Marian Hilditch’s Post

✍️ Read my latest article for Varsity on the overdependence of our higher education sector on international fees, and why UK universities will struggle to remain both global and equitable institutions. Digital article here:

🌐 Reflecting on the recent exposé regarding UK universities admitting international students with lower entry requirements, it's crucial for institutions to scrutinize agent networks. The alleged 'fast-track' routes and misrepresentation of degrees raise concerns. 💡 While a review of recruitment practices is a positive step, addressing the deeper issue requires vigilance at all levels. Subagents, operating as intermediaries, play a significant role and can contribute to misinformation. Universities must extend their scrutiny to ensure transparency throughout the entire recruitment chain. 🤝 Collaborative efforts are key. Establishing clearer communication channels between universities and agents can help mitigate misrepresentation. Sharing accurate information about entry requirements, pathways, and the value of different programs is vital. 🌍 Ethical considerations should guide these efforts. Striking a balance between attracting international talent and maintaining academic standards is crucial. Vetting agents, providing comprehensive training, and fostering a culture of integrity can contribute to a more transparent recruitment process. 📚 Education plays a pivotal role in shaping the future, and it's essential that students make informed decisions. A collective commitment to honesty and transparency will not only benefit students but also enhance the reputation of UK higher education on the global stage. #highereducation #internationalstudents #educationconsultant #transparency

This may be very controversial, and maybe my international upbringing and education and nerdy interest in global affairs play a considerable part in my next comment, but....whoever didn't see this coming was perhaps not paying enough attention. Brexit, visa rules, the increasingly sophisticated delivery and rise of online academic content as well as open research, mean that the playing field IS being levelled. And that, like it or not, has consequences for nations like the UK, which have been, and right now still are, great leaders in the space of research and higher education. Whilst many would get very nervous at any suggestion that Higher Education provisions are subject to market directions and commercial wiles, I am personally convinced that since student numbers and support for research spending are capped or not infinite, competition will be in evidence. So there is merit in appreciating that, and incorporating this in a responsible way, in whatever strategy you devise for your Higher Education Provider, whether it be for student recruitment or research and knowledge exchange activities. There. I've written it. https://lnkd.in/eUK39V8t.

EU students make a vital contribution to UK higher education. We argued strongly for recognising the value of all international students in our spending review submission and will continue to advocate for policies that guarantee international access to the wide variety of UK institutions we support. https://lnkd.in/eeqR8d6Z

The financial crisis in higher education continus with the latest data showing that 57 UK universities have now announced or confirmed redundancies as well as course or departmental closures. There are also rumours in the higher education sector that more announcements are imminent, and that some universities have been cutting costs by not renewing fixed-term contracts or reducing the hours of hourly paid lecturers. According to the University and College Union (UCU), the current situation in #Wales is that: ❌Aberystwyth University has announced it will axe its entire postgraduate teaching course ❌Cardiff University / Prifysgol Caerdydd plans to cut ancient languages ❌Bangor University's International College is reducing its administrative staff and permanent tutors. ❌Swansea University has announced that nearly 200 members of staff have already left under a voluntary severance scheme ❌Cardiff Metropolitan University has also initiated a voluntary redundancy scheme for its staff. ❌the University of South Wales Wales has announced a “voluntary exit” scheme for colleagues without articulating how much they have to save, how many people they want to leave, and whether the cost savings would go towards filling a deficit or a shortfall against target cash generation. All of this is largely due to the growing dependence on international student income and recent changes to visa regulations that have significantly affected this market. While international students bring much to any higher education sector, university leaders in Wales have also been quite open about how international fees essentially subsidise both research and home students. It is clear that any further decline in the numbers of overseas students coming to Wales will have a serious effect on the viability of the sector, something which the Senedd or the Welsh Government needs to examine as a matter of urgency. This is already happening over the border, with the House of Commons Education Committee launching an inquiry into international students in English universities which will examine the changes in numbers of international students in recent years, the impact of such students on university funding and availability of places for domestic students, and whether universities are achieving an appropriate balance between international and domestic students. Given the importance of universities to Wales in so many ways, it is critical that a similar inquiry to that taking place in Westminster is undertaken soon to determine what is going on in Welsh higher education before it’s too late and events overtake the sector.

Using #poststudywork (PSW) as the foundation for long-term #internationalstudent growth in UK #highered, has always been an accident waiting to happen! Whilst it is a seductive argument that garners attention, it totally ignores the fact that by far the majority of #internationalstudents return to their home countries after graduation. Over 86% since the reinstatement of #PSW. Finding ways to understand & develop their #internationalgraduates’ #careers in source countries, should for the last three years have been core to a university’s strategy for building a sustainable competitive advantage. While the #highereducation sector lay the blame squarely at the governments door, it is not as if for the last five years #universities have been operating in a bubble. They would have been well aware, one would have thought, of frozen tuition fees, rising inflation & increasing interest rates. We find ourselves wondering why this is a government problem & not one for universities themselves to address? With record #Internationalstudent numbers & international #tuition fees for the last three years, where has all the money gone? The warning signs havebeen there since #poststudyworkrights for #Internationalstudents were reinstated in 2019. With damaging newspaper headlines week to week, plus a government [& opposition] hell bent on reducing #immigration in the run up to the next #election, what does the future hold for #UK #tertiaryeducation? University of Aberdeen University of Brighton Coventry University University of East Anglia University of Essex Goldsmiths, University of London The University of Huddersfield University of Kent University of Lincoln Northumbria University University of Portsmouth Queen Mary University of London Sheffield Hallam University Staffordshire University University of Surrey Swansea University & University of Winchester have all announced cost cutting &/or staff redundancies. It all could have been different, if armed with international #graduateoutcomes data back in 2020 universities & sector bodies had effectively lobbied government to show that the majority of international #students return home to embark on successful #careers. The powers that be, had a long enough runway to shift the narrative away from post-study work & focus on supporting the majority of international students (80%+) that return home. Data on Non-EU graduate outcomes was available from Asia Careers Group SDN BHD then & now, if #universities & sector bodies are serious about maintaining UK market share & more importantly investing in international futures. Asia Careers Group SDN BHD - Investing in International Futures AGCAS British Council BUILA Department for Business and Trade Department for Education Higher Education Policy Institute UCAS UKCISA Universities Scotland Universities UK Universities UK International

Powerful parting words from Tim Dodd at The Aus. "It’s up to universities to take a clear eyed look at what they do and how they do it. It’s not enough for them to cite their achievements. They need to look at their weaknesses and where the public isn’t buying their story. And it’s up to the rest of us to acknowledge the critical benefits universities produce and ensure that they can continue." Thanks Tim for all your work covering the sector over the last two decades, and looking forward to seeing what you do next. https://lnkd.in/gBWrPETe

No amount of investment in military spending can permanently end wars, and no amount of capital development can fundamentally solve employment and economic problems. We need to never stop accumulating human wisdom and exploring future possibilities in order to determine human survival in an uncertain world. Universities are relays of human wisdom and windows for exploring future possibilities. It’s hard for me to disagree with Professor Jennings’s call. The world needs to change, and it needs positive and breakthrough changes. Even if these changes may be small, it is better than repeating the cycle of history without any progress.

ICYMI: Latest from FE News: Australia’s proposed caps on international students – what led us here?: Australia, long recognised as the pioneer in international education, is grappling with proposals to limit the enrolment of new international students through individual caps for… Australia’s proposed caps on international students – what led us here? was published on FE News by Oxford International Read more here:

There’s been uproar since the Sunday Times published the results of its undercover probe into whether British universities are admitting foreign students with lower grades than UK students because they need the extra cash from foreign tuition fees. Education Minister Robert Halfon MP has asked questions in the House of Commons; Universities UK commissioned the The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education to carry out a “rapid inquiry” to see international and home students have a level playing field when it comes to admission to some of Britain’s top universities. And there’s a mini panic at some university with executive boards urgently asking their international directors for information about what their university does and doesn’t do with #agents . However, one thing many #highered stakeholders are less keen to talk about are the fast-track International First Years, or International Year One, programmes that are open to high-fee-paying foreigners, but not UK students. These allow some #international #students who fail to make the grade for normal direct entry to the first year of degree courses to do an intensive international first year run by pathway providers such as INTO University Partnerships, Kaplan and Study Group, in partnership with universities, and then go straight on to Year Two of a British university degree course. Many vice-chancellors and others in the sector would just like to compare international #foundation courses with things like the UK equivalents, such as #Access courses, which both involve a pre-entry extra year of tuition before starting the first year of a degree. That seems much safer ground to talk about than a fast-track back door way onto the second year of a degree. Fortunately one boss pathway provider boss Ian Crichton at Study Group was brave enough to explain the difference and talk to me for a piece for University World News https://lnkd.in/drVERqHm Alan Preece Dave Amor Ruth Arnold Jamie Arrowsmith Professor Wendy Alexander Linda Cowan Winnie Eley Martyn Edwards Susan 🇬🇧 Fang Mark Garratt FCIM Vincenzo Raimo Anne-Marie Graham Mark Hertlein Rachel Kimber Andy Howells Dr Anthony Manning Janet B. Ilieva Dr Vicky Lewis David Pilsbury Eve Alcock Joanne Hindle Dr Cheryl Y. Anna Zvagule George Abraham Dr Salim M Salim CEng MIMechE SFHEA Alice Gent Johnny Rich Daniel Smith Susan Kinnear John Cavani Emmy Arts Kevin Daly #studyabroad #intled #globaleducation