LONDON. The UK’s decision to leave the European Union has been a hot topic among Indonesian students who are studying in England, with many concerned that they will be affected.
Okky Irmanita, an Indonesian studying for her Msc degree in Media Management at Glasgow University, told ANTARA News on Friday, “The discussion is endless because most of us are curious about whether we will be affected immediately, like when there are currency value shifts between the rupiah and pound sterling.”
As a recipient of the Education Funds Management Council (LPDP) scholarship, Okky said the scholarship funds are usually transferred in pounds. “We have some pounds to cover our living costs here. I made a transaction yesterday when the currency was still Rp 19.799 [to £1]. Now it’s already 18.100. The pound sterling has fallen from yesterday and that automatically affects the value of our savings as well,” she explained.
She added, “Back in September 2015, when I was about to depart from Indonesia, I exchanged my rupiah to pounds sterling and the exchange rate was Rp 22,000 per pound sterling.”
Okky also expressed concerns about the possibility of a rise in grocery prices. “I’m worried that the prices for commodities in the supermarket will rise significantly due to the UK’s dependency on the EU for several commodities. For example, some fruits are imported from Spain, cheese from the Netherlands and pasta from Italy,” she said.
Meanwhile, Cory Fadila who is currently studying International Accounting and Finance at the University of Birmingham hopes that Brexit will have an impact on tuition fees in the country, “Nowadays, the tuition fees for students from the EU is only half of what international students pay. So I hope [Brexit] can raise the price of tuition for EU students and lower international students’ tuitions,” she said.
Currently, tuition in the UK is classified into three categories: local students (free of charge or cheapest for master’s degrees), EU students (low price) and international students (most expensive).
