The University of Greenwich holds a start-up ideas pitching competition not only for fostering an entrepreneurial spirit among students but also to provide an opportunity for international students to get the coveted Tier 1 visa.
A Tier 1 visa enables international students coming up with a credible entrepreneurial plan to stay on in the United Kingdom (UK) for a maximum of two years after graduation.
The visa rules, in force since 2012, allow Universities to submit up to 20 visa applications in a year, half of them from MBA programs. While Universities follow various methods to assess the eligibility of students for the visa, Greenwich is the only one that came up with a pitching competition.
A Tier 1 visa enables international students coming up with a credible entrepreneurial plan to stay on in the United Kingdom (UK) for a maximum of two years after graduation.
At the most recent round of competition, saw Disha Chauhan from Mauritius pitching her proposal for gluten free bakery business.
She had competition from fellow student Benshuai Xu, who had come up with a plan to set up an online English language course with the teachers located in the UK providing one to one training to students in China aiming to study or work abroad via video broadcasting and instant messaging. Later, it could be extended to cover more languages and countries.
Even after winning the competition, the student has to prove that it is a workable enterprise.
Under the rules, the sponsor university is also required to assess the progress of the alumnus’ enterprise on yearly basis and bring to the notice of the authorities any infringement that would result in cancellation of the visa.
“The i3 centre at Greenwich University has given me so many learning opportunities through workshops, seminars and mentoring. They have helped me to define my business structure, audience and how to market the product in a simpler and more efficient way,” he says.
According to the University, the Tier 1 (Graduate Entrepreneur) visa is initially granted for one year with a possibility of a further extension for another year.
In order to apply for the visa, the student has to meet the formal requirements in two areas. The business plan and entrepreneurial skills will need to be assessed by the Department of Enterprise, Faculty of Business. Secondly, he or she will need to meet all immigration requirements.
Anyone interested in applying for this visa must be first accepted on to the Business Planning Competition scheme operated by the Department of Enterprise.
The Business Competition scheme is open to University of Greenwich students and graduates and it starts in October/November each year. The results and the finalists are announced in May each year.
As per the immigration rules, the student must score a total 95 points to be eligible for the visa:
Attributes: pass mark will be 75 points. Valid endorsement from University of Greenwich 25 points; Award of either Bachelor or Masters degree or PhD 25 points; Endorsement confirming that the University has assessed the student and business idea 25 points; English language 10 points and Maintenance 10 points.
The student will need £945 for a consecutive 90 days period if applying in the UK. The figure is £1890 for applications made outside the UK. In addition, the student will be subject to the ‘immigration health surcharge’ which is £200 per year of stay (visa) in the UK. (Image Courtesy :www.gre.ac.uk)
