The government must proceed with caution on the international student levy
The Chancellor announced in this week’s budget further details of the international student levy (Alamy)
3 min read
Universities change lives. This is why our role in educating students and conducting research matters so profoundly. In both areas, it is clear: we can only succeed by engaging internationally.
Teaching has its greatest impact when it invites students to engage with ideas, cultures and insights from around the world. Research is a global endeavour that brings together academics to tackle shared challenges, to drive innovation, and to improve lives and livelihoods.
The quality of the education that we provide is recognised worldwide, a reputation built over decades. For this reason, so many are prepared to come to the UK to study, often at considerable financial expense. International students bring huge benefit to the UK, creating educational opportunities for domestic students and generating over £40bn for the economy annually. These effects are felt locally, for example, each of the 650 parliamentary constituencies in the UK are £58m better off because of international students, equivalent to £560 per citizen.
International students also create enormous soft power for the UK, building trust and confidence in our values and way of life, and making it easier us to trade and to make our mark on the world stage. 59 current world leaders have been educated in the UK, highlighting the global influence of our education system.
But in acknowledging all the many benefits international students bring, we must not forget that secure borders are a fundamental prerequisite to ensuring a functional and safe multicultural society. Reducing net migration is a top priority for the public and the government. To do this, it is vital that there are controls in place to ensure that foreign nationals who come to the UK, either to work or to study, deliver clear benefits to the country.
As President of Universities UK, a body that represents 142 universities across all four nations, I have always been clear that universities are key delivery partners for government. It is therefore important that we play our part in ensuring that all those who come to our universities from overseas do so for genuine reasons that deliver benefit to all.
International students should come to the UK because they want to study and for no other reason. Adhering to the conditions of their visas is vital. And the importance of ensuring that students have the English language skills they need to succeed academically and integrate fully into British society cannot be understated.
The university sector is committed to working closely and collaboratively with government to ensure that, in the small minority of instances where abuse occurs, it is dealt with promptly and decisively.
The Chancellor announced in this week’s budget further details of the international student levy, which will fund maintenance grants for domestic students coming from the most under-resourced backgrounds to study priority subjects.
Universities UK has long advocated for the reintroduction of maintenance grants, and I welcome their return.
The international student recruitment market is competitive, and fees in the UK are already high.
There are significant cross-subsidies between international fees and the delivery of domestic teaching, support for domestic students, and for research.
Universities now face the prospect of either cutting these subsidies or raising international fees still further, with the risk of reducing demand and therefore the amount of money raised to support maintenance grants.
Time will tell how these scenarios will play out across the sector from one university to the next, but my advice to government is simple: proceed with caution. We need evolution, rather than revolution.
Professor Malcolm Press is the President of Universities UK.
