On-campus operators have certainly tasted success, but mention should be made of the myriad of pathway providers operating off-campus as well such as Kings Colleges and LSBF. LSBF has been delivering pathways since 2009 at its campuses and has just launched 16 specialist MBA pathways validated by London Metropolitan University; students on these courses can also access all the university’s facilities nearby. The school also runs one on-campus operation in partnership with Grenoble Graduate School of Business, France, and says it would like to expand both on and off-campus in future.

“We strongly believe in working alongside our partners to improve the students’ academic development and their overall experience. On-campus and off-campus options have great advantages and we are aiming to increase our offer of programmes in both categories,” says Anton Baboglo, managing director of LSBF’s Business School.

For Baboglo, pathways offer universities the benefit of diversity, with LSBF courses welcoming students from over 150 countries. He says some of LSBF’s partners are willing to source up to 20% of their student population from overseas.

To attract these students, pathways rely on increasingly honed sales and marketing networks, often providing their university partners with an otherwise unattainable reach into foreign markets. Channels such as digital marketing, including use of social networking, are increasingly employed as well more traditional routes such as appearances at student fairs. Education agencies – often overseen by providers – remain integral to the recruitment process.

All this means universities can rely, wobbles aside, on a steady stream suitable students who will often (though not always) progress on to host degree courses. Kaplan MD Linda Cowan points out that universities inevitably welcome “the stability that [pathways] give their planning through the ability to make more accurate forecasts, predicting six to nine months in advance what students are coming through”.

INTO's University of Exeter building; one of its success stories

As far as the actual revenue stream is concerned, an individual snapshot can be provided by INTO’s partnership with Newcastle University, established in 2007. The INTO Newcastle University joint venture generated UK£16.02 million in revenue for the year 2010-11. According to Professor Tony Stevenson, the University’s pro vice chancellor, “INTO has effectively had somewhere between a £12-13 million a year impact on our bottom line; that’s about 3.5% of our income.”

Meanwhile, Navitas CEO Rod Jones explains the power of the pathway on a macro level: “The value that has been directly created for universities by Navitas since 1994 exceeds AUD $544 million. In addition it is estimated that the flow-on revenue from students who complete a programme of ours and then enter the university and complete the balance of their degree is more than AUD $1.6 billion. [These are students who would not have gained entry to university without the Navitas program].”

With the rewards so worthwhile for both parties, it’s not surprising that universities and their pathway providers are quick to warn governments against putting off potential customers.

With uncertainty likely to persist over visas, will the future remain bright for pathways? For many companies, the outlook is positive because changing mobility patterns and growing demand for HE worldwide are presenting new opportunities.

“Gross enrolment ratios across much of the developing world suggest there is simply not enough capacity. Often where capacity is being built or already exists, the quality and relevance of provision causes huge problems,” says O’Brien. “We see significant opportunities to work with major public universities to provide pathways and higher education opportunities in Asia and North America – as well as retaining a clear focus on working with our partners in the UK.”