Rudy Hermann Guede has been jailed for 30 years for murdering student Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy.
The Leeds University student had been in the Umbrian town as part of her European Studies degree.
Jen reading about Meredith Kercher
How safe are students in a foreign country?
Westminster University realises that foreign students have real concerns and as a result have set up The International Student Welcome Programme.
Both International and European students who are new to the UK qualify for the programme.
It claims to offer future Westminster students:
- an opportunity to meet and make friends with fellow students
- information about living in the UK
- information concerning studying in the UK and the University of Westminster
Student Opinion
International Journalism student Baya Agarwal has just come over from India and is now staying in halls on the Harrow campus at Westminster.
“I feel very safe in halls, much safer than I would elsewhere” she said. “We were given a Metropolitan Police briefing at the start concerning identity theft and never travelling alone. There was even a break-in last week but the university staff were very co operative and checked it out.”
When asked about living with strangers from the word go, she commented that “I was very lucky, there is an Indian guy next door and so i felt safe.”
In contrast, Bidhate Rai from Nepal chose not to live in halls by instead choosing to live with her in-laws in Hounslow West.
“If I hadn’t known someone in London, I would have considered living with strangers-I feel pretty safe over here and travel by tube everywhere.”
However, she criticised the university for not giving her the security briefing just because she was not living on campus.
Out and about
Quinn Gormley, our in-house roving reporter, was sent out earlier today to find out if and how the Meredith Kercher case has affected people’s opinions on studying abroad.
Of the nine students interviewed in and around the University of Westminster Harrow campus, all had heard of the case and were aware of today’s recent developments.
When asked ‘would you still consider studying abroad if the opportunity presented itself?’ all interviewees replied with a resounding ‘yes’.
Yet, these same students has concerns. Liam and Dean both commented that money and language would be their biggest worries on their year abroad, whilst Anne and Gord had fears over the destination and duration of the exhange.
What came up most however, was the need for a liaison officer in their country of choice, a person they felt knew the local area, culture and felt they could rely on and trust.Jennifer Willis-Jones, jenzltp@hotmail.com
The Quickie 