Staff Reporters
A syndicate of dubious University recruitment agents has shamelessly targeted unsuspecting foreign students intending to study at the Zambia Institute of Medical and Psychological Studies (ZIMPS).
A source who spoke to this publication said that certain unidentified syndicates have taken advantage of foreign students intending to study at ZIMPS masquerading as recruitment agents.
“Dubious syndicates of recruitment agents have taken advantage of unsuspecting students especially those who are not techno-savvy to apply on their behalf. The syndicate is taking advantage of the lucrative courses on offer and on-campus accommodation to swindle unsuspecting applicants of their hard earned money,” said the source.
Further investigations conducted by this publication revealed that bogus recruitment agents charge US$20 as application fee per student.
This publication also established that some former ZIMPS students residing in Zimbabwe could be behind the bogus recruitment agency.
Coincidentally this is the same amount charged by ZIMPS, for its paper based physical application whereas; the University online application is free for both local and international students.
ZIMPS CEO, Chabusha Francis Matanda, is on record warning students against engaging any recruitment agency as ZIMPS does not have any agency it works with.
“Online applications are done at the college website and are free. Prospective students who apply physically pay three hundred kwacha (K300) as application fee for local students while foreign students pay USD20,” said Matanda
Matanda highlighted that ZIMPS does not have a recruitment agency.
“ZIMPS does not have a recruitment agency and all our foreign students learnt about the institution through our website, social media referrals from former students,” said Matanda
Meanwhile, ZIMPS, is a University which opened in 2015, offering courses in medical sociology, counselling, social work, environmental health, and also offers partial scholarship to local and foreign students. ZIMPS is still a budding institution of higher learning with an enrolment of 68 students of which 20 students are Zimbabweans and one student is Namibian.
