Abu Dhabi: Despite the recent political turmoil in the UK surrounding the future of foreign nationals, including a proposal to crack down on international students, a senior British Council official in the UAE said it is business as usual for students from the emirates who want to study in the UK.
“The referendum result has no immediate implications for international students wanting to study in the UK, including those already studying in the UK. There are no immediate changes to their immigration status, fee status and access to tuition fee loans,” said Gavin Anderson, Director, British Council UAE.
“The UK has always welcomed and will continue to welcome high quality international students,” added Anderson.
Anderson was speaking with Gulf News ahead of an exhibition organised by the British Council, Education UK Exhibition (Edukex), that helps students in the UAE find what they need to know about studying in the UK by putting them in touch with representatives from British universities at the fair as well as providing information on UK Visas and Immigration.
“After the EU referendum result, the #WeAreInternational campaign was shared via a number of online channels with students from our global database, the campaign was created many years ago by the University of Sheffield … But in light of the EU Referendum, it has garnered extra support from much of the UK education sector, including the British Council,” added Anderson.
Over 3,500 students from the UAE enrolled in British universities for the 2014-2015 academic year, a 12.5 per cent increase since 2010.
According to a study by Universities UK, 20 per cent of the output generated by the higher education sector can be attributed to the recruitment of non-EU students and 18 per cent of the jobs generated.
The study also found that non-UK students generated an estimated £11 billion (Dh50 billion) for the UK economy during the 2011-2012 academic year and non-EU students contributed £3.2 billion in tuition fees alone.
“There are currently over 500,000 international students from over 80 countries studying in the UK. These students make a significant contribution to the economy, diversity and intellectual vitality of UK education,” said Anderson.
“Over a quarter of academic staff in the UK are from overseas and international students often go on to make significant contributions to the UK’s research base, helping the UK to achieve more scholarly articles per pound and per researcher than its major competitors,” added Anderson.
Over 300,000 non-EU students enrolled for the 2014-2015 academic year, with Chinese students topping the list with over 89,000 students, followed by India in a distant second place with over 18,000 students.
Anderson added that the fall of the sterling will potentially attract more overseas students to UK universities as they have become more accessible for the immediate term.
So what makes British universities appealing to students from the UAE?
“UK education is recognised for its quality, something employers place a high value on… UK universities also have the advantage of being closer to ‘home’ for many students in the UAE than other top English speaking destinations such as Australia, Canada or the United States.”
Edukex will be held in Abu Dhabi on November 6 and in Dubai on November 7.
