa restrictions. “The news of college being closed down had shook my world and shattered my entire dream to live a respectful life,” wrote one student in an emotional e-mail to management, asking for a refund for all the fees and expenses he'd incurred so far.
That hope seems dim. A person familiar with the matter said of TASMAC in the UK, “They are in a difficult financial position...their liabilities far exceed their assets.” A creditors' meeting is due to take place later this week.
While TASMAC attributes the liquidation of the UK company to changes by the UK Border Agency, students argue the new requirements were known by the institution for many months. “Even in September we kept being assured the school would get the Highly Trusted Sponsor status it needed,' said Mr Deoli. When the e-mail about the closure of the school first arrived, he thought someone was playing a practical joke on him.
Government rule
The UKBA changed regulations governing student visas in April following an extensive consultation, as part of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government's pledge to sharply reduce non-EU immigration. “Some people in the past used the student visa route simply so that their spouses or families could come and work in the UK,” said the Prime Minister, Mr David Cameron, in a recent speech on immigration. Since May 2010, 97 education providers have had their licenses revoked and 340 have been prevented from bringing in new non-EU students, according to government figures.
A spokesperson for UKBA said that in most cases students would have 60 days to register with another accredited institution and would not need to reapply for a visa.
A person close to the Indian High Commission in London said that it was in touch with all Indian students, TASMAC and the University of Wales. Efforts were being made to transfer students to other TASMAC campuses in India (Kolkata, Pune and Bangalore) or transfer to another college linked to the University of Wales. “The question is whether they will have to pay again and how to go about visas,” they added. “TASMAC has promised to revert with details of the best financial model for helping students.”
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