London's universities have launched a new campaign, 'Study London,' aimed at reassuring international students of their welcome at these institutions. According to Erudera, this initiative by London Higher, the body representing the capital's higher education institutions, comes in response to the UK government's recent restrictions on international students.
Safe destination for education
Diana Beech, Chief Executive Officer of London Higher, emphasised that the campaign seeks to restore confidence in London as a welcoming and safe destination for education. “'Study London’ is about using the best tool the UK has – the draw of its capital city and world-leading higher education institutions – to boost its international competitiveness. We will see it as a success not only if this campaign sees more students applying to London, but also to universities right across the UK,” Beech said in a statement.
This campaign follows significant changes to the UK’s immigration policies introduced earlier this year. The UK government announced new rules aimed at reducing migration, which included preventing most international students from bringing family members to the UK. Government estimates suggest that these measures could reduce migration by about 300,000 people. Consequently, the first quarter of 2024 saw an 80 percent drop in applications by student dependents and 26,000 fewer student visa applications compared to the same period last year, as reported by Erudera.
Despite these stringent measures, the Home Office decided to retain the Graduate Route, which allows international students to stay in the UK for two years post-graduation, or three years for PhD students. This decision was based on findings by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which found no evidence of abuse of this route. Nonetheless, the government indicated that the Graduate Route remains under review.
The Home Office noted that net migration has already decreased by 10 percent since 2022, and the latest changes are expected to further reduce migration. In the wake of these new proposals, visa applications have dropped by 25 percent.
