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More Chinese students at UK universities than from the whole of the EU

UPDATED:17:13 09 September 2015 by amy

·         More first-year Chinese students in the UK than from the whole of the EU
·         Last year 58,810 Chinese undergraduates moved to the UK for their studies
·         Total of 57,190 came from EU countries, not including British students
·         Meanwhile official figures show decline in Indian and Pakistani students 
·         But there was still a total of 310,000 non-EU students last year - up 3%
 
More first-year students from China have enrolled at UK universities than those from the whole of the EU put together. Last year, 58,810 Chinese undergraduates started their study here, while students from the continent, excluding those from the UK itself, totalled 57,190.
However numbers of students from India and Pakistan have dropped by more than a thousand, official figures show, suggesting the Government's attempts to restrict student visas has put undergraduates off studying in Britain.

More first-year students from China have enrolled at UK universities than the whole of the EU put together (file picture)





The number of Chinese first-years coming to the UK has increased by 59 per cent since 2009/10, when 36,950 new students enrolled, figures revealed by the Higher Educations Statistics Agency show.
Chinese students – and the growing number of middle-class parents who pay their fees – are attracted by the world-class rankings of UK universities, with nine British institutions in the world's top 100.The strong tradition of studying overseas has seen an increasing number of Chinese students coming to Britain.
The number of non-EU students in the UK rose to 310,195 - up three per cent in a year - but education experts were concerned with the fall in students from India and Pakistan.
Gordon Slaven, director of higher education at the British Council, said: 'It is very pleasing that the overall figures for non-EU students coming to the UK has increased by three per cent.
'But this headline figure does disguise one worrying trend: the decrease of students coming from India by 12 per cent and Pakistan by seven per cent, while demographic trends suggest these should be sources of growth for the UK.
'While the UK sector can be pleased that the overall numbers have increased, our competitor countries such as the USA and Australia have shown much more significant increases.


The number of international students coming to the UK has risen to 310,915 - up three per cent - despite restrictions on student visas (file picture)




Students coming to the UK from countries such as India and Pakistan have dropped by more than a thousand (file picture)
'This highlights the need for the UK to take a much more proactive and united approach to attracting highly talented students from around the world to reduce the risk of losing our share of the international student market.'
Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of vice-chancellors' group Universities UK, told the Independent: 'Problems remain with recruitment from India. There is growing demand for quality higher education around the world, so the UK should be capitalising on this, rather than seeing the stagnation of the past few years.' 

 

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