Brexit: our financial ruin?
Since we’ve been talking about the end of the British Empire and what has contributed to it, I couldn’t help but to think about the current situation they face. People in and outside the UK wait for the 23 June 2016 more or less apprehensively -which is understandable.
Newspapers focus on the economic consequences Britain and Europe would face…but what does that mean for your everyday life, to be more precise, how does this affect us European students? I’m sure quite a few hope to take a Master’s degree in the UK or, at least, spend a semester or two over there with Erasmus. This scheme, by definition, wouldn’t be applicable anymore.
The first thing that comes to my mind is the financial aspect we all have to deal with. For the time being, EU students benefit from article 18 of the TFEU, which states that ‘any discrimination on grounds of nationality shall be prohibited’. This means that any EU student pays the same fees as the resident students of the country. Let us say you would like to study in Oxford. UK and EU students pay about £10,000 per year while non-EU students would pay up to £30,000 per year for the same educational standard — costs for accommodation, food and public transport not included!
Additionally, it is likely that the Schengen Treaty is no longer valid so that we would have to pay for a Trier 4 student visa (£328) and along with it for a healthcare surcharge of £525 (price for US students).
Even with the benefits from article 18 of the TFEU it is still horrendously expensive for an EU student to study in the UK if you are not part of a scholarship programme. Meanwhile, it is ridiculously cheap for an UK student to study in Europe. However, this could change: UK students will face the same burdens as EU students, although, the financial blow would not be so hard.
If the UK leaves the EU, it would be a huge step back for European students who would like to benefit from the prestigious education of one of the top universities the UK has to offer and optimise their CV.
So, let us hope that this referendum won’t be our financial ruin!
Sources:
http://www.campuseurope.eu/tag/brexit/
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex:12012E/TXT
