The email sent in December 2023 by one of the heads of the computer science education department at the University of York, in the United Kingdom, to his colleagues was direct: “In response to current financial problems, the university has decided to reduce the grades required of international students to [l’admission dans] all courses. » Clearly, this university, which is nevertheless part of the prestigious Russell Group, bringing together the twenty-four best higher education establishments in the United Kingdom, has decided to accept lower-level foreign students.
As indicated in the internal message, revealed by the Financial Times, the explanation is purely financial: a British student pays university fees of 9,250 pounds sterling (nearly 10,800 euros) per year, a level which is regulated by the State and frozen since 2012; those who come from abroad pay two to three times more, without any limit imposed by the authorities. At the University of York, for example, bachelor’s fees are £21,950 per year.
At the same time, the British state has significantly reduced its budget allocated to universities. Public funding per student is at its lowest level in twenty-five years. International students therefore represent the last windfall available: they now bring 20% of university revenues, a doubling in a decade. “There is an urgent need for a national debate on university funding, including the balance between fees paid by UK students, public funds, and international students,” underlines Charley Robinson, international manager at Universities UK, which represents British universities.
In this context, the internal email from the University of York says out loud what has been whispered quietly for several years: British universities, in great financial difficulty, risk creating two-tier diplomas, with higher requirements. for the British.
In two decades, the number of international students has more than doubled in the UK, to almost 700,000 today, a quarter of all students. In some universities, the percentage is well over half: London School of Economics (66% foreign students), University of the Arts London (54%), Imperial College London (53%), University College London (UCL, 52% )… At the masters level, two thirds of students are now international. The first contingent comes from China, representing around a quarter of foreign students. Indians and Nigerians are also on the rise. Only the number of Europeans, who have had to pay international fees since Brexit (whereas they were previously limited to British fees), is in sharp decline.
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