Scotland is often overlooked in the international education conversation but in 2009-10 it welcomed over 42,000 non-EU students. With the country approaching a referendum for independence from the UK, Education Secretary Mike Russell shared his vision for international education.
The PIE: Why are international students important for Scotland?
MR: International students are often the lifeblood of the university. They help the university by bringing in new experiences, new talents. Very often some of those students will go on to study postgraduate degrees at those universities and to contribute either there or elsewhere essentially to learning. It’s also financially important.
Universities require a mix of funding, and the ability to attract international students is part of that mix. So I think it’s important in terms of the health of universities in a variety of ways and it’s also important that we also speak to the world about the quality of the system that we have.
The PIE: How imperative is it for Scotland to set itself apart from England in the international education sector?
MR: We aren’t really setting ourselves apart from England. The [Scottish] education sector has been different since forever. Education is one of the areas which was recognised even in the Act of Union of 1707 as we began a different system. We were really the first country in the world to introduce compulsory schooling in the 16th century that arose out of our reformation.
Our universities are divided into a number of categories, one of them is the Ancient Universities. St. Andrews has just celebrated it’s 600th anniversary. So I wouldn’t call it a setting apart, I would say there’s a distinctive Scottish university sector. For example we have a four-year degree and England has a three year degree. We have a different system that operates in a different way that has a clear and good reputation.
“We aren’t really setting ourselves apart… The [Scottish] education sector has been different since forever”
The PIE: What are Scottish institutions’ selling points?
MR: We have a reputation at those universities which is second to none. We’ve got four or five of the top 200 universities in the world, eight of the world’s top 400 according to the Times Higher ranking. In a population of five million people that’s actually unique. If you look at Hong Kong which is separate from China which is normally put on top of the rankings as a top small country, we’re actually beyond that with our record.
So we have a very high performing higher education system and that’s a result of our history and continued investment. I also think it’s the result of the fact that we have continued the policy of access by ability to learn not the ability to pay. We don’t charge fees for our students in Scotland. I think that’s an important part of our success.
The PIE: Scottish Universities slipped in the most recent Times Higher rankings. What repercussions could that have?
MR: All universities in certain parts of Europe have slipped in rankings. The reality is that there’s very substantial competition from the Far East. But the Times Higher outlook for universities south of the border, given the fees issue, is actually worse than for those north of the border. So I think it’s fair to say that the reputation is still very strong.
“Colleges will want to compete for international students and regionalisation will give them a much better mass to do so”
The PIE: What’s the latest development on a possible EU ruling to allow Scottish universities to charge European students full tuition?
MR: We have made it clear that we would like to charge a management fee to EU students; it is very difficult to do given EU law and EU regulation. I am in discussion but I hold out no particular hope at this stage for an end date to that discussion. We are not funded to provide education for those who are not from Scotland by definition, that’s where we are. I would be very happy if the UK government decided to support it own students by giving them free education but that’s a decision they haven’t made.
The PIE: You’ve been campaigning to consolidate Scotland’s colleges into 13 regional institutions. How will that affect their ability to recruit internationally?[More>>]
MR: In Edinburgh it is particularly beneficial because three colleges have come together into a larger regional college which will have the ability to compete in a variety of ways. Regionalisation essentially is to develop a strategic view of what further education can provide in Scotland. We presently have about 42 colleges in Scotland. That’s quite a lot for a country of our size.
We also have a government structure that hasn’t changed in 20 years and arises out of Thatcherite reforms of the early 1990s and doesn’t focus on Scotland as it is today. So what we’re trying to do is focus on learners and learner outcomes, particularly learners’ links to employment. That’s a domestic issue, but the colleges will want to compete for international students as many of them have distinctive offerings, and I’m quite certain that regionalisation will give them a much better mass in order to do so.
“We’ve got four or five of the top 200 universities…in a population of five million people that’s actually unique”
The PIE: What place does the private sector have in Scotland’s international education?
MR: I think given the size of the market, I see no private universities emerging in Scotland. For one to emerge it would be quite a substantial investment which I don’t think would be paid off, so I don’t think there’s a likelihood of private sector providing investment that way. But in others it provides a whole range of things to Scottish universities and colleges – from buildings right through to text books and that’s how it should be.
The PIE: How are Scottish institutions dealing with the UKBA’s immigration policies?
MR: We think the UKBA is not focused on opportunities for Scotland. It’s focused very narrowly on an agenda set by the coalition government which is really focused on what it perceives are the needs of the South East of England. We would very much like to have a different approach, of course our pursuit of independence would include the pursuit of our own migration and immigration policies, and we would want to encourage particularly in the university sector a flow of students.
And a flow of PhD students – that’s a very important subset for the ongoing health of the university sector. All our universities are research universities and it’s about the internationalisation of research. Sometimes it’s very hard to do that with the attitudes of the UKBA.
The PIE: Have post-study work rights been an issue?
MR: In terms of graduate employment, the UKBA is a considerable difficulty. I’m very keen that universities work closely with Scotland and provide employment opportunities. I think that interaction is very positive and I’d welcome that development in terms of putting to the UKBA the open and generous case to ensure we attract students from elsewhere.
“In terms of graduate employment, the UKBA is a considerable difficulty”
The PIE: What other challenges do Scottish institutions face in attracting international students?
MR: Competition is one of them but it’s not just with institutions south of the border, not just England or Wales. There is a worldwide market in attracting international students into higher education and Scotland is part of that. So it has to compete on the basis of price, it has to compete on the basis of quality, it has to compete on the basis of security and a good place to go. For example in China, there’s a strong focus on safety. So it has to compete in that as well. I think we do pretty well on all of those.
The PIE: How else is the Scottish government promoting international education?
MR: There are a number of ways about looking at this. It’s not just about students coming to us its about our students going elsewhere. I have that conversation whenever I’m abroad and I will continue to have that conversation when I’m abroad. I’m trying to encourage that. We’ve funded the national union of students to do some very positive work in it and by extending the Saltire scholarship we take it a step further.
We’re also looking at ways we can support students while they’re abroad. Scottish students from the 17th century onwards have often spent time abroad studying. I’m keen to continue to encourage it.
