Fear fall in international student numbers may put end to courses

British universities could be at greater risk amid the Covid-19 crisis due to an “over-reliance” on Chinese postgraduate students in recent years, a report has warned.

A growth in first-year postgraduate students attending universities in the UK since 2008-9 has been largely driven by international students from non-eu countries like China, according to a study.

Chinese students, who formed 38% of the non-eu postgraduate cohort in 2017-18, may delay or cancel their plans to study at British university campuses from this autumn amid the Covid-19 crisis.

The Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) has warned some postgraduate courses could become “unviable” if international student numbers fall as institutions are reliant on their higher tuition fees.

A paper, published by Hepi, looks at how postgraduate education in the UK changed in the decade after the 2007-8 financial crash.

It finds a higher proportion of postgraduate students are female compared to the past, but women with these qualifications still earn 14% less on average than men with the same level of qualifications.

Overall, white men from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to undertake postgraduate study. Among Uk-domiciled postgraduate entrants from the poorest areas, 36% are men, the paper finds.

The report shows that Uk-domiciled postgraduate entrants increased by 10% between 2008-9 and 2017-18, but student numbers from overseas grew faster. NON-EU international student levels grew by 33%.

On international students, the report warns: “While the high levels of participation by Chinese students have provided much-needed stability to postgraduate numbers and fee income, the sector’s over-reliance on one particular country represents a risk factor.”

It adds that Covid-19 has led to English proficiency exams required for new entrants being suspended within China, and UK universities setting out plans for Chinese students to delay enrolling in the autumn.

Dr Ginevra House, the author of the report, said: “When writing this report the Covid-19 pandemic had yet to reach its current height, but the risk posed by universities’ increasing reliance on international students was evident.”

Nick Hillman, director of Hepi, said: “If international postgraduate numbers fall, some courses will become unviable. This is true even if there are more home postgraduates because of the higher fee levels for international students.”