V-cs: now give ‘categorical reassurance’ graduate visa will stay

Ministers must listen to the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) and give “categorical reassurance that the graduate visa is here to stay”, Universities UK said.

Vivienne Stern, the representative body’s chief executive, described the independent review’s conclusion that the two-year post-study work visa was not undermining the integrity of the UK higher education system and was instead helping to make up for financial losses on teaching domestic students and research as “extremely important and welcome”.

“The uncertainty caused by the decision to review the visa has been toxic. We hope and expect that government now listens to the advice they have been given and provides categorical reassurance that the graduate visa is here to stay,” Ms Stern said.

Institutions already battling to overcome steep decreases in enrolments, after the right to bring dependants was removed for international master’s students in January, have repeatedly warned that any further changes could wreak further financial havoc.

“As the MAC report makes clear, international students who remain to work in the UK on the graduate route are net contributors to the UK, important to our ability to compete as a study destination, and crucial to university finances. We understand the political pressure to reduce migration but, as the report makes clear, changes introduced earlier this year to prevent postgraduate taught students bringing dependants have already had a very significant effect. Recruitment ahead of September is already looking incredibly challenging, and the government should recognise this and that going further would be a serious mistake,” Ms Stern added.

“We agree there is room to improve, building on what universities themselves have done, to tighten agent management and increase resilience in the system.

“What is needed now is stability – we need the government to provide much needed reassurance to both universities and international students that the graduate route is here to stay.”

Tim Bradshaw, chief executive of the Russell Group of research-intensive universities, said that the MAC report’s findings were “crystal clear”.

“International students bring huge value to our university communities, offering global perspectives and important skills, and creating diverse learning environments. As the MAC recognises, they are also critical to the financial sustainability of our world-leading universities. Moreover, the graduate route plays a crucial role in ensuring the UK is an attractive destination for global talent,” Dr Bradshaw said.

“We recognise concerns around the behaviour of some agents and we would support targeted measures to address this. However, the overall message from the MAC is that the graduate route is achieving its objectives as set out by the government. We would therefore urge ministers to end the uncertainty and confirm as soon as possible that the route will continue in its entirety.”

Rachel Hewitt, chief executive of the MillionPlus group of modern universities, said that the report had underlined the importance of the graduate visa to university finances, meaning that any further restrictions on it would have to be accompanied by reforms to higher education funding.

“The report reaffirms the net positive contribution that international graduates bring to the UK, as the majority enter graduate-level jobs in similar proportions to home students and with little to no evidence of abuse in the system. Therefore, any further restrictions to the graduate route, beyond those recently introduced, and whose impact we are still waiting to assess, risks causing the UK significant economic self-harm, which would be felt in regions across the country,” Ms Hewitt said.

“The report also rightly highlights the significant impact of the government’s decision to freeze domestic fees since their introduction; and that the continued under-funding of higher education means balancing the books for universities has become ever more challenging.

“If the government does take the decision to impose further restrictions, they must also address how the current funding model for higher education will be reformed, lest they put this highly successful sector in serious financial peril.”

Jane Harrington, vice-chancellor of the University of Greenwich and chair of the University Alliance mission group, said that any changes to the graduate route “would be an inexplicable own goal”.

“Unfortunately, the government’s ban on international master’s students bringing dependents with them is already putting international students off studying at our universities. The MAC is right to highlight the damage this, and the freeze on home student tuition fees, is doing to UK higher education. The impact of a shrinking UK higher education sector would be a shrinking skills pipeline, a shrinking NHS workforce and shrinking local economies,” Professor Harrington said.

“I hope the government listens to the very clear message from this report.”

Jo Grady, the general secretary of the University and College Union, welcomed the recommendation to maintain the graduate visa.

“It is shameful the government has wasted so much effort attacking migrants and undermining our universities. It now needs to listen to the experts it asked to conduct the review and confirm the graduate visa will be kept,” Dr Grady said.

“The review has also highlighted once again how broken our university funding system is – we urgently need wholescale reform which ensures universities are not relying on international fee income to cross-subsidise inadequate funding arrangements for domestic students. Employers should be shouldering more of the cost for the supply of skills on which this country relies, not international students.”

A government spokesman said that ministers were “committed to attracting the best and brightest to study at our world-class universities, whilst preventing abuse of our immigration system”.

“We have already taken decisive action to address unsustainable levels of migration and our plans are working, with a 24 per cent drop in visa applications across key routes in the first three months of this year, compared with the same period last year,” the spokesman said.

“We are considering the review’s findings very closely and we will respond fully in due course.”

chris.havergal@timeshighereducation.com