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Growth in Chinese student flows to the major English-language study destinations - the US, UK, Canada and Australia - has slowed considerably since 2016. A number of factors are contributing to that declining trend, including the emergence of less expensive study destinations in Asia and Europe that offer what is perceived as better value and a seemingly more welcoming environment. In this report, Chinese student mobility to the four major host destination markets is examined, along with the push-and-pull factors that are currently influencing student flows. The increasingly weighty role geopolitical issues play in international higher education is also noted. The challenges that education institutions are currently navigating apply not only to recruiting students from China, but from many countries across the globe.

Key findings: (1) Chinese students continue to pursue study in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, but growth is slowing significantly; (2) The US and UK continue to rely heavily on China as a source country for international students; (3) Canada and Australia are diversifying their international student populations so as to be less reliant on China as a source country; (4) Total enrollments of Chinese students across nearly every level of study in the US dropped in 2018-19, with the biggest decline in language studies; (5) UK student visa issuances to Chinese nationals are up 21 per cent, year-on-year, while issuances to the rest of the world have increased eight per cent; (6) After surging 38 per cent through the first half of 2018, the number of new study permits for Chinese nationals to Canada was flat through August 2019; (7) Demand for Canadian education from the rest of the world remains strong, with issuance of new study permits growing nearly 15 per cent in the last year; and (8) New Chinese student enrollments in Australia were down four per cent in the last year, while new enrollments from the rest of the world are up nearly seven per cent.

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The coronavirus, or [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19, has radically transformed sectors across the globe, and higher education is no exception. From closing campuses to investing in online learning and supporting isolating students and staff, universities have quickly responded and adapted to this new normal. Looking towards the next academic year, many institutions are concerned about their international student recruitment in this restricted global climate. To address this uncertainty, QS established an ongoing survey of prospective international students to understand their response to the global health emergency and how it's impacted their decision making. In this white paper, we reveal exclusive QS survey findings that detail the priorities and concerns of prospective international students from China, India, the European Union, and North America.

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This research used administrative data and qualitative interviews to fill gaps in information about the costs of Foundation Year (FY) study. The specific aims of this study are to answer the following questions: (1) Whether the cost of FY study differs from the cost of a first year of an undergraduate degree; what are the differences, and what drives them? (2) How and why the cost of FY study varies by subject-group; and (3) How and why the cost of FY study differs between Higher Education providers (HEPs) in England.

Key findings include: (1) Most commonly, HEPs offer FYs to support their widening participation strategy, although total enrolment numbers on FY programmes tend to be driven by student demand rather than by a need to meet HEPs' targets; (2) Some HEPs utilise FYs as a guarantee of student numbers and financial sustainability particularly on courses where undergraduate numbers are low, or enrolment figures fluctuate from one year to the next; (3) FY students can broadly be categorised into three distinct groups: 18-year-olds not meeting course entry requirements (which makes up the predominant learner group for FY enrolment); mature students, who may have had limited or no prior qualifications; and international students enrolling on HEPs' distinct international foundation year programmes; (4) HEPs reported Biological, Mathematical and Physical Sciences; Engineering and Technology; and Medicine Dentistry and Health as the three most expensive general subject areas in which to run FY programmes; (5) FY costs were highest among high tariff HEPs and lowest among low tariff HEPs; (6) The drivers of FY costs are consistent across the HEPs participating in this research and are closely associated with the level of specialist equipment and facilities required to deliver teaching. Any FY subject requiring studios, lab equipment and physical infrastructure are among the most expensive to run; (7) Most HEPs noted that class size had a direct impact on the cost of programme delivery - the larger the class, the less expensive it is to run per head because of economies of scale. Similarly, subjects with a lower staff to student ratio are most cost effective to run; and (8) FY provision is regarded by HEPs as invaluable. Without it, many students from underrepresented backgrounds, as well as those with the potential to succeed in HE but had underperformed in school, would not be able to access higher education.

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Recent years have witnessed a small decrease of domestic student enrolments and a growing number of international students in Canadian postsecondary programs. This study examines the relationship of changes in domestic students' postsecondary enrolments with the influx of international students during the 2010s. This study provides one of the first empirical analyses of the relationship in the context of Canada, adding to the literature that had been based mainly on the United States and the United Kingdom. Using enrolment data from the Postsecondary Student Information System, a fixed-effects model was estimated to control for institution-specific characteristics and aggregate time effects. It found positive relationships between changes in domestic and international student enrolments within programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) at universities and in business, humanities, health, arts, social science and education - as well as legal studies, trades, services, natural resources and conservation - (BHASE) at colleges. An influx of 100 international students in STEM fields was associated with 141 additional domestic student enrolments in the same fields at universities. An increase in the enrollment of 100 international students BHASE programs was associated with 99 additional domestic students in these programs at colleges. Although this finding may be partly because of unobserved time-varying factors boosting enrolments of domestic and international students at the same time, it is consistent with the notion of cross-subsidization that high tuition fees paid by international students provide resources to maintain or expand some instructional programs and potentially subsidize domestic student enrolments. There was no evidence of cross-subsidization across programs. A decrease in the domestic young adult population was associated with a decrease in domestic student enrolments in BHASE programs. Trends in domestic and international students' tuition fees and trends of the postsecondary-age population were discussed to contextualize the results.

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This report examines the changes in international students over the last decade. The data are derived from the Australian Government's [Provider Registration and International Students Management System] PRISMS database comprising year-to-date enrolments and commencements for all international students studying in Australia at all levels who are on student visas. It does not include international students studying in Australia on visas other than student visas, nor does it include transnational students who are studying Australian courses in overseas institutions. Key points [are]: a total of 526,932 international students were studying in all sectors of education in Australia in 2013, an increase of 72 per cent over 2003; the largest education sector is higher education with 44 per cent of all international enrolments in 2013; within higher education, Chinese students make up the largest group of international students (92,248 enrolments or 40 per cent share in 2013) and have had the strongest growth (263 per cent increase from 2003 to 2013); the majority of Chinese students studying at undergraduate and postgraduate coursework levels are in Management and Commerce courses. In 2013, Chinese students comprised 55 per cent of all international students in postgraduate coursework Management and Commerce courses; and Chinese students made up 20 per cent of all international students in higher degree by research compared with 44 per cent of international students in postgraduate coursework in 2013.

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The fast-growing number of international students has generated strong public interest and concerns about their impacts on Canada's educational institutions, labour market and affordable housing. Fully understanding such impacts requires better knowledge of the school enrolment and labour force participation of international students.

Earlier Statistics Canada studies found that the number of international students enrolled in publicly funded postsecondary education institutions was about 20 per cent to 30 per cent smaller than the number of postsecondary study permit holders (SPHs) (Choi & Hou, 2023; Frenette, Lu & Chan, 2019). However, little information exists about these SPHs who did not enrol in publicly funded postsecondary programs. It is unclear whether they stayed in Canada and, if so, what their main activities were. This article attempts to explore this less known area.

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Deloitte Access Economics was commissioned by the [Department of State Development to estimate the current contribution of the international education and training sector to South Australia, as well as forecast potential future growth for the sector from 2016 to 2026. This report is intended to serve as a starting point in the development process by providing an overview of the current market and its significance to the State economy, and outline its potential growth over the next decade. Key points include: in 2015, South Australia had 32,100 international student enrolments, growing at a slower pace than the national average, with market share falling from a historic high of 5.6 per cent in 2011 to 5.0 per cent in 2015; higher education is the biggest sub-sector in enrolment terms followed by English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students (ELICOS), vocational education and training (VET), non-award and schools; International education and training is the largest services export and the fifth largest export overall for the State; enrolments in higher education and schools contribute the most per enrolment, with the average enrolment in higher education (schools) supporting $44,330 ($34,100) in total value added, and 0.33 (0.32) full time equivalent (FTE) jobs; and international students support investment in the construction industry.

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This report provides an update on issues caused by the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic that affect international students and the international education sector. Previous Mitchell Institute reports have highlighted how problems affecting international students impact Australia's universities, Australia's economy and local communities (Hurley, 2020; Hurley & Van Dyke, 2020). These reports showed that international students have transformed our cities and that issues experienced by international students will affect many Australians. This report uses the most up-to-date available data to refine previous research. The analysis in this report shows that Australia's international education industry is facing severe disruption characterised by a continuing reduction in both currently enrolled international students and the number of international students inside Australia. This disruption will have long-term consequences. For universities, this includes continuing uncertainty and losses in revenue. For the broader Australian community, the impact of the international student crisis will affect cities, and communities within cities, differently. When the worst effects of the coronavirus pandemic are over, Australia will have a radically different international education sector. Re-building the sector is a priority for all levels of government and this report concludes by considering some of the policy implications. While the crisis may not be over, the time is right to start planning how the international education sector should function in a post-coronavirus environment.

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International student mobility in higher education has gained currency as an important topic in today's global, political, and economic environment. United States postsecondary institutions are working to expand their international student population to increase revenue and diversity. The current higher education and economic context has produced a 'global war' to identify, recruit, and matriculate talented students who have become more mobile when selecting postsecondary education destinations. Thus, in order to provide a clear picture of the current status of international student migration to the United States, [the authors] sought to understand the following: (1) prestige as a determining factor in the selection of studying abroad for non-Americans living outside the United States; (2) federal and state financial influences that directly affect institutions' abilities to enroll foreign students; (3) implications for postsecondary institutions in the United States; and (4) implications for scientific, cultural, and economic advancement for the United States.

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The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2022 as an international mobility 'passport', offering potential entry to universities around the world. Globally, 3,600 schools in July 2022 offer the IBDP. Within these, there is a sub-grouping of well-established private 'elite traditional international schools' (ETISs), epitomised by the International Schools of Geneva and Yokohama. Using matriculation data mined from the websites of individual ETISs, this paper reveals the major university destinations. The emergent dominance of relatively few destinations (five in particular), mainly in Canada and England, offers an interesting avenue for research inquiry. Conversely, the relatively low entry level of ETIS graduates into the world's most prestigious universities, such as the Oxbridge pairing, can be compared. A seemingly 'natural pathway' to Toronto rather than Harvard has emerged and warrants much further discussion and investigation.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner.

Forthcoming article first published online 26 July 2022 by Routledge, Taylor and Francis. Show less