The UK government launches new international education strategy

The United Kingdom's Department for Education, and Department for International Trade have jointly launched a new International Education Strategy with the twin targets of increasing the value of education exports to £35 billion (US$46 billion) per year and raising the total number of international students to 600,000, both by 2030.

This would amount to a near doubling in the value of education exports from £20 billion in 2016 and a rise of more than a third in the number of international students, from 442,000 in 2016.

One of the strategies includes a commitment to extend the post-study work period for international students, and to consider changes to visa processing in order to strengthen the UK’s visa attractiveness for students.

The government’s Export Strategy has set the scene for how government will support UK exporters following the UK’s departure from the European Union (which has been delayed beyond the 29 March 2019 deadline) and this strategy “builds on that ethos for the education sector”.

The strategy includes:

• Appoint an ‘international education champion’ to spearhead activities overseas, open international opportunities, develop strong international partnerships in new and established markets and help tackle challenges and barriers.

• Ensure the ‘Education is GREAT’ government campaign promoting international study at British institutions, more fully promotes the breadth and diversity of UK education to international audiences. This includes encouraging education bids to the £5 million GREAT Challenge Fund for 2019, which supports export activity for the sector. The campaign is currently concentrated in China, Turkey, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and India.

• Continue to provide a welcoming environment for international students and develop an increasingly competitive position. This includes extending the post-study leave period; considering where the visa process could be improved; supporting employment; and ensuring existing and prospective students feel welcome.

• Establish a whole-of-government approach by implementing a framework for ministerial engagement with the sector and formalised structures for co-ordination between government departments domestically and overseas.

The report claims that leaving the EU “gives the UK the freedom to pursue an independent trade policy that reflects its unique strengths”. But in reality this very much depends on the terms of whatever future relationship is negotiated with the EU and it is hard to predict what that outcome will be, given the current political uncertainty.

The report nevertheless identifies four “high-value” geographical areas in which to focus education export campaigns. These are China and Hong Kong; the Middle East and North Africa; Latin America; and the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) group of nations.

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