750241International University Destination GuideClosedVouchersInnovate UKNEW ALL-INCLUSIVE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RESOURCE SITE SET TO LAUNCHThe Centurus ONE automated applications system, used by universities and colleges throughout the UK is set to launch a new public facing portal for international students.Centurus ONE is currently used by thousands of educational agents and international students hoping to study in the UK and it promises to cut red tape and help stamp out fraud.The website will feature various free-to-access resources including: city guides, travel guides, visa information, university profiles and comparison, crime statistics, flight and travel booking, student pre departure and arrival packages. With this public facing portal, students will now be able to use this single website for their pre-admission and application processing.The move comes amid growing concerns over the impact of tougher visa regulations on recruitment of international students. The introduction of Centurus ONE should help encourage genuine students to apply to study in the UK while deterring bogus applicants. Centurus is the brainchild of graduate entrepreneur Dawood Fard, 25, who hatched with the idea during a business management Masters course at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan). His inspiration came while on a business experience placement working in Delhi, where he witnessed the bureaucratic process that international students face when applying to study in the UK.“The day after I came back from India I got about 20 people together and we thrashed out ideas. The current process is tedious, slow, inflexible and expensive. We have developed a revolutionary system that is easy to use, transparent and not at all intimidating. We can reduce the amount of administrative time from weeks to just minutes, streamlining the management of international recruitment,” he said.The launch of Centurus will simplify the process and reduce work for institutions and students and also supply a secure fee payments system through Uni-Pay, a leading international payments provider to the education sector. The system can be used by education agents based abroad that help many students decide where to make their applications. To further combat fraud and protect students, institutions can use Centurus to share information on agents and rate them.