USQ team achieving success in student relocation

"We arrived in Dubai with one primary objective: to take care of the welfare of our students," said Dr Emory McLendon, Executive Director of USQ International. "Our team of three executive staff members includes a trained counsellor whose specific role is to help students and parents to manage the transition."

"Every student at the USQ Dubai campus has been offered a solution for the successful completion of his or her degree. A number of students are still considering their options but we are confident that most, if not all, the affected students will settle on a solution that meets their needs. We have done our utmost to ensure that no student would be left abandoned," he added.

With 230 students currently studying this semester, and an additional 110 students who have studied at some time throughout the campus operation, USQ staff are pleased with the number of students that they have been able to successfully relocate.

So far 63 students have made the decision to continue studying with USQ, with 19 of these going to study on-campus in Australia. For these students, USQ will provide them with a scholarship of eight courses free of tuition fees if they have already successfully completed two courses with USQ Dubai.

"Quite a few of our students have said that they will be moving overseas, either back home or to another country. They said that the flexibility offered by distance learning had encouraged them to move elsewhere. The money they have saved by accepting the scholarship will assist enormously in helping them to complete their courses," said Dr McLendon.

"We are also negotiating with two universities in KV to teach-out USQ's degree programs, which will allow students to complete their courses in Dubai. One university has agreed to teach-out, subject to attaining final approval from KV, while the other is still under negotiation."

USQ has pulled out all stops to make the transition as painless as possible. Given the circumstances, all students were given the opportunity to defer examinations, or even to drop courses without any academic penalty. Generous extensions on due dates for assignments were also approved.

USQ closed its doors for the last time on September 22nd. The executive transition team will return to Australia shortly after with examination scripts and student records.

"Keeping a team here in Dubai for over a month, and offering students tuition fee free courses has amounted to a substantial investment in our students. We believe that this demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that our students are able to successfully complete their studies, no matter what the circumstances," said Dr McLendon.