UK education: the best for the brightest

Transcript of a speech by the British High Commissioner to India, Sir James Bevan KCMG, at a higher education event Friday 23 November in New Delhi. Representatives of over 65 UK Universities attended the event. Originally given at New Delhi. This is a transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered.

 

Question: what do these people have in common? Rahul Gandhi; Manmohan Singh; Salman Khurshid; Montek Singh Aluwahlia; Cyrus Mistry; Karan Thapar; Vikram Seth; Suneet Varma; Soha Ali Khan.

The obvious answer is that they are all Indians at the top of their professions. But the more interesting answer is that they have all studied in the UK.

It says something about the quality of UK education that most of the leadership of today’s India, whether in politics, business, media and the arts have studied there. And you could add an equally illustrious list of India’s past leaders who have studied in Britain, starting with Mahatma Gandhi and Nehru.

We are of course pleased that India’s present and past leaders chose education in the UK. We want India’s future leaders to make that choice as well. And it is a choice – increasingly so as the world changes and India itself and other countries offer good education too.

So why should young Indians choose the UK as a place to study, over all our competitors? Here are my Top Ten reasons to choose the UK.

1.Quality:

UK education is the best in the world. The UK has 4 of the top 6 universities in the world, according to the latest rankings of global universities carried out by the QS organisation. And out of the top 100 world universities, 18 are in the UK.

2. Choice

In the UK you can study anything, anywhere. There are over 300 institutes of higher learning in the UK. They offer thousands of different courses. If you can’t study it in the UK, you wouldn’t want to study it anyway.

3. Recognition.

A UK qualification is recognised throughout the world as confirming that the holder has had a first class education. It is the passport to global success that every aspirational young Indian wants.

4. Lifestyle.

The UK is a great place to live. Britain has just topped the latest “soft power” list as the country which is most attractive to others. Factors which won us that accolade include the Jubilee and Olympics, pop music, film (James Bond), the number of foreign students, the quality of life in the UK, and even (yes) our cuisine. And don’t forget sport: the UK is home to India’s favourite – cricket.

5. Because it’s got strong ties to home.

There are over 1.5 million people of Indian origin in the UK. Almost every Indian coming to the UK will have friends and family there. And there are more Indian students in the UK than any other nationality except Chinese. So wherever you go in the UK, it feels like coming home.

6. Because it’s global.

The UK is one of the most diverse countries in the world. We have students from every country: 500, 000 of them in the UK at any time. Like their Indian fellow students, they are usually the best and brightest. Indians are great networkers. Network with the best!

7. Because we speak English.

Which means that you can concentrate on the studying not on the language. And that your chances of a successful career are higher. Research shows that people who speak excellent English – which is one of the benefits of studying in the UK – have substantially higher salaries and reach more senior positions than those who don’t.

8. Value for money.

Compared with other countries with first class educational institutions, the UK is not an expensive place to study. It is cheaper than the US in terms of university fees. And UK degrees are normally shorter than those of the US: three years not four. So you pay less for your degree. And you are likely to earn more after it. Research shows that foreign students who have been educated in the UK get significantly higher salaries than those who have been educated at home. So the cost of a UK education is one of the best investments you can make.

9. We offer help.

There are hundreds of scholarship schemes available for prospective Indian students, offered by universities, private foundations, and the British Government itself. We are proud of our prestigious Chevening Scholarships for future leaders, which bring about 60 Indians to the UK every year. And this year we have awarded sixty new ‘Jubilee Scholarships’ for Masters courses in the UK. There are other scholarships too: check the British Council website.

10. Visas are not a problem.

Really. There are various myths about our student visa arrangements. Let me nail them.

Myth one:

The UK no longer wants foreign students. Wrong. We are committed to reducing net migration to the UK, and we have dealt firmly with bogus colleges and fake students. But we have set no limit on the numbers of genuine foreign students who can come to Britain. No limit. Indeed the UK actively wants to continue to attract large numbers of the best and brightest to Britain: it’s good for our education sector, our economy and our place in the world. There’s a global competition for the best and brightest: if you are in that category, we want you in Britain. So if you are a genuine student going to a genuine institution, you will get your visa.

Myth two:

It’s hard to get a visa. Wrong. We make it easy to apply: we have more application centres in India than any of our competitors. And we like to say yes: most Indians who apply for a student visa get one. We issued over 30,000 student visas here in India last year, and 75% of those who applied were successful.

Myth three:

You can no longer work after study in the UK. Wrong again. We know this is important for Indians, many of whom take out a loan to pay for their study in the UK and need to work afterwards to pay it off. So while we have closed down the arrangement under which foreign students could stay in the UK to work in low-paid jobs, we have deliberately retained the ability for Indians and others to work in the UK after study provided they secure a graduate level job. You can stay and work in the UK for at least three years with the possibility of extension for a further three.

So my message is simple: UK education is great, and Indians who decide to study in the UK will love it.

But I would say that, wouldn't I? So don’t take my word for it. Take instead the word of the International Student Barometer, which is an annual survey of foreign students. What this year’s survey shows is that more than four out of five (81%) of foreign students like university life in the UK; and that satisfaction levels with almost all aspects of studying in the UK, already high, have gone up over the last few years.

So if you are a young Indian thinking about your future, think about studying in Britain. We offer the best for the brightest: the best education in the world for India’s most talented. We hope to see you in the UK. It could be the best decision you ever make.

Study in New Zealand @ NMIT

Canada pins hope on foreign students

April 4, 2013, IHT:

Canadian government aims to woo international students, writes Elaine Smith

The number of college and university students studying internationally has grown more than fourfold since 1975 — and Canada wants a larger share of that market. 

Approximately 3.7 million students sought post-secondary education outside their home countries in 2009, compared with 800,000 in 1975, according to Unesco and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. This year, the number of international students in Canada exceeded 100,000 for the first time — triple the number who studied there in 2000. 

Edward Fast, the Canadian minister of international trade and for the Pacific Gateway, released a report by a government panel in August that recommended that Canada double its number of international students by 2022. It called international education “the driver for economic prosperity and social progress.” 

“Last year, international students contributed more than 8 billion dollars to Canada’s economy,” Mr. Fast said by e-mail, referencing an amount equal to about $7.8 billion at current rates. “They supported 86,000 Canadian jobs.” 

“But the benefits transcend economics as well,” he added. “They’re helping us build a diverse, skilled and globally focused workforce.” 

“They’re a vital link as we create the people-to-people ties that will grow our partnerships with countries around the world. As Canadians do more business abroad, we need these kinds of connections,” he said. 

Kelly Zhong, a native of Nanjing, China, is a fourth-year economics and statistics student at the University of Toronto who volunteers at its Center for International Education. She also did some off-campus work during the summer. 

Her intention is to stay in Canada after graduation, first to earn a master’s degree, and then to gain work experience. “By that time, I will have been here for five years, so I’ll know more about the Canadian job market than the job market in China,” she said. 
“Studying abroad is a very good opportunity to experience different things, not only culturally, but different methods of learning,” she said. 

That is also true outside the classroom. “We learn practical skills like how to live on our own and how to cook — real life skills,” she said. “I could see myself change a lot and improve a lot.” 

There is stiff competition among major English-speaking countries for overseas talent who also generally pay full tuition — particularly as universities face budget cuts.  “When international students think about where to go, our main competition is the U.S., the U.K. and Australia,” said Paul Davidson, president of the Association of Colleges and Universities of Canada. “We must get Canada on the list of places people consider.” 

He added that about 8 percent of Canadian students were from overseas, which is about double the percentage in the United States.  “Canadian universities are recognizing what it takes to recruit internationally,” Mr. Davidson said. “We need a strong national brand proposition, because when international students are choosing a university, they look at the country first, the kind of institution second and the kind of program third.” 

“Since we’re a smaller country, they recognize we all have to work together,” he said, referring to universities. 

Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia lead the way in recruiting international students to Canada. The University of Toronto, in Ontario, is home to 11,500 international students — the largest number in the country — according to its Center for International Education. 
“International students bring cultural and academic diversity to our university,” said Miranda Cheng, director of the center. “We always want the best and brightest students, and international students bring such richness to our classrooms.” 

She credits policies that make it easier to recruit overseas. “The government of Canada really assists the post-secondary sector with its fairly progressive policies with regard to working off campus and post-graduation work,” she said. 

International students are allowed to seek part-time employment off campus after six months of full-time study, as a way to help them defray costs. They can also obtain foreign work credentials: After earning a four-year undergraduate degree, they can apply to work in Canada for up to three years. 

Other nations are not as generous: In the United States, international students are eligible to work only on campus, and many struggle to stay in the country after graduation. Tough visa rules have led to a foreign student “brain drain,” prompting both lawmakers and members of the technology industry to appeal for a change in immigration law. 

In Britain, international students can work no more than 10 hours a week and need an endorsement from their school to work after graduation. Its government came under fire over what critics called an overzealous immigration crackdown after London Metropolitan University was stripped of its right to host non-E.U. students, leaving thousands in limbo last autumn. For a while, it seemed as though those who could not quickly secure school space would face deportation. 

Overseas study is generally expensive. As with most British, Australian and state-funded U.S. universities, most Canadian institutions have one rate for domestic students and a much higher one for international students. 

In Ontario and British Columbia, provincial governments give universities financial assistance for domestic students, but not for their international counterparts — which is reflected in tuition. 
A Canadian undergraduate business student at the University of Toronto would pay 14,259 Canadian dollars, while an overseas counterpart would pay 32,075 dollars — or $13,900 and $31,200 — per year. 

This puts Canada in the same ballpark as other major English-speaking nations, at least in terms of cost. An international student at Harvard would pay $37,576. One at Cambridge in Britain would pay £20,790, or $31,399. And one at the University of Melbourne would pay 33,344 Australian dollars, or $34,791. 

But the cost is not stopping international students, as an increasing number choose to cross borders to study. 

“We don’t live in a bordered world anymore, so students must be able to move easily across those borders,” said Karen McKellin, the executive director of the international student initiative at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. 

At U.B.C., 14 percent of the student body — or about 8,400 students — comes from outside Canada. The largest numbers come from China, the United States and South Korea.