The obsession with reducing international student numbers is fucking deranged. It makes absolutely no sense. People rocking up to the UK saying can we spend loads and loads of money here please and the government is going eh, no. - ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

eddierobson.bsky.social • 9 days ago

The obsession with reducing international student numbers is fucking deranged. It makes absolutely no sense. People rocking up to the UK saying can we spend loads and loads of money here please and the government is going eh, no.

Reposted from Glen O'Hara

The UK govt is about to do two things which will likely make the university crisis much worse, markedly tightening the tailspin. One: cut international student numbers further. Two: link fees to inflation. (1/3)

Comments

jonnymorris.bsky.social•9 days ago

Many London universities have over 50% international students (cos people from the UK can't afford to live in London). So I'm not sure it's going to be the small dominoes that topple first, it might be the big ones.

dvbishop.com•9 days ago

It'll be the unis without chunky cash reserves who can't ride out the storm. Witness what's happening at Dundee with hundreds of job cuts and a £35 million deficit, and numerous other places.

pang5.bsky.social•9 days ago

Yeah but this is part of the plan to undermine universities. The White House is doing it, too. International students are huge sources of income for universities. If they go away, higher ed is immiserated and unable to produce critical thinking people.

timchuma.com•9 days ago

The conservatives in Australia lost the election and their leader for carrying on with this nonsense

garethmedwards.bsky.social•9 days ago

Let alone the damage it does to soft power. It’s all so pointless and destructive.

chriswilliams-dink.bsky.social•9 days ago

Exactly and the Universities who are crying poverty (even though they take about £27000 per UK student. What did they do before fees?) can't manage without the international much higher fees. So I wouldn't be surprised if at some point the government start bailing them out with taxpayers money.

eddierobson.bsky.social•9 days ago

I mean, I don't know the exact ins and outs of university finances, but as someone whose spouse is an academic, I can confirm the funding crisis is very real and having a brutal effect. (Before fees, universities got funding from government.)

eddierobson.bsky.social•9 days ago

And yeah, the government will say they're not going to bail out universities, but if one goes down it'll take the local economy with it. A lot of former industrial towns depend on those institutions.

chriswilliams-dink.bsky.social•9 days ago

Oh yeah its definitely real, I'm in a similar position to you with my other half. International students are absolutely vital now that Unis seem to be run on a profit business model. Those Brexit types they're trying to placate will soon have something to say if the Govt do step in with support.

andygilder.bsky.social•9 days ago

Govt to the UK HE sector: "You'll need to make yourselves financially sustainable"

UK HE sector: "Oh, ok then"

Govt: "Not like that"

eddierobson.bsky.social•9 days ago

Yeah. It's one of the few sources of global influence we have left, and we're just chucking it away because some people get grumpy if they hear someone speaking Mandarin on the bus. https://bsky.app/profile/garethmedwards.bsky.social/post/3loq5dx34r22x

bendunnell.bsky.social•9 days ago

I genuinely don’t think it’s too great a conspiracy to conclude that the government has decided to appeal solely to the “the only university you need is the University of Life” crowd, and is therefore happy to see them go to the wall, even though almost all the cabinet went to one.

eddierobson.bsky.social•9 days ago

Did you see the Labour MP who recently said he thinks we have too many universities and he's fine with some of them going bankrupt? Yeah, let's see how your constituents feel if it's your local one. See how that goes.

bendunnell.bsky.social•9 days ago

Yes. Ex-policeman, so his views are bound to be fucking terrible.

orbette.bsky.social•9 days ago

its all fucked lads

bendunnell.bsky.social•9 days ago

And absolutely out of the choice of successive governments. I don’t think anyone has really yet computed the way in which the development of HE funding and policy is having an adverse impact on society. The standard of new entrants to politics, for a start.