The International Student Advice Team (ISAT) provides support and advice to international students, as well as staff working with international students at Oxford Brookes.
Referring students to ISAT
ISAT Advisers are the University's designated immigration advisers and it is our job to keep up to date with the rapidly changing immigration rules and guidance issued by the Home Office.
If a student needs visa/immigration advice, they should be referred to ISAT. Please direct them to our contact page.
ISAT contacts for staff
Oxford Brookes Global: Sally Saca
Email: ssaca@brookes.ac.uk
Social events programme, trips, Arrivals activities: Sally Saca
Email: ssaca@brookes.ac.uk
Global Buddies: Jasmin De Zilva
Email: global-buddies@brookes.ac.uk
Humanities and Social Sciences: Guenievre Laurent
Email: glaurent@brookes.ac.uk
Technology, Design and Environment: Ilaria D'Andrea
Email: idandrea@brookes.ac.uk
Oxford Brookes Business School: Jasmin De Zilva
Email: jde-zilva@brookes.ac.uk
Health and Life Sciences: Guenievre Laurent
Email: glaurent@brookes.ac.uk
Pathway courses: Sally Saca
Email: ssaca@brookes.ac.uk
For general queries or if the named person is not available:
Email: isat@brookes.ac.uk
For visa compliance, please email the International Student Compliance Team at isct@brookes.ac.uk
FAQs
A student is asking me for a letter because they are travelling home during semester time
Student visa holders are required to attend all parts of their course so they should not plan holidays during semester time. However, sometimes students need to travel home for personal reasons. They should always ask permission from their Academic Adviser and from any module leader where they will miss part of the course.
If faculty staff give permission for the student to travel, we advise the student to get a letter or email from faculty to say that they are aware they are travelling home and giving the latest date that they should return by to be allowed to continue their course. If the student is taking Approved Temporary Withdrawal then Brookes will report this to the Home Office who will curtail their visa to just 60 days.
Changing course
CASs are now tied to the course not just to the institution and so a student must come and see ISAT for visa advice if they want to change course.
How long can an international student study in the UK?
The limit for undergraduate level study is normally five years; for below degree level study it is normally two years. Check with ISAT for details.
Can students study with us if they have a visa that is not a Student visa?
ISAT can have a look at the student's current visa to see if there are any restrictions on studying and whether they can remain on their current visa or whether they need to apply for a new visa.
When can a student study part-time?
Part-time study is allowed on a Student visa (previously Tier 4) when a student is retaking a module or writing up a postgraduate dissertation in order to complete a full-time course. If a student has questions about studying part time on a Student visa, please ask them to contact ISAT.
Part-time study is allowed on a Visitor visa for courses less than 6 months.
If a student wants to apply for any other part-time course they cannot do this with a Student visa but may be able to do it if they have another visa that does not prohibit study. In this case please contact ISAT.
A student is asking me for a letter to say they can work
You do not need to provide such a letter. It is the employer's responsibility to check with Home Office if they are not sure if they can employ a student. The employer should refer to the Home Office guidance document. The student does require confirmation of their semester dates; they can refer to the semester dates on the website as long as these are correct for your course.
A student wants me to extend their dissertation deadline so they can extend their visa
Oxford Brookes should only extend a dissertation with reference to exceptional circumstances and not to enable a student to extend their visa.
What are the English Language requirements for a Student visa?
The Admissions office will assess an applicant's English language qualifications to check they meet our requirements which are normally higher than the UKVI ones. The UKVI state that students studying on a Student visa atdegreelevel or higher need a B2 qualification (IELTS 5.5) and those below degree level need at least B1 level need a Home Office approved test taken at B1 (IELTS 4.0).
Presentations
ISAT can come to your Faculty or department and present to staff or students. Please contact us if you are interested in any of these topics or have any suggestions for other areas.
- An Introduction to ISAT
- How to extend your student visa
- Our responsibilities under the Points Based System
- Cultural awareness
- Students, work and immigration
- Social events and activities for international students