UK Hits 600,000 International Student Target 10 Years Early. 

News Source:- UK higher education providers hosted 605,130 international students in the 2020/21 academic year, hitting its 600,000 target a decade earlier than hoped, figures from Higher Education Statistics Agency have indicated.

Of the international students in the UK in 2020/21, 452,225 were recorded as non-EU students, while 152,905 hailed from within the European Union. Overall higher education students in the country stood at 2,751,865 in 2020/21, marking an increase of 9% from 2019/20.

For international students, the 48,505 increase is equivalent to an 8.7% rise on 2019/20 figures when non-UK students totalled 556,625.

First year students from India rose by 27% in 2020/21, while those from China fell for the first time by 5%. The statistics showed that while UK-domestic first year students rose by 13%, overall non-UK first year students rose by 4%.

In 2021, a refreshed UK international education strategy restated a commitment to the target of hosting 600,000 international students by 2030.

Along with the rise among first year domestic students, taught postgraduate degree candidates also rose for both domestic and international students, HESA noted.

“Despite fears about the potential effect of the pandemic on international student numbers, the 2020/21 Student data still shows an overall increase in international first year students,” Lucy Van Essen-Fishman, lead policy & research analyst at HESA. Read More.