Monash University has announced it will replace tutorials for senior law students with seminars that encourage “active learning activities” but have significantly larger class sizes.
Please login below to view content or subscribe now.
He was part of a 126-member UK delegation to India led by UK Prime Minister Starmer, which included entrepreneurs, cultural leaders, and university VCs, to celebrate the landmark trade deal between the two countries.
“The presence of all nine UK universities with a Letter of Intent (LoI) or Letter of Acceptance (LoA) is a major achievement for the UK HE sector, surpassing approvals from all other countries,” said Atherton, in a chat with The PIE News.
“UK universities have embraced the new regulations and India has embraced UK universities. All nine universities met with Prime Minsters Modi and Starmer during their joint press [conference], which celebrated the campuses and highlighted their contribution to the growth and development of higher education in India.”
Though Starmer has insisted that visa routes for Indian workers and students are not part of the broader trade deal, expanding overseas offerings for students to study in India was a key aim of the trip.
Major UK universities, including Coventry, Queen’s University Belfast, Surrey, Bristol, York, Aberdeen, Lancaster, and Liverpool, are set to launch campuses by 2026 across GIFT City, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Southampton is the only functional campus so far, opening in August with 120 students in its inaugural cohort.
The presence of all nine UK universities with a LoI or LoA is a major achievement for the UK HE sector, surpassing approvals from all other countries
Andrew Atherton, University of Southampton
India’s growing demand for higher education, projected at 70 million places by 2035, presents opportunities for UK institutions, particularly as cautious immigration policies shape study abroad choices among Indian students.
Both countries are also set to deepen education ties through the Vision 2035 framework, with an annual ministerial dialogue to review qualification recognition and promote knowledge-sharing via platforms like the UK’s Education World Forum and India’s National Education Policy (NEP).
The University Grants Commission (UGC), India’s higher education regulator, introduced relaxed rules in 2023 for foreign universities to open branch campuses in India. While initial interest was slow, many institutions are now actively exploring opportunities, according to Atherton.
“When the NEP first talked about international campuses in India there was some debate and activism about whether international universities would apply,” said Atherton.
“With nine from the UK and three from Australia and one from the US, the policy has proven its ability to engorge international universities to set up campuses in India.”
He was part of a 126-member UK delegation to India led by UK Prime Minister Starmer, which included entrepreneurs, cultural leaders, and university VCs, to celebrate the landmark trade deal between the two countries.
“The presence of all nine UK universities with a Letter of Intent (LoI) or Letter of Acceptance (LoA) is a major achievement for the UK HE sector, surpassing approvals from all other countries,” said Atherton, in a chat with The PIE News.
“UK universities have embraced the new regulations and India has embraced UK universities. All nine universities met with Prime Minsters Modi and Starmer during their joint press [conference], which celebrated the campuses and highlighted their contribution to the growth and development of higher education in India.”
Though Starmer has insisted that visa routes for Indian workers and students are not part of the broader trade deal, expanding overseas offerings for students to study in India was a key aim of the trip.
Major UK universities, including Coventry, Queen’s University Belfast, Surrey, Bristol, York, Aberdeen, Lancaster, and Liverpool, are set to launch campuses by 2026 across GIFT City, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. Southampton is the only functional campus so far, opening in August with 120 students in its inaugural cohort.
The presence of all nine UK universities with a LoI or LoA is a major achievement for the UK HE sector, surpassing approvals from all other countries
Andrew Atherton, University of Southampton
India’s growing demand for higher education, projected at 70 million places by 2035, presents opportunities for UK institutions, particularly as cautious immigration policies shape study abroad choices among Indian students.
Both countries are also set to deepen education ties through the Vision 2035 framework, with an annual ministerial dialogue to review qualification recognition and promote knowledge-sharing via platforms like the UK’s Education World Forum and India’s National Education Policy (NEP).
The University Grants Commission (UGC), India’s higher education regulator, introduced relaxed rules in 2023 for foreign universities to open branch campuses in India. While initial interest was slow, many institutions are now actively exploring opportunities, according to Atherton.
“When the NEP first talked about international campuses in India there was some debate and activism about whether international universities would apply,” said Atherton.
“With nine from the UK and three from Australia and one from the US, the policy has proven its ability to engorge international universities to set up campuses in India.”
Calls for universities to offer shorter, more flexible courses that meet the demands of Australia’s future economy must be met with better technology management, according to sector voices from a leading software company.
Please login below to view content or subscribe now.
Too many universities overlook the richness of the human stories that define them, relying instead on polished marketing campaigns and generic social media content to attract the next generation of students.
Please login below to view content or subscribe now.
In-person lectures have been a staple of university learning for centuries.
Please login below to view content or subscribe now.
It’s not often we get invited to deep dive into the workings of other universities, even less so when they’re on the other side of the world.
Please login below to view content or subscribe now.
The University of Birmingham, home to over 2,000 Indian students, has partnered with the University of Glasgow to create a new in-country role in India employability relationship manager – who will be responsible for building links with employers, career services, and alumni networks to help graduates succeed in the local job market.
According to a joint statement issued by the institutions, graduates will be offered practical support through pre-entry briefings, skills development programs, and post-graduation engagement.
The two universities have also launched an exclusive partnership with the Chinese graduate career support organisation, JOBShaigui.
The career portal, well regarded in China for its links to top employers, will offer a range of bespoke services, including online seminars with the latest job market insights, guidance on recruitment processes, access to an extensive employer network, and in-country networking events with alumni and employers.
Both Birmingham and Glasgow, ranked among the QS global top 100, see China and India, with their combined 400,000 alumni worldwide, as priority markets.
Offering enhanced career support is seen as crucial, as recent trends show a majority of students from these countries are choosing to return home after their study abroad journey.
“More and more students, quite reasonably, are saying: I want to know what my employment prospects are after getting a degree. We do a lot to prepare students for their future careers while they study with us, but it has become increasingly clear that we must also support them after they graduate,” Robin Mason, pro-vice-chancellor (international) at the University of Birmingham, told The PIE News.
“Our two largest cohorts of international students are from China and India, so we said: for these two really important countries, we’re going to create in-country support for careers and employability career fairs, interview preparation, CV workshops, all those sorts of things.”
Increasingly, after that period of work in the UK, Indian graduates are looking to come back home to India
Robin Mason, University of Birmingham
While both Birmingham and Glasgow already collaborate on joint research, particularly in the medical field, the career support initiative made sense as the cost could be shared between the two universities, according to Mason.
Moreover, the universities expect the initiative to be particularly successful in India, from where students make up the largest cohort of graduate visa holders.
“Particularly Indian students, more than Chinese students, want to stay in the UK after graduation. But increasingly, after that period of work in the UK, Indian graduates are looking to come back home to India,” stated Mason.
According to Mason, while most Indian students prefer fields such as computer science, data science, engineering, business management, finance, economics, and health-related subjects, in principle students of any discipline, “even classics, English, or history”, will be supported equally in their careers back in India.
The initiatives also come at a time when international students in the UK are being urged to “sharpen their skills” for both the UK and global job markets, as employers increasingly look beyond “textbook skills” to focus on a candidate’s ability to bring innovation to the table.
Further plans in India for University of Birmingham
Although the University of Birmingham operates an overseas campus in Dubai, an attractive option for Indian students given its proximity to the UK and large Indian community, the institution has no plans to establish a campus in India anytime soon.
Instead, it is focusing on initiatives such as the in-country employability role and partnerships with local institutions.
While the University of Birmingham offers dual degrees with Jinan University in China in fields such as maths, economics, statistics, and computing, it is now exploring a partnership with IIT Bombay in India in areas such as quantum technology, energy systems, AI, and healthcare, building on its successful venture with IIT Madras.
“If you do it properly, campuses are very expensive things. I don’t think you do these things lightly. You have to make the investment and be there for the long term,” said Mason. “Birmingham is 125 years old this year, and you need to be thinking in terms of decades if you’re going to build a campus. It’s a really long-term commitment because it takes so much time and investment to build a high-quality university.”
As part of its 125-year celebrations, the institution also announced scholarships for Indian students, offering funding of £4,000 to £5,000 for a wide range of postgraduate taught master’s degrees starting in September 2025.
“As part of our 125th anniversary celebrations, we introduced a special scholarship, offering up to 40% funding for students joining our Dubai campus,” stated Devesh Anand, regional director, South Asia and Middle East, University of Birmingham.
“This was combined with academic and merit-based scholarships, giving students the opportunity to access multiple forms of support. The response has been fantastic, as students saw it as a real achievement and recognition of their efforts.”
The number of Indian students studying in the UK remains high, with the Home Office data showing 98,014 study visas granted in the year ending June 2025.
However, not everything is rosy, as students are increasingly concerned about their future in light of the immigration white paper, which proposes reducing the Graduate Route by six months and imposing a levy on international student fees.
In such a situation, the aim for institutions like the University of Birmingham is to remain attractive to graduates seeking employment opportunities.
“What we have to ensure is that University of Birmingham graduates are career-ready and can get the sorts of jobs that allow them to continue working in the UK if they want to, so they can be sponsored by an employer at the required graduate-level salary,” said Mason.
“To put it delicately, I think the universities that will struggle with the immigration changes are those not paying enough attention to employability. If your graduates are employable, it’s not an issue.”
According to UCAS data released today to coincide with A-level results day, the number of international students accepted to UK institutions has risen to 52,640 – up 2.9% on 2024 when this figure stood at 51,170.
In just a year, the number of students from China accepted into university via the UCAS system went up a whopping 13% – with a total of 12,380 acceptances.
Meanwhile, 2025 has proven to be a year of success for domestic students in the UK – with 28.3% of all grades being A or A* for students across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, according to the BBC.
Commenting on the numbers, UCAS chief executive Jo Saxton pointed out the huge achievement of this year’s students, whose education was hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This year’s students were just thirteen when the pandemic hit, and their secondary schooling was turned upside down,” she said. “It’s great to see these applicants securing a university place in record numbers, seeking more education and investing in their futures. I am equally delighted to see how universities across the country have responded to their ambition.”
Undergraduate international students have also found success this year despite some universities prioritising domestic students due to a focus on financial stability.
According to a recent BBC article, Saxton explained that some UK universities were focussing on enrolling domestic undergraduates because of “uncertainty” around international students.
She also pointed out that some institutions could accept a greater number of domestic students this year even if they did not meet the exact conditions of their offer because offering places to UK students, as opposed to international students, was more likely to result in financial stability for the institution.
It’s great to see these applicants securing a university place in record numbers, seeking more education and investing in their futures
Jo Saxton, UCAS
It comes amid a turbulent time for the international education sector in the UK – with upcoming compliance changes forcing some universities to stop recruiting for certain courses or from some countries rather than risk falling foul of tightened BCA metrics.
Many UK universities are currently facing financial difficulties, with around four in 10 universities currently at a deficit, according to a report by the Office for Students.
Of the courses chosen by students, the most popular in the UK this year were Engineering and Technology, up 12.5% from last year at 30,020 acceptances, Mathematics with 9,220 acceptances and Law with 27,150.
Based on the latest HEPI data, the Institute estimates the levy could “hamper universities’ ability to compete with institutions in other countries,” said independent researcher Mark Fothergill, who compiled the data.
The proposed 6% levy on international students’ tuition fees was first introduced in the government’s highly anticipated immigration white paper, coming as a surprise to many in the sector.
HEPI has warned that the policy will hit both large internationally engaged universities and smaller specialist institutions. According to the analysis, the largest financial losses are expected to hit big metropolitan universities with high proportions of international students.
Namely, University College London (UCL), which derives 79% of its fee income from non-UK students, could be faced with financial losses of £42m.
Meanwhile, Manchester University and King’s College London (KCL) could also be hit with heavy losses of £27m and £22m respectively, with 19 institutions paying at least £10m.
Stakeholders have pointed out that while the levy is intended to raise money for the “higher education and skills system”, it is unclear if all the money will come back out of the treasury, and how it will be spent if it does.
“International students are the backbone of our higher education system, contributing over £10 billion in fees to English universities – around £4.50 of every £10 of fee income,” Fothergill said.
“No wonder the 6% levy is seen as a tax on one of the country’s best-performing sectors,” he added.
With more details expected in the autumn budget, universities are left with two options: pass the cost onto students and become less competitive or absorb the costs and leave less funding for teaching and research, HEPI suggested.
While universities haven’t announced to what extent they would try to absorb the extra costs, a reduction in international student numbers – whose fees subsidise university research – would also hamper sector finances.
Speaking at a conference last month, the UK skills minister Jacqui Smith maintained the government was “not levying international students directly”, suggesting it would help show students’ economic contribution to local communities.
The levy is a shadow looming large over universities as they prepare for the next academic year
Nick Hillman, HEPI
“Threatening an expensive new tax on one of the country’s most successful sectors with only a rough idea of how the money will be used seems far from ideal,” said HEPI director Nick Hillman.
“Currently, the levy is a shadow looming large over universities as they prepare for the next academic year,” he added.
Amid policy volatility in other markets, the UK has increasingly been cited by students as the most stable of the ‘big four’ study destinations, with stakeholders keen to preserve this reputation.
“There are good reasons why Australia opted not to implement a levy when it was proposed there a couple of years ago,” warned Fothergil.
With the UK higher education sector already facing severe financial headwinds, Hillman said university leaders were worried the levy will be “yet another weight dragging them down in the struggle to remain globally competitive”.
According to OfS data, 72% of providers could be in deficit by 2025/26, with a sector-wide deficit totalling £1.6bn.
Alongside the levy, the government’s white paper proposed shortening the graduate route visa from two years to 18 months, and tougher Basic Compliance Assessments (BCA), with the latter set to be introduced in September.