As part of changes set alongside the publication of the Post-16 education and skills white paper, the Office for Students (OfS) will have new powers to ensure universities are providing high-quality education and satisfaction rates, with consequences for those who fall short.
The UK government says it will also “take action against” recruitment agents who abuse the system.
“We will do this through cracking down on abuse of our immigration system by strengthening requirements on universities,” it said in the white paper. “This will involve tighter enforcement by the government on visa approvals, course enrolments, and completions. Stronger enforcement will ensure that poor recruitment practices do not undermine the integrity of the UK’s immigration system.”
According to a Sunday Times article this weekend, institutions deemed to provide low-quality courses or teaching will have limits placed on how many new students they can recruit.
As the government prepares to publish the forthcoming International Education Strategy, the skills white paper highlighted its commitment to growing the UK education sector’s international partnerships.
“We will work with the sector to maintain a welcoming environment for high-quality international students. However, providers must ensure that their recruitment practices are sustainable, attract high-quality students, and that they are not materially at risk from volatile overseas markets,” the white paper said.
It acknowledged that cash-strapped UK institutions have had to rely on fees from international students, noting the significant contribution that students from overseas make to the economy.
“Many providers have to cross-subsidise the costs of domestic teaching and research with income from other types of activity. Income from international student fees is used in this way, along with income from other activities such as franchising.
Over time, a growing number of providers have become increasingly reliant on these revenue streams, some of which are not sustainable,” it said.
However, providers must ensure that their recruitment practices are sustainable, attract high-quality students, and that they are not materially at risk from volatile overseas markets Skills white paper
The government therefore wants to keep its position as one of the most sought-after study destinations for international students and researchers, attracting top talent and supercharging research through international partnerships.
But it wants to balance this with making sure domestic students have better access to education, with an aim to “rebalance the labour market away from an over-reliance on international recruitment and towards improved training of domestic workers, ensuring that growth-driving sectors have access to the skilled workers they need now and into the future”.
The skills white paper continued: “Our ambition is to have a more sustainable, more specialised and more efficient sector, better aligned with the needs of the economy. By improving access, driving collaboration, fostering the conditions for excellent research and strengthening expertise, we will place the sector on a stronger footing to support growth and deliver for local economies”
In a domestic policy development, education secretary Bridget Phillipson revealed this week that tuition fees for home students will rise with inflation from next year. While UK institutions have long called for home fees, which rose last year to £9,535 per year, many have suggested that the move will not go far enough to fix universities’ financial difficulties.
But others have warned that raising domestic fees may do more harm than good.
“Raising tuition fees, however, puts a heavy price on young people’s ambitions. Students will hear that training to be doctors, nurses, teachers now comes with a heavier burden of debt,” said NUS vice-president higher education, Alex Stanley “With universities still absorbing devastating cuts and funding significantly lower than a decade ago, the reality is that students will be taking on more debt for less.”
