As the UK government considers a refreshed International Education Strategy, which will sit alongside a new Industrial Strategy and a cross-departmental Mission for Growth, experts from education, government and industry gathered at the Independent Higher Education (IHE) 2024 annual conference to share their insights on shaping its future direction.
James Pitman, chair of board at IHE, spoke of the government’s lack of investment and policy support for the sector while speaking at the London conference.
“International education is a very significant part of many of our actions in terms of businesses, including marketing, and it is very good to hear new iterations to the International Education Strategy which will be launched in the next year,” said Pitman.
“But, I can’t think of a single growth opportunity [other] than international education, [in which] our government has made absolutely no investment in whatsoever; and yet, there was no mention in the budget, no changes that can drive that, no removal of dependant visa issues, certainly no departing of international students from immigration numbers, despite recent polling that shows that less than a third of the public even thought of the students as part of immigration.”
Recent surveying signalled that 29% of the public thought international students should be included in immigration statistics.
The UK has already seen a decline in study visa applications following a ban on most students bringing dependants. This rule, which does not apply to students on research-based postgraduate programs or those sponsored by the government, came into effect on January 1 2024.
Elsewhere, stakeholders expressed fears that the government’s strategy could continue to lack the necessary innovation to help the UK stand out.
“I wonder how entrepreneurial we are in our educational systems as well as the skills development piece,” said Lara Carmona, director of policy and engagement at Creative UK.
“And I might respectfully suggest that we could do quite a lot more in this space to make us more adept and responsive, not just to UK industry needs, but to be more competitive globally,” said Carmona.
Carmona pointed out that the lack of representation of international students in key workplace roles and high-profile positions could undermine the UK’s appeal to overseas talent.
“[With] diversity and representation; who produces culture, affects who consumes it,” noted Lara Carmona.
She specified: “We have a continuing issue within higher education, within industry at large, within arts and culture in the UK about who is making work and who is leading the development of that.”
Therefore, to remain competitive globally as a skills and education provider, the UK must look to address structural challenges around representation.
Meanwhile, Joy Elliot-Bowman director of policy and development, IHE, argues that separating the international education sector from other parts of UK growth has been detrimental. Instead, she suggests that education should be part of every growth strategy within the UK.
“Should it be an ‘International Education Strategy’, or actually, should we have an education strand to every industry growth export strategy? Should we be thinking: creative industries, growth strategy, global plans, and education within that, as that driver?”
The UK’s education system influences the UK’s workforce and wider culture, and therefore not capitalising on the its influence across all sectors may be restrictive.
Sir Steve Smith, appointed by the government as the UK’s international education champion, remains positive about the UK’s role as a global competitor.
“I remain personally committed to supporting and representing the higher education sector, which remains a massive source of pride for the UK and an open export and to a global influence and a massive statement of the soft power of the UK.”
Continued engagement and messaging to international students is going to be really important in the coming months
Sir Steve Smith, UK international education champion
The UK has met the goals of its current IES ambition to host 600,000 international students in the UK per year by 2030, reaching 758,855 students in 2022/23, achieving this goal for three years running. Furthermore, the UK is also on track to meet the export ambition of £35 billion per year by 2030, with currently just under £28 billion per year.
“Continued engagement and messaging to international students is going to be really important in the coming months to maintain the UK’s reputation as a destination of choice for international students. The prestige and the impressive reputation for quality in independent HE institutions helps attract students from across the globe,” said Smith.
