SWANSEA University is recruiting more overseas students to help plug a multi-million pound gap caused by falling student numbers.
Students from abroad pay more than Welsh students for the same courses and, with fewer UK students applying to go to university following the tripling of tuition fees, the university wants to tap into the lucrative overseas market.
The college of arts and humanities (COAH), which saw a 27% drop in student admissions this year, is facing a £1.5m shortfall in funding as a result.
It is now preparing a huge marketing campaign to recruit more postgraduate students from abroad, including a proposed “roadshow” next year to several Chinese universities.
Professor John Spurr, head of COAH, said: “Strategy from 2009 has been to diversify our income streams by, among other means, increasing the number of post graduate and especially overseas postgraduate post graduate students… Since 2009 numbers have increased but not on the scale needed.”
Mahaboob Basha, Students’ Union international officer, said overseas students were much more likely to sign up for business, science or engineering courses than in arts and humanities.
“Those degrees are much more valued in Asian countries and they are much more likely to get a good job with one,” he said.
The move comes as UK universities are being accused of using overseas students as cash cows, and turning a blind eye to the recruitment of under-qualified recruits.
Prof Susan Bassnett, a former pro-vice chancellor of Warwick University, told the Times Higher Education Supplement she had been asked to “disregard linguistic competence and focus on content” by some of her peers. Some overseas students had such poor English that they “wouldn’t scrape a GCSE”, she said.
BBC Wales is now conducting an investigation into claims from lecturers in Wales that they are being pressured to accept substandard work from overseas students for financial reasons. They will be examining MBA dissertations from Swansea University as part of that investigation.
One lecturer at a Welsh University told the BBC: “Internationalisation in itself is absolutely necessary for any modern university – however, this is not at any cost.
“We should be focusing on quality and I would say that UK higher education has suffered significant reputational damage as a result of the recruitment policies by many universities.”
A Swansea University lecturer said much stricter checks were needed on students’ competence in English.
“Many of my overseas students are amongst the most hard-working and dedicated, but with some there is definitely a problem with the standard of English. Methods to assess English language ability need to be far more rigorous,” said the lecturer.
A Swansea University spokesperson said: “The university provides clear advice for students regarding the linguistic level necessary for entry to academic programmes. Students’ language qualifications are checked on application to ensure they meet UKBA regulations.
“We work extremely hard to ensure that our international students have the English language skills they require for the academic courses they pursue.
“Students are continually assessed during their study period and have to provide example material that indicates they have achieved competency in language skills.
“Like all students, international students are offered free academic skills support classes via the Academic Success Programme.”
Mahaboob Basha said: “Being an arts and humanities student myself it’s incredibly important that we follow good practice from the sector in our admissions procedures to recruit international students.
“At the same time, as we pursue a global presence, I think it’s important to praise the University for creating more opportunities for International students to study at Swansea University.”
