2012 LBS MiF Applicants welcome!

The question is a good one ! I also read the news on internet that UK Govt has abolished the Tier-1 Post Study work visa. However the LBS website has posted some stuff that might be reassuring -

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1. While the government is aiming to reduce overall numbers settling in the UK from outside the EEA/Switzerland, its reforms are supportive of graduates of UK business schools and universities. It is committed to helping the 'brightest and the best'. London Business School has been working with the government to help them understand the value of our students.

2. People coming to study in the UK can apply for a tier 4 visa: https://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/visas ... /studying/

3. From April 2012, the government will remove unrestricted access to the labour market for those studying in the UK. However, they have made it easier for UK employers to sponsor international students they want to hire - employers just need to have a Tier 2 licence.

4. Almost 25,000 employers in the UK are Tier 2 sponsors - the full list is available on the UK Border Agency (UKBA) website and updated regularly. For those employers who do not yet have a Tier 2 visa, this is relatively easy and cheap to obtain and London Business School is proactively providing guidance to recruiters on how to do this.

5. Previously, an employer had to advertise the role even when they had a preferred candidate. Under Tier 2 legislation, if an employer has a preferred candidate in mind, for example a London Business School graduate, they will no longer have to advertise the role more widely (previously known as the Resident Labour Market Test). This makes the process more straightforward and cheaper for recruiters.

6. This more streamlined process is only applicable to graduates of UK universities and business schools. When recruiting from inside the UK, there is no cap on the number of UK-based graduates a company can hire. This includes graduates of London Business School. By contrast, recruiters will have restrictions on the number of graduates they can hire from outside the UK, including other European business schools.

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The points 2,3,4,5 imply that LBS graduates have a good chance of finding employment in UK. LBS claims that most of the recruiters at LBS have their-2 license. Secondly, the LBS graduates will have less competition from Non-UK based school graduates.

However this also means that one has to start searching for a job immediately after joining the program - no respite during term breaks.

Another option is trying for the Tier-1 Graduate Entrepreneur visa. Difficult option but an interesting one !

Hope this answers your question. Keep googling the internet, you might find more tips on getting the better of complicated UK visa rules. I think "life is already too complicated, Politicians and Governments never shy away from expedient policies to pander their masses"