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You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> United Kingdom Asylum and Immigration Tribunal >> MG ('Degree level' study) South Africa [2007] UKAIT 00067 (30 July 2007) URL: https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKIAT/2007/00067.html Cite as: [2007] UKAIT 67, [2007] UKAIT 00067 |
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MG ('Degree level' study) South Africa [2007] UKAIT 00067
ASYLUM AND IMMIGRATION TRIBUNAL
Date of hearing: 18th June 2007
Date Determination notified: 11 July 2007
Before
SENIOR IMMIGRATION JUDGE SPENCER
Between
MG | APPELLANT |
and | |
Secretary of State for the Home Department | RESPONDENT |
DETERMINATION AND REASONS
The requirement of 'a course of study at degree level or above' in paragraph 60(i)(c) of HC 395 which has to be interpreted in accordance with paragraph 6 of the Rules means that the constituent parts of the course of study in question have to be at degree level.
The background
"1. The grounds accompanying the application raise an issue of interpretation as to what is meant by "degree level study", as defined by paragraph 6 of the Immigration Rules. It is arguable that the interpretation should be one that encompasses the type of course on which the appellant embarked.
2. Reconsideration is ordered on the appellant's grounds."
"While I am satisfied that the appellant is on a course of study at EThames, I am not satisfied that it is a course which leads to a degree: as Mr Mannan told me registration with the University of London is dependent on the appellant passing her first year exams. He told me that this would be the case for any first year student enrolled at a recognised body and attending a degree course at a recognised body. This was an assertion made by Mr Mannan without any evidence to support it. Accordingly based on the evidence before me I am not satisfied that the course on which the appellant is currently enrolled is a course which leads to a degree, any more than 'A' levels are a course which lead to a degree they may be a pre-requisite but they are separate and different from a course which leads to a degree."
The submissions on behalf of the appellant
The submissions on behalf of the respondent
My conclusions
"The requirements for an extension of stay as a student are that the applicant:
(i) was last admitted to the UK in possession of a valid entry clearance in accordance with paragraphs 57-75M or 82-87F of these Rules, unless the applicant:
..
(c) is a non-visa national who has been accepted for a course of study at degree level or above, and who entered the UK with leave in accordance with the provisions of any category of these Rules, other than paragraphs 40-56J, 82-87, 104-121, and 135I-135N; or .."
" a course which leads to a recognised United Kingdom degree at bachelor's level or above, or an equivalent qualification at level 6 or above of the revised National Qualifications Framework, or level 9 or above of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework"
"The phrase 'course of study' is capable of encompassing more than one course, though it need not. A 'course of study' is the sum total of the parts (courses) which coherently add together and lead to the educational outcome sought, such as a certificate or other qualification. Thus, a 'course of study' may comprise a foundation course followed by other more advanced courses which together, if successfully completed, lead to the qualification. The contrast therefore is with the parts (the 'courses' which themselves may be comprised of modules) and the whole or overall educational endeavour (the 'course of study'). That is not to say that a 'course of study' must always comprise more than a 'single' course. Whether it does will depend upon the structure of the 'course of study' itself."
It is important to appreciate, however, that the Tribunal was dealing with the obligation on the part of an applicant to demonstrate satisfactory evidence of regular attendance on the course for which he was last granted leave to enter or remain and was not concerned with the definition of a course of study at degree level or above.
"Under cover of a letter to the Tribunal dated 18 September 2006, the appellants have provided evidence that each of them is enrolled at the London Institution for Further and Higher Education, 19 Elmwood Road, Croydon, for a full-time course leading to an advanced diploma of the Association of Business Executives. The first appellant's diploma is to be in business information systems and his start date is given as 26 June 2006; the second appellant's diploma is to be in business administration and her start date is given as 16 October 2006. As is demonstrated by a letter from IND to the registrar of that institution, an ABE advanced diploma is regarded as a qualification at "degree level" for the purposes of the definition in paragraph 6 of HC 395. That is not because it is itself a degree, but because it is at level 6 or above of the revised National Qualifications Framework. We take it that the letters were intended to demonstrate that, at the date of the hearing, the appellants met the requirements of the Immigration Rules. It is possible that s85(4) of the 2002 Act was to be invoked. The position is, however, as Mr Tam pointed out, that registration for an ABE advanced diploma could not of itself show that the appellants met all the other requirements of paragraph 60. There is no evidence that they do meet the other requirements of paragraph 60, and the matter has never been investigated, because the refusal was solely on the basis of their failure to meet the requirements of paragraph 60(i)(b). There is a further problem. Each of the appellants' enrolment for the diploma is specifically conditional on meeting the "necessary entry requirement to pursue the course". According to the only evidence before us on the matter, which is paragraph 3.7.3.4 of the Respondent's Immigration Directorates' Instructions, in order to qualify for entry onto either of the advanced diplomas, an entrance must have attained an ABE diploma in the relevant discipline, a degree awarded by a recognised United Kingdom or overseas university, or another recognised qualification on an approved overseas institute of higher education. There appears to be no evidence before us that either of the appellants was qualified to embark on a course leading to an ABE advanced diploma ."
"In this Tribunal's view, the analogy sought to be made by Ms Taylor between the present case and that of a student progressing, subject to satisfactory performance, from one year to the next of a degree course is a false one. On the facts of this case, the better analogy is that of a person being given a conditional offer by a university, dependent upon that person obtaining particular grades at 'A' level. On any reading of the letter of 24 June 2005 from New College Nottingham, the appellant's acceptance on the GCSE programme was conditional; indeed, the third paragraph expressly refers to her having 'a conditional offer'. The Immigration Judge should have looked at the two courses for which the appellant had sought entry to the United Kingdom and asked himself whether she had been 'accepted' on them for the purposes of the Rules. As a matter of statutory interpretation, 'accepted' should, the Tribunal finds, be given its ordinary meaning. It cannot be equated with holding 'a conditional offer'. If the drafters of the Rules and the 2002 Act had intended to cover such a case, they could easily have done so. Accordingly, the appellant had not been 'accepted' for the GCSE course".
Signed Dated
Senior Immigration Judge Spencer