Twice as many foreign students at UK universities

guardian.co.uk, Thursday 24 September 2009 12.05


There are almost twice as many international students studying in the UK now as there were 10 years ago, says an annual report on university trends. The number of non-European students has virtually doubled, according to today's report, published by Universities UK.

International students provided a bigger source of income for UK universities in 2007/08 than government grants for research, the report adds.

One in 10 enrolments in 2007-08 – 229,640 students – were from outside the EU. In 1998-99, the figure was 117,290, which makes the increase 96%. Students from outside the EU pay more for courses at UK universities than their European counterparts.

In 2007-08, £1.88bn of UK universities' income came from non-EU students, while £1.76bn came from government research grants.

China provides the most students to UK universities, with 19,385 enrolments for first degrees, and 21,990 enrolments for post-graduate degrees.

The report also reveals a 3.7% drop in the number of part-time undergraduate students between 2006-07 and 2007-08.

It says: "This may be a cause for concern, as part-time study plays an increasingly important role in meeting the higher level skills agenda and in lifelong learning.

The Patterns of Higher Education Institutions in the UK report reveals that in some UK universities as many as three quarters (79%) of degrees are awarded at least an upper second, while in others as few as 48% are given a first or 2:1.

It also shows that between 1998-99 and 2007-08, there have been "above average" increases in the numbers of students signing up to study subjects allied to medicine, such as nursing, as well as a growth in biological sciences (including psychology), mathematical sciences, law, mass communication and documentation (including media studies), historical and philosophical studies, education, social studies, and creative arts and design (including drama and music).

Between 2006-07 and 2007-08, universities saw a 10% increase in income, the report says, partly due to the introduction of top-up fees and bigger grants.

Professor Geoffrey Crossick, chair of Universities UK's longer-term strategy group, said: "This year's Patterns highlights the success of UK universities in challenging their counterparts in Europe, particularly in research and development and in attracting international students.
"The report also demonstrates how the diversity of the UK higher education sector has increased over the last 10 years."

A spokeswoman for the Department for Business Innovation and Skills said: "As this report confirms, our world class universities continue to attract the highest number of foreign students after the US."

Sally Hunt, general secretary of the University and College Union (UCU), said: "There is much to celebrate about higher education in the UK, particularly the work done by staff as overall student numbers continue to increase. However, it is not good enough to gloss over the areas where much still has to be done if we are to have any chance of maintaining our proud global reputation.

"No country that sees itself as a global leader in higher education can be in the bottom half of any table that lists how much money is being spent on higher education."

Wes Streeting, president of the National Union of Students, said: "We need to continue to expand our higher education system for the long-term social and economic good of the country. It is extremely worrying that we are lagging behind the rest of Europe in terms of public spending on universities."

International Student Consulting

This blog is created to deliver useful information for International students, in particular Korean students, with their family members in the UK.

They usually need some more special information than other students. They need more bigger accommodations and cars for their family. They are also very interested in traveling around the UK or Europe. However, it is dfficult to get useful information for international students accompaying their family members.

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