University of Exeter Scraps Geography Courses as UK Student Visa Applications Fall 11%
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 13
University of Exeter Scraps Geography Courses as UK Student Visa Applications Fall 11%
2 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 13
Summary
Exeter immediately dropped geography courses at its Penryn campus in Cornwall, including places for applicants due to start this year, in one of the clearest signs yet of UK university financial strain.
An 11% fall in student visa applications through July has deepened fears of a sharp loss of overseas-fee income, with some universities bracing for international enrolments to drop by 30%.
University leaders say the pressure has been worsened by a £925 levy on each international student and years of frozen domestic tuition fees, whose real value has fallen by about a third since 2017.
King's College London said every five lost international students can cost one university job, while former minister David Willetts warned at least one institution could risk going under.
The sector is urging Keir Starmer's government to drop the levy, arguing the decline in overseas students has already cost the UK nearly £3 billion in net economic benefit.