Fenella Gabrysch
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
22 December 2021
Our Ref: FOI 2021/520 - F1210375
Dear Fenella Gabrysch,
Re: Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 – Request for Information
Thank you for your email which was received by the University on 05 December 2021 timed
09:40 hours, requesting the following:
1. Between 2000-2021, the number of students admitted to the University of Glasgow
with refugee status.
2. Between 2000-2021, the number of students numbers of students with refugee status
that completed their courses at the University of Glasgow.
3. The University of Glasgow's current commitments to removing barriers of access to
higher education for students with refugee and asylum-seeking status.
University’s Response
1. Between 2000-2021, the number of students admitted to the University of Glasgow
with refugee status.
Between 2000 and 2021, 198 students with refugee status were admit ed to the University.
This information comes from statuses reported via UCAS, direct application to the University,
or visa permit type.
2. Between 2000-2021, the number of students numbers of students with refugee status
that completed their courses at the University of Glasgow.
Between 2012-2013 and 2020-21, 75 students with refugee status (from the reporting
populations listed in Q1 above) completed their studies at the University of Glasgow.
Please be advised that the University does not hold completion records for the years prior to
2012-2013. The University of Glasgow does not hold the information that you have requested
DATA PROTECTION AND FREEDOM OF INFORMATION OFFICE
University of Glasgow, Tay House, Glasgow G12 8QQ
Data Protection: Telephone: 0141-330-3111
E-Mail: xx@xxx.xx.xx
Freedom of Information: Telephone: 0141-330-2523
E-Mail: foi@gla.ac.uk
The University of Glasgow, charity number SC004401
and is not aware of any other public authority that could respond to your request. Section 17
of FOISA states that where public authorities receive requests for information that they do not
hold, they must issue a notice advising that they do not hold the requested information.
3. The University of Glasgow's current commitments to removing barriers of access to
higher education for students with refugee and asylum-seeking status.
The support that the University has in place for this group of students is under constant
revision. The University tries to be proactive, but this is a very complex area and the institution
often encounter issues that hadn't been considered. The University deals with these as and
when they come up, and tries to implement solutions at the time and going forward for future
years. Currently, these are some of the widening access initiatives the University has in place
for these applicants/students:
• Being an asylum seeker or refugee, or a dependent of one, makes someone eligible
for all pre-entry programmes. This includes those programmes targeted at school
pupils – e.g. Top Up, Reach, Access to a Career, Taster Week, Sutton Trust Summer
School – as well at those targeted at school leavers and adult returners – Summer
School, GAP (pre-medical course), HNC Articulation programmes.
o S
ee https://www.gla.ac.uk/study/wp/ for a full list of the programmes
• Being an asylum seeker or refugee are also 'Priority 1' criteria for the University’s
adjusted admissions policy, meaning that this group of students is guaranteed an
adjusted offer of entry
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/study/wp/adjustedof ers/
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/undergraduate/entryrequirements/policy/
• The University also guarantees either Home or RUK fee status for asylum seekers,
rather than International. In practice, this means that asylum seekers in Scotland are
classed as Home for fee purposes, and those based elsewhere in the UK are classed
as RUK.
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/undergraduate/fees/policies/feestatus/
• The Univerisity runs the Humanitarian Scholarship. This has two streams, one for
asylum seekers and the other for refugees. The asylum seeker stream entitles
successful applicants to a full fee waiver, accommodation if they need it, and £5000 to
help with study costs. The refugee stream is £2500 for study costs per year of the
degree. There are 4 awards for asylum-seeking applicants, and 8 for refugee
applicants. Both undergraduate and postgraduate courses are eligible, but some
courses are excluded.
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/scholarships/humanitarianscholarships/
• There are 3 MPhil studentships from the Asylum, Migration & Integration (AMIF)
Partnership. This is run by the office/team of the UNESCO Chair for Refugee
Integration through Languages & the Arts (RILA)
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/unesco/researchprojects/newscotsrefugeeint
egrationdeliveryproject2020-22/
• The University runs a number of other grant/bursary schemes, and forced migrants are
eligible for all of these as well. This category of support covers things like the Laptop
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Loan scheme, the Talent Scholarships (UG & PG), the data access scheme, and the
Travel Bursary scheme.
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/scholarships/
• Each year, the English for Academic Study (EAS) team also offer 5-10 free places on
their pre-sessional English course, the EAS Access Project. The course is full time,
runs for 5 weeks, is BALEAP accredited, and is subject-specific. EAS also runs a
bursary scheme to cover course-related costs up to £450 per student.
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/schools/mlc/eas/pre-sessionalcourses/
• The University also now offers fee-waiver places for asylum-seeking students on the
University's Access Programme. Like those above, this is a pre-entry course that can
lead to degree study for those students who pass. The fee waiver amounts to £550 per
student and this year we've got around 25 fee-waiver students on the course. The
University wil also be covering their UCAS application fee (£26 per student) this year
and in future years.
o
https:/ www.gla.ac.uk/study/short/accesscourses/access2021-22/
The supply of documents under the terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002
does not give the applicant or whoever receives the information any right to re-use it in such a
way that might infringe the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (for example, by making
multiple copies, publishing or otherwise distributing the information to other individuals and the
public). The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (Consequential Modifications) Order
2004 ensured that Section 50 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (“CDPA”) applies
to the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“FOISA”).
Breach of copyright law is an actionable offence and the University expressly reserves its rights
and remedies available to it pursuant to the CDPA and common law. Further information on
copyright is available at the following website:
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/copy.htm
Your right to seek a review
Should you be dissatisfied with the way in which the University has dealt with your request, you
have the right to require us to review our actions and decisions. If you wish to request a review,
please contact the Data Protection and Freedom of Information Office at
xxx@xxx.xx.xx within
40 working days. Your request must be in a recordable format (letter, email, audio tape, etc).
As the University of Glasgow is a Scottish Public Authority, your request is subject to the terms
of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“FOISA”). You wil receive a full response
to your request for review within 20 working days of its receipt.
If you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have handled your request for review you may
ask the Scottish Information Commissioner to review our decision. You must submit your
complaint to the Commissioner within 6 months of receiving the response to review letter. The
Commissioner’s Office may be contacted as follows:
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Online Appeal Service:
Website:
www.itspublicknowledge.info/Appeal
By post:
The Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS
Telephone: 01334 464610
Fax: 01334 464611
E-mail:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxxx
An appeal, on a point of law, to the Court of Session may be made against a decision by the
Commissioner.
For further information on the review procedure please refer to
(http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/dpfoioffice/policiesandprocedures/foisa-complaintsandreview/ )
Al complaints regarding requests for information wil be handled in accordance with this
procedure.
Yours sincerely,
Data Protection and Freedom of Information Office
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