Birmingham student crowdfunds over £7,000 towards her outstanding tuition fees

A Birmingham-based student at risk of terminating her studies due to outstanding tuition fees has raised over £7,000 through crowdfunding.

International student Joanna Idowu, currently at Birmingham City University (BCU), said she was “grateful” for the donations from over 400 well-wishers.

20-year-old Idowu said she was told she must pay half of her outstanding £14,500 fee by Friday, to continue with her degree, so took to online fundraising in a bid for help.

Originally from Nigeria, Idowu said she only resorted to the desperate measure so it wouldn’t derail her her bachelor’s degree in media and communications, which has just four months left.

She said her tuition fees were “previously covered by an extended family member” who could no longer pay them, citing “Nigeria’s socioeconomic situation, and the increased devaluation of the naira.”

Speaking to reporter Harry Leach from Birmingham Live, Idowu said: “I’m unable to self-fund as I can only work 20 hours a week in the UK – which I currently do as a recruitment assistant.

“Sadly, my father passed away in 2020, and my mother is a Nigerian civil servant who is barely making ends meet back home.”

She added, “I am also unable to self-fund as I can only work 20 hours a week in the UK, which I currently do as a recruitment assistant.”

Idowu said the university told her she could continue with her studies as an “exceptional case,” as long as she paid the £7,250 that she has been able to raise, with the remainder covered through a payment plan.

A BCU spokesperson said: “Any discussions we have with individual students are on a case-by-case basis and remain confidential” but confirmed the university had offered support and advice to students facing financial hardship.