A recent survey found that the outcome of Brexit is prompting international students to reconsider which country to study in.
Hobsons, an organization that advocates for better student opportunities, surveyed 1,014 prospective international students.
Forty-three per cent of students said Brexit had affected their decision to study in the United Kingdom (UK). Out of these students, 83 per cent said it made them “less likely to study in the UK,” according to a release.
The most common reason students felt less likely to study in the UK was because they thought the country felt “less welcoming as a result of Brexit,” the survey said.
“In the wake of Brexit, the UK Higher Education sector faces a period of uncertainty,” said Hobsons’ managing director Jeremy Cooper in the release. “Universities need to send a clear message that the UK welcomes international students, as well as providing practical guidance and support.”
However, Brexit will ultimately have a minimal effect on international student enrolment, according to Howard Duncan, a Carleton University professor in the Faculty of Migration and Diaspora Studies.
“If anything, now that the pound is weaker, students are now more likely to go to school there,” he said. “[The UK has] great schools, like Oxford. And I think the ultimate draw is the quality and kind of education.”
He added that UK universities would continue to welcome international students, regardless of their country of origin.
Duncan said academic institutions at many universities promised students that Brexit would not prevent international students from studying in the UK.
Thirty-two per cent of participants said they were more likely to study in Canada as a result of the Brexit, while 21 per cent chose Germany and 20 per cent chose the United States or Australia.
“I am surprised that Canada would benefit so much, especially considering that places like China have started to be one of the biggest recruiters of international students in the world,” Duncan said.
Carleton international student Ahmad Ta said he “chose Carleton as it has a great reputation over Canada and also globally.”
The survey also found that 61 per cent of students thought that a weaker pound as a result of Brexit made the UK a “more attractive” place to study.
Jo Johnson, the minister for universities and science in the UK, said that changes in student fees as a result of Brexit would not affect current students and applicants for the 2016-17 academic year, according to Times Higher Education.
The survey also said many students would prefer to choose where they complete their studies based on personal preference and the information available to them.
