Tightening immigration restrictions for students could damage the capital’s soft power and undermine one of the UK’s biggest export success stories
I was chilling in George Town, Penang, Malaysia, and checked out the Khoo Kongsi “clan temple”. It’s like this cool compound that shows off Malaysia’s ethnic Chinese population’s history and success. There’s this room with brass plaques celebrating local kids’ wins at universities in Singapore, Australia, Oxford, Cambridge, and London. Soft power vibes all around, man.
People are all up in arms about tightening the grad visa, which lets students work in the UK for two years after school. They’re all like, “Oh no, what will happen to the university money and the economy?” London would be hit real hard, you know? In 2022/23, there were over 200,000 foreign students in London, almost 30% of all in the UK. University College London and King’s College London had 44,000 foreign students combined.
Losing even a few of these students, who help pay for local students’ education, would be a big blow. The economy would take a hit too – foreign students in London bring in around £10 billion. But like, in the long run, the damage could run deep. The UK is a top exporter of higher education, bringing in about £28 billion from that sector. The US, our main competitor, only gets around $50 billion, even though their economy is way bigger than ours.
Back in the day, London didn’t even have its own uni until 1825. But then people started pushing for better education, and bam, University College London, King’s, and the University of London popped up. These new schools led to a boom in higher education, at home and abroad. By the late 19th Century, people all over the world were taking exams for University of London degrees.
When the British Empire started shrinking after World War II, new countries started their own unis (some with help from the University of London). People thought fewer folks would want London degrees, but that didn’t happen. Today, 150,000 international students are taking London courses in their home countries, with 40,000 on University of London programs.
London’s rep is a big reason people want London degrees, not just the schools themselves. That’s why lots of UK and international unis are in London. Even though it’s pricey, London is known as the best student city in the world.
Most students who come to London end up going back home. But the soft power remains. If they had a good time here, it boosts London and the UK’s rep. Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders in trade, politics, and stuff. The 58 world leaders who studied in the UK? They’re like diplomatic gold, helping us tackle global issues.
All this fuss about immigration might scare off international students. But like, they bring in mad benefits – money, culture, and diplomacy. Yeah, there are some shady things going on, and unis need to clean house. But punishing everyone for a few bad apples is just dumb.
Right now, international students might be thinking twice about the US, with all the deportations and tough immigration laws. Maybe that’s why they’re looking at the UK more. It’s time to open our doors wider and show off what we’ve got, not build walls like a bunch of Trumps.
Richard Brown is digging into London’s education history for the University of London. He wrote this on his own time. Check him out on Bluesky.
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