Overseas Students (Hansard, 4 July 1995)

§ Mr. Sheerman
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what is the value to the United Kingdom economy of students from aborad studying at United Kingdom higher education institutions; and what assessment she has made of the corresponding situation in other European Union countries. [32451]

§ Mr. Boswell
Recent research by the Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals of the Universities of the United Kingdom estimated the economic value of international higher education students in the United Kingdom at approximately £1 billion. I am not aware of any equivalent studies in other European Union countries.

§ Mr. Sheerman
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps she is taking to ensure that United Kingdom universities attract a fair share of well-qualified students from overseas. [32449]

§ Mr. Boswell
This Department, in conjunction with the other education departments, has recently produced a booklet entitled "Studying in the United Kingdom" which aims to let students, as well as their parents and sponsors, know more about the quality of further and higher education in the United Kingdom. The booklet is being distributed mainly by the Government-funded British Council, which also provides the education counselling service, ECS. The ECS is represented in 11 countries across the world and spends around £3.5 million each year on jointly funded projects with institutions in attracting overseas students to the UK. By 1998, it is planned to expand this service to a total of 18 countries at a cost of £5.5 million per year.

§ Mr. Sheerman
To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many students from overseas not including European Union students come to the United Kingdom for higher education; and what is her estimate of the value to the United Kingdom economy. [32450]

§ Mr. Boswell
In 1992, the latest year for which figures are available, some 60,200 students from non-European Union countries attended publicly funded higher education institutions in the United Kingdom. A recent research study commissioned by the Committee of Vice Chancellors and Principals of the Universities of the United Kingdom estimated the economic value of all international higher education students in they United Kingdom at approximately £1 billion per annum.