Education
Australia introduces stricter controls over student visa applications
Australia has introduced stricter controls over its student visa applications which limits its post-study work rights policy for international students, which will take effect from the middle of this year.
These measures will ensure that visas are primarily used for education, rather than as a means to obtain long-term residency.
This comes in the aftermath of a major policy shift in December to halve its migrant intake over the next two years, following a record net immigration of 510,000 in 2022-23.
The projection indicate a reduction to approximately 250,000 in 2024-25 and 2025-26, aligning with pre-Covid figures.
A report revealed plans to “tighten visa regulations for international students and low-skilled workers” as part of reforming a “broken” migration system, with about 20% of international student visa applications being denied in the latter half of 2023, marking a three-year high.
Australia had introduced plans on July 1 last year to enhance post-study work rights for international graduates in certain critical skill shortage areas, offering an extra two years on their Temporary Graduate visa to “bolster the pathway to skilled employment.”
For undergraduate, master’s, and PhD students in specific programs, their stay was extended to 4-6 years based on their level of education. These periods will now be adjusted back to the initial 2-3 years, as declared by Australia’s Department of Education last week.
However, this policy is being reevaluated in light of Australia’s evolving economic circumstances and other factors, leading to the discontinuation of the extension for international higher education graduates from mid-2024.
This decision is part of a larger migration strategy by the Australian government to elevate the integrity and quality of its international education system.
The current strategy includes the introduction of a “Genuine Student Test,” stricter control over student visa applications, heightened English proficiency requirements, a trimmed list of accredited courses, and limits on changing courses.
Additionally, the English language requirement for the Temporary Graduate visa will increase from an IELTS score of 6 to 6.5, the age limit for applicants will decrease from 50 to 35 years, and there will be no additional extensions for post-study work rights, except for those who graduate from regional institutions.
Education
JAMB student automatically fails as he mistakenly clicks submit at the beginning of exam
A Nigerian guy recalls how his friend accidentally pushed the submit button at the commencement of his UTME.
@princejoexclusive revealed that the UTME applicant made an expensive mistake after months of preparation.
“Based on true life story, I didn’t know if I should laugh at the guy or should cry for him,” @princejoexclusive captioned his post on TikTok.
@princejoexclusive made a video inspired by his friend’s JAMB UTME situation, which drove internet into a frenzy.
The boy’s error means that he would flunk the exam because no score could be calculated for him on any of the subjects.
Education
4-year-old boy dies after being fed meat in Abuja school
Miguel Ovoke, a four-year-old pupil of Brickhall School in Kaura, Abuja, has died during feeding hours.
Ovoke was said to have been pronounced dead upon arrival at Excel Specialist Hospital, following complications during his lunch on Wednesday.
PUNCH reports that the hospital issued a death certificate stating the boy was brought in by his teachers around 11 am in an unconscious state.
The report, signed by Akinwande Ajayi, on behalf of the medical director, indicated that he was brought in “on account of aspiration on meat while feeding at school”.
The hospital said upon examination, the medical team found that “the boy’s pupils were fixed and dilated with a nonreactive response to light”.
Ovoke’s peripheral pulses were said to be “impalpable, blood pressure was unrecordable, and there was no cardiopulmonary activity or respiratory excursions, silent chest”.
The medical report indicated that all efforts to resuscitate him failed while concluding that he was “brought in dead”.
The sudden nature of Ovoke’s death has, however, prompted his parents to seek justice by contacting Deji Adeyanju, a human rights lawyer.
Brickhall School is said to be owned by Joy Emodi, a member of the 5th and 6th senate. She was appointed chairman of the senate committee on education.
Emodi also served as the special adviser on national assembly matters to former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Efforts by TheCable Lifestyle to get the authorities of the school to comment did not materialise as of the time this report was filed.
Education
Father arrested for writing UTME for son
The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) says cases of people having double national identification numbers (NIN) made impersonation possible in the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).
The statement from the exam body came after a father and his son were arrested for alleged impersonation in the ongoing UTME.
The father, whose name has not been disclosed, was said to have impersonated his son to help the latter pass the university entrance examination.
Ishaq Oloyede, registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), confirmed the development in an interview on Wednesday.
Oloyede inspected the Kaduna State University (KASU) Computer Based Test (CBT) centre after which he spoke to the press.
He said it is unfortunate that some parents have descended so low in morals to the extent of resorting to such shameful acts.
“Two of them are now in custody. I can’t understand what the father will tell his son when they are locked in the same cell,” Oloyede said.
Oloyede said the 2024 examination recorded huge success, except for a few cases of impersonation.
He said impersonation became possible because some people now have multiple NINs.
“For those who engage in cheating, they should know that it does not pay. The technology is helping us to check that. Across the country, most of the problem we have is impersonation,” he said.
“For instance now, we say we have NIN. We now have cases of people with two NINs. That has defeated the purpose of identity verification. We will take that up with NIMC; that there are people who have two NIN.”
Oloyede said a total of 1.94 million candidates sat for the 2024 UTME.
He added that those who have missed the exam for reasons not caused by JAMB should forget about it.
The registrar said the board cannot spend millions to reorganise a session for candidates who missed it due to their recklessness.
“Most of those candidates who missed the UTME are students from hostels who were made to register through schools because of the money the schools want to collect from the parents in the name of JAMB, They would now put 30 students in one bus,” he said.
“They will now be dropping them in different locations. By they get to the last student’s centre, he is already late for the exam. You will now see the principal writing to me. What business do I have with a school?
“Even a religious body wrote to me that ‘the following 100 candidates, I want them to write their exams on a particular day of the examination’. They were even deciding for me the school to post the candidates. How is that possible?”
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