International students in Scotland, Brexit and beyond

CPC member David McCollum has published a blog post on the The UK in a Changing Europe analysis website. His post, ‘International students in Scotland, Brexit and beyond’ considers Scotland’s position in attracting and continuing to attract international students in the face of stiff competition, and the current climate of immigration policy, rhetoric and Brexit. It presents findings from a recent roundtable meeting, attended by representatives from key stakeholder organisations, which took place in Edinburgh at the end of 2018.

International student migration is undeniably beneficial to Scotland, with international students attracted to Scotland as place to study and reporting high levels of satisfaction when they get there. Findings from the roundtable meeting show that a case can be made for an enhanced ‘offer’ to prospective students, especially around post-study work opportunities. Using more welcoming language and policy messages would also be helpful, as well as not including international students in the net migration cap.

“There is widespread agreement that international student migration is overwhelmingly positive for Scotland in economic, demographic and cultural terms, and Scotland has an excellent reputation as a destination for international study. Current immigration policy, and wider rhetoric surrounding immigration, is potentially damaging the attractiveness of Scotland to prospective international students, so it is vital to consider Scotland’s ‘offer’ relative to other potential destinations for study,“ says Dr McCollum.

“The main thing we took away from the meeting is that we need more evidence to inform immigration policy. While there is a reasonable level of understanding of the overall financial impacts of international student migration, less is known about international students’ preferences and experiences, especially in how they interpret and respond to policies and political rhetoric surrounding migration.”

Read the full blog post ‘International students in Scotland, Brexit and beyond’ on The UK in a Changing Europe website.

The UK in a Changing Europe project promotes rigorous, high-quality and independent research into the complex and ever changing relationship between the UK and the European Union (EU). Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), and based at King’s College London, the Initiative explores the key aspects of UK and EU dynamics.


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Posted 25/01/2019 13:19