International Students

1. Documents you must submit with the application

After completing the application form, you must submit the following documents as part of the application process. All documents must be emailed to us via admissions@lsme.ac.uk . This is to enable us issue the Confirmation of Acceptance to Study (CAS) letter. 

• A current passport or other valid travel documentation.
• Proof that you can support yourself and pay for your course – this will vary depending on your circumstances. This is evidence of funds for the tuition fee (less any amount that has been previously paid to LSME) and a maximum of nine months of maintenance fee of £1,334 per month for the living cost in London. Further details can be found under Tier 4 Visa.
• Your original qualification certificate with your full name, the title of the award; the date of the award and the name of the awarding institution.
• Transcript of results with your full name; the name of the academic institution; your course title; and the confirmation of the award.
• Two reference letters with your name, a confirmation of the type or level of your qualification or previous experience, date of the letter and contact details of the referees.
• An authentic translation of all foreign language certificates or supporting document into English language.

2. English Language requirement for international students

If you are an international student and will require a Student Visa in order to stay in the UK, you will have to pass an approved Secure English Language Test in your home country and present this evidence with your application documents. Prospective international students who are applying for courses at RQF levels 4 and 5 which are below degree level must ensure they are competent in the English language at a minimum level B1 on the Common European Framework for languages (CEFR). This is equivalent to an IELTS for UKVI Test score of 5.0 (Listening: 5.0; Speaking: 5.0; Reading: 5.0; Writing: 5.0).

Prospective international students applying for a course at a degree level must demonstrate an English language efficiency at a minimum Level B2 on CEFR. This is equivalent to IELTS for UKVI Test Score of 5.5 (Listening: 5.5; Speaking: 5.5 Reading: 5.5; Writing: 5.5).

Students applying either for the Masters level programmes or for the QCF level 5 Diploma in Education and Training must achieve an overall IELTS for UKVI Test Score of 6.0 with a minimum of 6.0 in either Reading, Listening, Speaking or Writing.

Exemptions

You do not need to prove your knowledge of English if you have completed a qualification equivalent to a UK degree in: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, and USA.

You also do not need to prove your knowledge of English if one of the following apply:

You are a national of Canada or Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, USA.

You have studied in the UK before as a Tier 4 (Child) student.

You are applying to come to the UK for a study abroad programme as part of a university degree course in the USA.

You obtained your entry qualification in the UK within two years of applying for a qualification with LSME.

3. Application processing

This policy outlines the processing of all applications submitted to the School. The admission team checks the application pack ensuring that all relevant documents are enclosed and all requirements are satisfied. The admission team will also perform the following checks on the applicant’s qualifications:

• Check that the qualifications are authentic: A letter/email will be sent to the awarding body or educational institution which awarded the qualification if there is any reason to seek clarification about its authenticity.
• The admission team will check the UK equivalent of foreign qualifications with the UK National Information Centre for the recognition and evaluation of international qualifications and skills (UK ENIC).
• Check the authenticity of other supporting documents if necessary.

The Admissions Team will then make three possible decisions:

• The applicant meets the minimum entry requirements and is eligible for an interview.
• The applicant meets the minimum entry requirements but will need to submit additional supporting documents. An interview will be arranged.
• The applicant does not meet the minimum entry requirements and does not merit an interview. The admission team will convey the decision for rejection to the applicant indicating the reasons for rejection (e.g. qualification is below the required level or low English Language test score).

4. Interview

The admissions team will arrange a time and date with the candidate to carry out an interview if you have met the minimum entry requirement and English language requirement for your chosen course.

The interviewer will assess if:

• Your appearance is the same as that of the photo on the passport copy submitted with the application form.
• Your spoken English is good enough to cope with the lectures and course delivery methods used at LSME.
• Your knowledge and understanding of and enthusiasm for the subject appear to match the impression given by their qualifications and application form.
• You can adhere to the attendance and coursework submission requirements which determine your ability to succeed in a chosen programme.
• Your relevant work experience will add some value to your training.
• Your previous history of violation of UK immigration rules.
• Information on financial sponsorship for the entire duration of the course.
• Their personal statement of purpose is relevant to the chosen programme.
• For in country international student applicants, we will also assess whether they meet the academic progression rule is in place to ensure that students are progressing academically and are not merely seeking to extend their stay in the UK. Unless they are applying to move to LSME to complete an existing course commenced by a Sponsor whose licence has been revoked.

An online interview will be arranged for international students who are abroad. Otherwise, all interviews will be conducted face-to-face. The interviewers will complete a checklist when making decisions on applicants. The checklist records the details of what was discussed, work experience, personal interest, attendance, work placement arrangements, dependents, child care arrangements and general comments.

Online interviews

LSME will organise a venue and time for your interview.

The interview will be recorded and saved to a secure server as evidential proof.

• A screenshot of you will be taken and stored on the electronic student database.
• Any written or typed information – as part of the process will be printed and kept on record for evidential purposes.
• A standard form with a checklist of questions will be kept for each online interview and the script will be given to you to read and approve as part of the recorded interview.
• You will also be asked about their dependents and plans for the family, finances and their return to their Home country after their studies.
• For further details on online interviews, READ MORE

Face-to-face interview

In view of the Coronavirus Pandemic, there will be minimum face-to-face interviews and the majority of in country applications will be done using the online meeting platforms and will be recorded as above.

• Any written or typed information – as part of the process must be printed and kept on record for evidential purposes.
• A standard form with a checklist of questions should be kept for each interview and the script must be given to the candidate to read and approve as part of the recorded interview.
• International students MUST be asked about dependents and plans for family, finances and their return to their Home country after their studies.
• For further details on Face-to-face interviews, READ MORE

5. Decision

The admission team will make a decision on whether to admit the applicant. There are three possible outcomes:

i. Conditional Offer – The team believes that you are ready to start on the chosen course provided certain conditions are met. These conditions can include passing a pre-sessional course in English to move your proficiency in English from CEFR Level B1 to B2 or submitting additional documents. When the conditions are met, the unconditional offer letter will be issued. The terms and conditions developed in line with the guidelines from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will be made clear to you in your conditional offer letter.

ii. Unconditional Offer – The team is satisfied that you are ready to start on your chosen course having met all the relevant conditions. You will be issued an unconditional offer letter. The offer letters will include a statement on the chosen programme, start date, and finish date, awarding body, place of study, tuition fee, mode of study together with the student contract terms and conditions if this was not issued initially.

iii. Rejection – The team is not satisfied with your ability to successfully study on your chosen course.  The Admissions team will indicate the reason for the decision (e.g. academic grades too low, course not suitable or team is not convinced of the applicant’s intention to study and comply with relevant requirements etc.). A member of the admission team will convey the decision of rejection to the applicant. An applicant could however be offered further advice on alternative courses that may be suitable for their circumstances. If the applicant has listed other course choices, the application may be considered for the next choice of course.

6. Acceptance

Applicants must read the terms and conditions and accept or reject any offer within two weeks of receiving the offer letter.

7. Payment of Tuition Fees

International students who require a Student visa in order to study in the UK must pay a minimum of 50% of their tuition fee for the first year of their study within 2 weeks of accepting the offer. A payment plan will be agreed for the rest of the tuition fee which must be settled within 3 months of the course start date.

International students must demonstrate they have enough money for the living expenses for the duration of their stay in UK for up to 9 months, unless you’ve been in the UK with a valid visa for at least 12 months on the date of your application. It is estimated that the monthly living expenses in London is £1,334 per calendar month.

If you are an international student, you will need a student visa to study with LSME.

The UKVI’s Points-Based System (PBS) has made the student visa process a lot smoother and more predictable than before. Student visa applications are now assessed using points.

Student route points are shown below:

Through this route, you need to demonstrate that you meet the required 70 points, by ensuring that you have been offered a place on a course and have been issued with a CAS letter (50 points), providing the evidence that you have access to your full tuition fee and living expenses in London for up to a maximum of 9 months (10 points) and demonstrate that you can understand, speak, read and write English (10 points).

There are strict guidelines on sources and evidence of funds that are permissible by the UKVI. Some of the approved sources and evidence of funds for your course includes:

• Personal bank or building society statements
• Building society pass book
• Letter from a financial institution confirming funds
• Letter from a financial institution confirming a loan
• Letter from a bank or building society confirming funds
• Money held by your parent(s) or legal guardian

For more information, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-points-based-immigration-system-further-details-statement/uk-points-based-immigration-system-further-details-statement

This means you must have:

1. Paid LSME at least 50% of your tuition, plus
2. Proved that you have £12,006.00 (£1,334 x 9 months) in cleared funds plus any amount still unpaid to LSME [from 1 above] as tuition fee for the first year of your course, including £845 per dependent per month for up to 9 months (if applicable) in order to be considered for a student visa.
3. For further information on exemptions visit https://www.gov.uk/student-visa/money
4. You must also be able to show that you are going to follow a recognised full-time degree course, a full-time course at an independent fee-paying school, or, as will be the case for your programme of study at LSME, a course run during the week involving at least 15 hours of organised daytime study each week.

Applying from inside the UK

If you are on student visa, you must meet the academic progression requirements in order to extend your stay in the UK to undertake a further study. If you have previously gained a degree in the UK, the LSME will need to verify that the course you are entering represents academic progression. We may not be able to issue you a CAS if you have applied to do a course at the same academic level as the one that you have already successfully completed in the UK unless you can demonstrate that it is necessary for your specialisation in a specific area.

If you are applying to continue your studies in the UK or you are switching into the Student route from another Points Based System (PBS) route these guidelines will be relevant to you. First and foremost, your new programme must start within 28 days of the expiry of your permission to stay or, if you overstayed, within 28 days of when that period of overstaying began.

Your application must be submitted before the expiry of your previous period of leave. All applications for a further leave to remain require that you are not in breach of immigration laws in the UK. There are limited exceptions relating to overstaying previous conditions and any period of overstaying will not count against you were either of these conditions apply:

• If the application is made within 14 days of your leave expiring and the Secretary of State accepts there is a good reason beyond your control, or the control of your representative, preventing the application from being made in time, the overstaying will be disregarded. The reason for the overstay should be provided in the application.
• If the application is made following the refusal of a previous application for leave which was made in-time (or to which the exception in the point above applied) and within 14 days of one of the following:
  • The refusal of the previous application for leave.
  • The expiry of any leave which has been extended by section 3C of the Immigration Act 1971.
  • The expiry of the time limit for making an in-time application for administrative review or appeal.
  • Any administrative review or appeal being concluded, withdrawn, abandoned or lapsed.

On the other hand, if your course has ended and you are applying from inside the UK to extend your stay, you should apply in the last three months of your permission to stay if possible.

For further information on how to apply for your Student Visa, please refer to the guidance notes on https://www.gov.uk/study-uk-student-visa

Supporting documents for the visa application

You will need the following documents to apply for your visa:

• Confirmation of Acceptance of Studies (CAS)
• Current and valid passport/travel document
• Your original transcripts and certificates
• Evidence of finances
• Proof of English language proficiency
• Tuberculosis certificate*(if you are living in a country that is listed on the UKVI website)

* You may be exempt under specific conditions outlined by the UKVI. Further information on the tuberculosis certificate can also be found below.

You many need to provide more documents depending on your personal circumstance. You can find additional information on your supporting document here (https://www.gov.uk/student-visa/documents-you-must-provide)

Student visa application costs

A student visa application costs £363 for a standard service (which takes approximately 15 working days) if applied for from outside the UK. However, you can opt to have a faster service for the following costs:

• An additional £250 for the priority service which takes up to 5 working days for a decision to be made; or an additional £956 for the super priority service which takes 1 business day for a decision to be made.

In addition, you will also need to pay £470 per year for the Immigration Health Surcharge as part of your visa application. This gives you access to the UK’s National Health Service on generally the same basis as a UK permanent resident.

For further information and accuracy of the fees, please visit UKVI website. 

As an international students on our degree programmes, you are eligible for free NHS treatment only if you pay an Immigration Health Surcharge. The surcharge is paid as part of your visa application and costs £470 per year (This also includes £470 for each dependant, if applicable).

Further information is available on the Home Office (UKVI) website: https://www.gov.uk/healthcare-immigration-application/who-needs-pay