UK's tight visa rules hit capital students

Chinese students will have fewer options when applying to study or work in Britain as the country tightens its visa restrictions.

London has introduced strict new measures to clamp down on bogus educational institutions, as well as the use of illegal workers posing as students.

By the end of 2012, only colleges accredited as "highly trusted sponsors" by the British Ministry of Education will be allowed to accept international students, Sebastian Wood, the country's ambassador to China, told press in Beijing on Wednesday. Institutions without the status are often private colleges providing "pathway" courses, he said.