Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 49
First Report - Universities and Scotland
Published 28 May 2021
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Universities and Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The current picture regarding international student numbers looks much more encouraging than it did in mid-2020. UCAS data117 from 18 February 2021 shows that applications to Scottish universities for the next academic year by non-EU international students has—despite many expectations in 2020—increased by 27% (to 6,100), which 110 Q232 111 Secretary of State at the Scotland Office (USC0011) 112 “Covid fears putting off Chinese students from UK”, BBC News, 15 July 2020 113 Universities Scotland, An existential challenge: the financial threat facing Scotland’s universities as a result of COVID-19 (9 April 2020), phase 2 114 Universities Scotland, An existential challenge: the financial threat facing Scotland’s universities as a result of COVID-19 (9 April 2020), phase 2 115 Universities Scotland, An existential challenge: the financial threat facing Scotland’s universities as a result of COVID-19 (9 April 2020), phase 2 116 Scottish Funding Council, Coherence and Sustainability: A review of Scotland’s Colleges and Universities, Phase One Report: Insights to Develop Further (20 October 2020) 117 Note: not all international students apply to university via UCAS, so these statistics may not provide a full picture Universities and Scotland 23 is the highest increase in non-EU international student applications across all four UK nations.118 Commenting on these statistics, Alastair Sim, Director of Universities Scotland, said: Application data at this point in the cycle gives an indication about the demand for higher education, and it looks assuring for Scottish universities. Students clearly see a value at studying in Scotland from across the world all the way to our most deprived areas. We are taking nothing for granted as applications don’t necessarily transfer into acceptances especially when there is a great deal of volatility regarding students and the pandemic.119
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, First Report - Universities and Scotland (HC 54), 28 May 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 27 April 2022 (deadline 28 July 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response sets out continued work with the devolved administrations and existing UK-wide policies on international students, immigration, research funding and talent, and states it will submit a response to the earlier Immigration and Scotland report "shortly".
- On the Turing Scheme, it confirmed funding for three years, including "£110 million for the 2022/23 Academic Year". It states the scheme "prioritises pupils, students and learners over staff and inward mobility funding", and says the first year's impact will be evaluated.
- On Erasmus+, it states that President Von Der Leyen "has previously confirmed that association by part of a country is not legally possible".
- On UKRI, it states that Board appointees "are not recruited to represent any constituency, sector or regional grouping", while a legal requirement to have regard to research conditions in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is taken into account. It says Research England's place on the Executive Committee reflects its status as a legal component of UKRI.
- On visa costs, it states that "UK visa fees are broadly in line with our competitors" and that it will "continue to keep visa fees under review".