International students would be more likely to consider studying in the UK if they were allowed to stay and work for three years instead of two, according to a study.
International students can stay and work in the UK for two years after completing their 2019 course, when the government reinstated the two-year work visa after studying after years of pressure from universities.
Vivien Stern, director of Universities UK International, said the chancellors wanted the government to reconsider whether two-year visa forms were an “obstacle to hiring international graduates” and to ensure that the UK had a “competitive job offer”.
The change will bring the United Kingdom closer to Australia’s approach, offering graduates a work visa after up to four years’ training – depending on their course and level of training. In 2018, Australia overtook the United Kingdom as the second most popular destination for international students after the United States.
A survey of 100,000 international students by QS education analysts found that two-thirds would be more likely to consider studying in the UK if a post-training work visa is extended.
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The two-year visa was revoked by then-Interior Minister Theresa May in 2012 in a bid to curb immigration. However, the study suggests that less than a fifth of students will plan to stay after three years.
Instead of reducing immigration, universities warned that the abolition of work visas after training in 2012 had harmed the recruitment of international students. Since its restoration, institutions say they have managed to reach the target of recruiting 600,000 international students a decade earlier.
In addition to providing a significant revenue stream for UK universities, a recent study estimates that international students benefit the UK economy by £ 26 billion each year.
The report urges the government to review policies and restrictions “to help stimulate further growth in the sector after the pandemic and to position Britain after Brexit as an equally friendly destination for international students as its key competitors”.
The extension would be particularly attractive to Indian students, with nearly three-quarters (73%) saying three years would make them much more inclined to consider the UK. The number of Indian students choosing to study in the UK has dropped dramatically since the abolition of the two-year work visa after training in 2012, and has quadrupled since it was reinstated.
Enabling more Indian students to study in British institutions is a priority for the Indian government and higher education is expected to play an important role in the forthcoming UK ministerial visit to India on 6 June to discuss a trade agreement.
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry said the post-training job offers in the different countries were not “directly comparable and we believe that ours strike the right balance”.
She said: “Those on the path to graduation can stay in the UK and look for work at any skill level for a period of two years or three years for those with a doctorate and move on to a skilled job if they find a suitable job.”
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