The major issue in further and higher education in the UK is funding. Most of universities in the UK are suffering the lack of funding today. From the UK's point of view, income from overseas students is more important than before. Fees from overseas students represent around 6% of the total income for English universities. When expenditure margins are tight, as they are now, a contribution of 6% from foreign revenue can make a big difference. (key note 2002 p53)
2.2 Economic
Tuition fee, especially postgraduate tuition charged by UK for international students is higher than many other countries which have also taken the overseas study market. British universities are actually missing some of the cleverest foreign students because they charge them so much.
High currency exchange rate of U.K sterling make many international students transfer to find some lower choices. The currency devaluation espically in the developing country also thwart international students who want to get further study on abroad. (www3, www4)
Development of global economy, enhancement of competition ability and stable economic environment of UK directly affect the proportion of overseas students study in the UK. After experiencing economic and financial storm, Asian countries greatly demands for high quality talents, so international students from Asian countries became the main resources of UK universities.
(Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management Vol. 24, No. 1, 2002)
2.3 Social-culture
The UK's further and higher education sector has a high reputation abroad, which is attracting ever more overseas students to come here and start their further study. Overseas students, meanwhile, remain attracted by the high standards and prestige still associated with postgraduate courses in UK universities. British government has a teaching quality assessment (TQA) for most courses at British universities. (www5)
UK postgraduate education is great value for money and provides individuals with high quality qualification which are recognized worldwide. Facilities, student support and a tradition and culture of research excellence all contribute to making UK postgraduate education an excellent choice and the UK has one of the most rigorous systems for measuring and maintaining quality anywhere in the world. (www6)
Many international students come to explore UK’s culture and history. It’s a culture exchange when international students communicate with local students to explore UK’s culture, while local students approach to the culture of other nations.
2.4 Technological
A key factor in attracting this level of demand for a UK education is the effective use of the internet to disseminate information about the opportunities on offer in the UK, and, more importantly, to streamline the exchange of information between applicants and admissions officers. Without doubt, the internet has raised the expectations of its users worldwide, and prospective students are anticipating a level of interaction that the higher education sector as a whole is not yet in a position to deliver Universities and colleges are recognizing that the web is the primary tool for overseas marketing. In July 1999, 66% of UK universities had put their prospectus online; in July 2000 this figure had reached 94%. The year 1999-2000 saw an increase from 38% to 85% of universities with a system for ordering prospectuses online.
Yet while there is comprehensive provision of prospectus-style information available on university websites, relatively few institutions have made the leap to accepting online applications. Institutions which have made this provision receive as many as 20% of applications this way - many from overseas. (www7)
2.5 Econlogical
Infectious disease. In year 2001, many Asian students delayed their study by SARS.
3.0 Key issues
3.1 Founding
UK academics are increasingly concerned about what they perceive as inadequate government funding, not only because they feel that this damages their ability to provide good education for UK citizens, but also because they feel it will make it harder for them to attract overseas students. (key note 2002 p38) Compared with other coequal advanced countries, education investment from U.K government is far less. Universities still need much capital support in many ways. Therefore, economic benefits from overseas education can not be neglected but plays important role in university income.
3.2 Government policy
The alternation of government policy and the attitude that government adopted directly decide and affect overseas university industry. While US is performing rigorous visa policy, UK are keen on developing overseas study market. Many efficient promotion activities including educational promotion exhibition, introductory meeting of overseas study, preparation meeting for UK, introduction to IELTS examination attracted numerous students. Even in the special time of SARS, the enrollment of UK universities was not influenced and the visa policy not changed. As promoted by British Council, UK is a welcoming and opening study destination to Chinese students. (www2)
3.3 Tuition fee
There is no legal limit on how much universities can ask foreign students to pay. The high tuition, especially postgraduate tuition charged by UK for international students is higher than many other countries which have also taken the overseas study market. For instance, at Imperial, foreign students pay nearly Pounds 100,000 for a six-year medical course, more than 10 times the cost to a British student. (www7)
4.0 Response
4.1 Expanding investment in education
New spending plans put forward by the Government indicate a provisional rise in education spending by an average of 6% per year and around £12.8 billion between 2002-03 and 2005-06. By 2007-08 UK education spending is forecast to rise to £63.9 billion, approximately 5.6% of GDP, compared with just 4.6% in 2001. (www8)
4.2 Personnel Loss Prevention Movement
Four years ago, British government started Personnel Loss Prevention Movement, in fear of falling behind of USA in attracting the most excellent and talented students. Mr. Blair, the premier minister of UK, declared that a serial of measures should be implemented and it would be more convenient for those foreigners to study in UK, which include simplifying visa application procedures, offering more access to financial assistance for students, as well as making people well known the advantages of study in UK. (www2)
4.3 Educational advertisement
To attracting more international students to study in UK, British colleges and universities enhance the overseas educational advertisement, entrust British Council to go to different countries and provide educational consulting services for potential international students, or they will send staff directly to abroad, especially Asian countries to hold educational promotion exhibitions, among which China, Singapore and Malaysia are the major targets. (www2)
4.4 International office
Almost every British higher educational institution has an affaire office specialized for international students service. With the daily increase of international students, every college or university has established own enrollment standards and regulated the admission procedure for international students. (www2)
4.5 Organisations
To motivate students’ initiative and offer service to potential international students both in their own countries and in U.K., many organistions are established to promote U.K. education. The British Council, UK NARIC and U.K. COSA are the most famous ones. Now The British Council has set offices in 109 countries to provide wide range of services to students who want to study in U.K. U.K NARIC provides information and advice on the comparability of qualifications from different countries on education. UKCOSA Council for International Education provides international students and advisers and professionals in U.K. institutions who assist them with advice and information.
(Jan 2004 HEFCE publications higher education in the UK)
4.6 Scholarship
UK government announced on 16th Nov 2004 that they had set up scholarship total over 1 million (in UK sterling) to support high-level students mainly from India, Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Russia to further postgraduate studies in UK. The scholarship is named after UK female scientist, Nobel Prize gainer, Dorothy Hodgkin. In October 2004, part of the scholarship was first issued to fund about 130 doctorate students to do research in the fields of science, engineering, medicine, social science, and technology. The project will last for 3 to 4 years and 24 celebrated universities including Cambridge, Oxford and Imperial College have all taken part in. Applicants can apply scholarship directly from the above universities and more information can be obtained on internet of British Embassy in applicant’s own country. (www9)
5.0 Scenarios
5.1 Optimistic scenario
Overseas study market becomes one of the most important industries in the UK. Its universities and institutions have occupied large shares in overseas study market by its internationally recognized qualifications of higher education. The quality of research in the university system is raising. Those talented students come to UK to pursue further study and after graduation, many of them work for UK in understaffed industries, which accelerate the competitions among local students and make economy prosperous. The good mobility of international students give the UK more energy and make the culture mixable.
5.2 Neutral scenario
The UK economy is static. The Government is keen to increase access to universities for socially disadvantaged groups. Some universities are running Summer Schools in order to encourage students from poor economic backgrounds to join them. Many British universities, anticipating a fall in central government funding with the planned introduction of top-up tuition fees from 2006, are anxious to recruit foreign students to help address continuing funding shorfalls. Universities are being urged to increase access for applicants from state schools and those who live in poorer areas of the country. The newer universities tend to have the highest percentages of students educated at state schools. Some of the newer universities have also established very close contacts with the schools in their community to encourage poorer applicants to come forward. The number of international students will be raised rapidly.
5.3 Pessimistic scenario
Universities and institutions emphasized much on scrambling the international student market, neglecting the education of local students. If universities are continue to expand the enrollment of foreign students, the places, especially undergraduate places for local students will go down dramatically. The country will lose the best time to foster their future constructors. Access is to be widened on a national scale, universities might need some cash incentive to do so. Widening access might conflict with the maintenance of entry standards, so the argument for a cash grant would be that it would enable universities to provide extra tuition to those whose entry standards fall below the university norm. The Government is considering offering universities around £1,000 for each student from a low-income background. Some universities are excessively expanding the international enrollments by lowering the entry requirements to pursue economic benefit. Incapable Students can’t fulfill study but to give up halfway, which will mislead their students and UK’s long established reputation in education will be shamed as well. The rate of UK crime is upswing because too many foreign students come to the UK.
6.0 Conclusion
According to the PEST analysis, the crucial factors that effect overseas student come to the UK universities are: tuition fee, preferential policy from the government and funding. To attract more international students, the government should adopt more and more open policy and flexible system. Aim for attract more first-rate students who can not offer the high tuition fee, the government could adopt different level tuition standard and accept it can be paid after graduate. Meanwhile, the government should relax restrictions of overseas student working in the UK after they finish their study..
7.0 Reference
[www1]
[www2]
[www3]
[www4]http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3735782.stm
[www5]http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=buh&an=2W81087863113
[www6]http://www.educationuk.org/pls/hot_bc/bc_all_home.page_pls_all_pg_search?x=96022082003&y=0&a=0
[www7]http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqd&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&genre=article&rft_dat=xri:pqd:did=000000080245435&svc_dat=xri:pqil:fmt=text&req_dat=xri:pqil:pq_clntid=13977
[www8]
[www9] http://news.xinhuanet.com/edu/2004-03/24/content_1381490.htm
