Language students appoint representatives for creditors’ meeting

Former students of the English in Dublin language school have appointed representatives to act on their behalf at a creditors’ meeting to be held next week.

Around 70 students affected by the closure of the English language college met with representatives of the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) yesterday.

Communications officer Dave Moore told students that the organisation was awaiting clarification from the Department of Education as to whether they can be transferred to other approved language schools.

Prior to its closure the college had been informed that it had failed an inspection carried out by ACELS which operates a recognition scheme for English language teaching organisations on behalf of the Department of Education.

Mr Moore said, due to its ACELS accreditation, the college was different from the other colleges which have closed to date and told students that they hoped to get clarification this week as to whether the students would be transferred to other ACELS approved schools.

Last week English in Dublin became the seventh English language school to have closed since April and for some students attending English in Dublin this is the second time they have seen the college they were attending close.

Adriana Pimentel Pedrosen from Brazil came to Ireland two years ago. Shepaid €600 for the course she previously attended Millennium College prior to its closure earlier this year and says she has received no certificate.

She was among a group of 20 students who then negotiated a discounted price with English in Dublin paying €520 each for the course. She now fears that she may now lose this money also.

“Right now I’m feeling very disappointed and tired actually. I don’t know if I’m going to stay here...I’m thinking about returning to Brazil because it’s very upsetting,” she said, adding that recent closures were affecting Ireland’s reputation among potential English language students in Brazil.

“No one knows which schools they should trust or not,” she said.

A spokesman for the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) reassured non-EEA national students that their immigration permissions will remain unaffected at the present time but added that all non-EEA national students resident in Ireland on “stamp 2” permissions are required to be registered on an appropriate course from the internationalisation register.

“All students affected by the closure of English in Dublin should address their education situation as a priority,” the spokesman said.