Teesside University in England has offered to assist with funding flights home to Nigeria for crisis-hit students, it reported to the Home Office.
The students were ordered to leave the UK after a currency crisis left them struggling to pay tuition fees.
Following protests and the intervention of the Nigerian government, the university told the BBC it has now re-enrolled some affected students and also opened a travel fund.
The BBC had reported that Teesside University recently withdrew sponsorship for a number of students and reported them to the Home Office after they fell into tuition fee arrears.
The students had seen their savings depleted due to the economic crisis in Nigeria. Their financial struggles worsened when the university changed payment plans from seven instalments to three.
Following the issue, a nearby food charity said 75% of its clients are now Nigerian students struggling to cope with the cost of living.
This led to some of them missing tuition fee payments and subsequently being frozen out of their studies, later receiving Home Office letters ordering them to leave the UK.
A Teesside University spokesman has now confirmed some affected students have been told they can resume their studies.
“We are working with a small group who do need to return to their home country and are opening an international relief fund for this group only to offer additional financial support for these unexpected travel costs,” he added.
The university has told some students they can complete their studies from Nigeria or return to the UK to resume them at a later date.
Speaking to the BBC, one of the students said the university’s offer failed to consider the significant impact their actions had on those affected.
“I was asked to return home, pay the remaining balance, and apply to return at a later date, but I don’t trust them now,” he said.
“I feel this is a way to escape responsibility and they may not let me come back.
“If they did, it would cost me thousands to pay for flights, visa fees, and NHS fees again.
“I’ve already spent so much coming here and now they want me to go back without any kind of certification to reflect my achievements.
“The whole aim of coming here was to study; we haven’t committed any kind of crime.
“There’s been no apology for the stress and trauma the university has put me through.”
