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Universities are reporting a sharp drop in international students applying to the UK amid warnings that further restrictions on student visas will torpedo a vital flow of talent for Britain’s creative industries.
University and industry leaders fear that the right to a graduate visa, which allows international graduates to work in the UK for up to three years, could be scrapped or cut, depending on the findings of a Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) report which should be handed over to the government on Tuesday.
Creative UK, which represents the creative industries, says removing the ability for international students to stay and work in the UK after graduating would be a powerful disincentive to study here, damaging a sector worth £108bn a year.
Restrictions on foreign students imposed earlier this year may have already caused a student decline applications from abroad and uncertainty over the fate of the graduate visa appear to have led to a further decline, according to a survey of UK universities.
The survey among 75 institutions of Association for International Liaison of British Universities found that nine out of 10 had fewer international applications for the next academic year and there was a 27% drop in overall applications for taught postgraduate courses compared to last year.
Joint letter from Creative UK and Universities UK, which represents vice-chancellors, is calling on the government to reject plans to scrap or limit the graduate visa route, arguing that international graduates are an integral part of the creative industries, which are now more significant than the aerospace industry. life sciences and automotive in the UK industries combined.
“Following further increases in visa fees and salary thresholds, the higher education visa represents one of the few remaining routes to allow talented graduates to stay in the UK and contribute to our growing creative industries,” the letter states . “Whether it’s a young Jimmy Choo developing his craft in Cordwainers or a world famous DJ Peggy Gowwho studied at the London College of Fashion, the role our universities play in attracting the best creative talent from around the world shows the impact of the soft power of our institutions.”
Sally Mapstone, vice-chancellor of St Andrews University and president of Universities UK, told Sky News on Sunday: “International students are hugely important to UK culture. They contribute a huge amount to universities, to the economy, to skills and jobs, and we think it would be a tragedy – detrimental not only to the institutions but indeed to the UK as a whole – if the Government took what would actually be quite an unnecessary more further action to limit the number of foreign students.”
The British Academy has told MAC that scrapping the graduate visa would “stifle the vibrancy of the UK’s academic and research environment”, with a continued decline in international student numbers threatening universities’ financial sustainability, prompting course closures and staff cuts.
Fears about the future of visas have grown since March when Home Secretary James Cleverley, ordered MAC “to ensure that the graduate pathway is not abused. Specifically, that some of the demand for study visas is no longer driven by a desire to immigrate.
Last week, Robert Jerrick, former immigration minister, published a report with the Center for Policy Research think tank calling for the higher education visa to be scrapped, claiming it “allows people to come and work in the gig economy and at very low wages”.
A government spokesman said: “We are fully focused on striking the right balance between decisive action to tackle net migration and attracting the brightest students to our universities, recognizing the significant contribution they make to the UK.”
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