International Facts and Figures is our annual snapshot of the international dimensions of UK higher education.
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All interactive charts on this page have been created using Flourish.studio. International Facts and Figures 2023 mainly draws on data from the 2021—22 academic year.
Global engagement lies at the heart of what makes UK universities special. By welcoming international students and faculty, in delivering UK programmes overseas as part of transnational education partnerships, through the research we produce in collaboration with international partners, and the opportunities we provide for UK students to gain international experiences, our universities make a hugely positive contribution to their communities – and those of our partners.
However, an increasingly challenging geopolitical context – including the long-term effects of the pandemic and the UK’s exit from the EU – has had a significant impact on universities and their global engagement. As the data shows, we are seeing changes in the composition of the international student body, while outward student mobility has suffered significantly and remains a minority experience for UK students.
Yet there remains much to celebrate. Our sector hosted more than 679,000 international students in 2021-22, while another 558,000 studied on UK programmes overseas through transnational education partnerships, delivered in 230 countries and territories. This is an immense achievement, ensuring that international students have a diverse range of opportunities to benefit from a UK higher education.
And we remain a truly international research power. Between 2012 and 2022, almost 62% of the UK’s research output was produced with an international co-author, the highest level of international co-authorship among the 20 largest producers of research. Almost one-third of our academic faculty are international – meaning that the UK’s success is truly a global success.
But this is a success that cannot be taken for granted. Our attractiveness as a destination for international students and global talent, as a partner for education and research collaborations, and for international funding, is the result of a significant investment of time and resources, of relationships that have been fostered over many years, and through sending a clear message that the UK wants and values international engagement.
It is vital that we redouble our efforts to build on this success. International higher education and research are hugely important to our universities and to the UK’s long-term national interest. They help underpin our global reputation, influence, and impact. So, it is more important than ever that we celebrate our achievements – and work collectively to ensure that public and political support for internationalisation is sustained.
International higher education and research are hugely important to our universities and to the UK’s long-term national interest. They help underpin our global reputation, influence, and impact. So, it is more important than ever that we celebrate our achievements – and work collectively to ensure that public and political support for internationalisation is sustained.
Jamie Arrowsmith
Director, Universities UK International
In 2021–22, the UK hosted 679,970 international students, once again surpassing the UK government’s ambition to host at least 600,000 international students each year. This represents an increase of 74,840 international students, or 12.4%, compared to the previous academic year (HESA Student Statistics, 2023).
International students accounted for 23.8% of the total student population in 2021-22. By level of study, 15.1% of all undergraduates and 45.4% of all postgraduates were international students. Postgraduate taught courses are now the main drivers of the growth in international students choosing the UK, accounting for 48.0% of all international enrolments in the UK in 2021–22 compared to 34.1% in 2017–18 (HESA Student Statistics, 2023).
The UK’s growth has also been strong in the global context, with the most recent UNESCO data showing that the UK has regained its position as the second most popular destination for international students, overtaking Australia (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2022).
The evidence continues to demonstrate that international students make a hugely positive contribution to the UK economy. Our research has shown that the gross economic contribution of the 2021–22 cohort of international students to the UK was £41.9 billion. Each parliamentary constituency in the UK benefitted by an average of £58 million, equivalent to £560 per member of the resident population (after all costs have been accounted for) (London Economics, The benefits and costs of international students to the UK economy, 2023).
Note: The following section uses HESA data from the HESA data analytics service Heidi+. The HESA student record in Heidi+ omits students from alternative providers and institutions that restrict the use of their data in Heidi+. Consequently, analyses in the following section uses the Heidi+ total of 654,435 international students on full-time, part-time, and sandwich courses. According to HESA, the true total for international students on full-time, part-time, and sandwich courses in 2021–22 was 679,970 students.
The UNESCO Institute for Statistics publishes data on flows of international students around the globe, with the most recent comprehensive data available for 2020. According to this data, the UK hosted 8.7% of the world’s total international student population in 2020, an increase on 8.0% the previous year. The UK has been the main beneficiary of both the US and Australia experiencing falling numbers of international students and falling global market share between 2019 and 2020, driven by the impact of COVID-19. The enduring reputation of the UK as a world-leading study destination, as well as the reintroduction of a post-study work route and a more open offer to international students during the COVID-19 pandemic ensured that the UK sector has been able to take advantage of continued strong global demand for international study. However, competition is increasing as alternative destinations reopen and redouble their efforts to grow international recruitment.
Canada and the UK were the fastest-expanding English-speaking destinations, growing 15.8% and 12.6% respectively between 2019 and 2020. Turkey surpassed Canada as the fastest-expanding destination globally, with annual growth reaching 19.8% (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2022).
In 2021–22, most of the UK’s international student population was based in England. A total of 83,470 EU and 416,910 non-EU students pursued full-time degrees at universities in England. Since 2016–17, international student numbers have grown across all four nations of the UK. This is largely driven by a steady increase in non-EU students. There was an overall decrease in the number of EU students in the UK 2021–22, with all nations except Northern Ireland seeing a reduction in EU student numbers. The most significant decrease was in England, where the number of EU students dropped to its lowest level since 2014–15 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
In 2021–22, 115,800 EU students studied at UK higher education providers. Of these, 72.2% were undergraduates, 18.4% were taught postgraduates and 9.4% were research postgraduates. Of the 538,635 non-EU students, 39.0% were undergraduates, 54.5% were taught postgraduates and 6.6% were research postgraduates (HESA Student Record, 2022).
In 2021–22 China, India, Nigeria, the US and Pakistan were the top sending countries for international students in the UK. Chinese and Indian students made up 27.8% and 22.1% of all non-EU students at UK higher education providers respectively.
The fastest-growing sending countries in 2021–22 were Nigeria (up 108.4%), Bangladesh (up 98.2%) and Pakistan (up 76.0%). In 2020–21, Nigeria became the third most popular domicile for international students - up from a high of eighth in the previous four years. The nation held its place as third in 2021–22. Total student numbers from Hong Kong and Malaysia also increased this year, following modest decreases in recent years.
French and Italian students remain the two largest cohorts from the EU with 11,870 and 11,320 students respectively studying in the UK in 2021–22. All of the top 10 EU sending countries apart from Ireland saw decreases in their populations of international students in the UK from 2020–21 to 2021–22.
In 2021–22 the total number of non-EU students grew by 23.8%, while EU students fell by 21.4% (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Note: In order to show where and how COVID-19 has impacted trends in student and staff mobility, we have included growth rates from the most recent pre-pandemic academic year, 2018—19.
Business and management, engineering and technology, and computing courses attracted the highest number of international students in 2021–22. International students accounted for 46.2% of business and management students, 41.8% of engineering and technology students, and 41.3% of computing students.
International students also accounted for a third or more of total students in mathematical sciences and in architecture, building and planning.
Agriculture, food and related studies saw the largest growth in international students, growing by 23.8%, while business and management and computing grew by 23.1% and 21.9% respectively (HESA Student Record, 2022).
As well as myriad cultural and social benefits, international students bring economic benefits to the UK each year through the tuition fees they pay, their accommodation and living expenditure, and the spending of friends and family coming to visit them. This generates further knock-on effects through indirect and induced spending in local economies across the UK.
The total economic benefit of the cohort of international students rose from £31.3 billion to £41.9 billion between 2018–19 and 2021–22, an increase of 33.9%. On average, international students make a £58 million net economic contribution per constituency, equivalent to approximately £560 per citizen. With total costs estimated to be £4.4billion, the implied benefit-to-cost ratio is 9:4.
Approximately £3.9 billion of this net impact is associated with EU-domiciled students, while the remaining £33.5 billion is generated by non-EU-domiciled students in the cohort. The net economic impact per student was estimated to be £125,000 per EU-domiciled student, and £96,000 per non-EU student. In other words, every nine EU students and every 11 non-EU students generate £1 million worth of net economic impact for the UK economy over the duration of their studies (London Economics, The benefits and costs of international higher educations students to the UK economy, 2023).
Reflecting the significant increase in the number of international students between 2018–19 and 2021–22, and the shift towards non-EU and postgraduate students, the net economic impact increased from £28.2 billion for the 2018–19 cohort to £37.4 billion for the 2021–22 cohort (a 32.6% increase in real terms) (London Economics, The benefits and costs of international higher education students to the UK economy, 2023).
Note: this section covers the analysis published jointly by UUKi, HEPI, Kaplan and London Economics to re-run the economic impact analysis research last done on the 2018–19 cohort, with the new 2021 HESA enrolment data. The 2018–19 figure has been converted to 2021–22 prices to allow for comparison.
Introduced in July 2021, the Graduate Route visa allows international students to stay in the UK to work or look for work after graduation. The visa is unsponsored, giving holders the flexibility to get the work experience they need at any skill level. International students who have successfully completed an undergraduate or master’s degree can apply to stay in the UK for up to two years after their studies. PhD graduates can apply to stay for up to three years.
Since its introduction, a total of 160,654 visas have been granted under the Graduate Route. More than 99% of Graduate Route applications have been approved. Main applicants were granted 135,826 of these visas and 24,828 were granted to their dependants, roughly one dependant to every five main applicants.
The first quarter of 2023 saw the highest number of Graduate Route visas granted in any quarter to date, at 46,336. The year to March 2023 saw 111,339 visas granted (Home Office Immigration Statistics, 2023).
The Graduate Route visa been most popular amongst students from Asia, reflecting its position as the long-term top sending region for international students to the UK.
European students have been under-represented in using the Graduate Route, accounting for just 3.2% of the visas granted to date, despite making up 20.5% of the international student population in 2021–22. This is likely due to many European students having existing rights to live and work in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme. As an increasing number of European students without access to the Settlement Scheme progress through their studies in the UK, we are likely to see an increase in Graduate Route visa applications from the region.
Indian students have made the greatest use of the Graduate Route so far, with 65,739 visas granted, making up 40.9% of the total number of Graduate Route visas granted. This is followed by Nigeria (19,455, 12.1%), China (17,383, 10.8%), Pakistan (10,112, 6.3%) and the United States (6,062, 3.8%). None of these top five countries have a refusal rate greater than 0.8% (Home Office Immigration Statistics, 2023).
Global talent plays a hugely important role in the UK’s universities. In 2021–22, 74,070 international academic staff worked at UK higher education providers, representing a third (32.0%) of all academic staff. Of this number, 51.3% were from the EU. For the second year in a row, the number of EU staff decreased marginally, while the number of non-EU staff continued to grow (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
Note: From 2019–20, it became optional for providers in England and Northern Ireland to report data about staff on non-academic contracts. Therefore, the following section examines international academic staff only.
In 2021–22, the top five countries of nationalities for international academic staff were once again Italy, China, Germany, Ireland, and the United States. These have been the top five countries of origin for international academic staff since 2005–6.
Italian nationals have formed the largest group of international academic staff for the past six years. The number of Italian academic staff fell marginally by 1.7% in 2021–22, marking a decline for the second consecutive year, after a period of continued growth between 2004–5 (when the HESA record begins) and 2018–19. Academic staff from Germany, Greece, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Australia and Portugal all saw small reductions in overall numbers between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
Over the last five years, international academic staff numbers from India, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Pakistan have grown.
In 2021–22, 81.6% of international academic staff in the UK were based in England and 27.0% of all international academic staff were based in London.
However, the number of international academic staff grew fastest in Northern Ireland over the past five years, with very strong growth also seen in Scotland. International academic staff numbers in Northern Ireland grew by 26.8% between 2017–18 and 2021–22, and in Scotland by 106.3% between 2012–13 and 2021–22.
In 2021–22, foreign nationals accounted for 32.0% of all academic staff. The subject areas with the highest proportion of international academic staff were engineering and technology (47.9%), biological, mathematical and physical sciences (39.8%), and administrative and business studies (39.2%). Engineering and technology attracted the highest proportion of the total non-EU staff population (23.7%), while medicine, dentistry and health attracted the highest proportion of the total EU staff population (21.6%) (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
The 2021–22 academic year marked a first step back towards pre-pandemic levels of outward student mobility from the UK. A total of 26,410 students experienced a period of mobility as part of their degree, an increase of 89.2% from the previous academic year. Student mobility can also be measured in ‘instances’ of mobility as some students go abroad more than once during the academic year, for example undertaking a semester of study abroad in Spain and a semester-long work placement in France. There were 29,415 instances of mobility undertaken in 2021–22 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was still very much being felt in 2021–22. Travel restrictions remained in place for parts of the academic year in key countries, while in others testing and tracing requirements led to increased travel and accommodation costs.
Consequently, the data reflects a steady, but far from complete, return to the student mobility patterns of old. The 2021–22 total of mobile students is just over half of what it was in 2018–19. Similarly, while the number of higher education providers reporting mobile students in 2021–22 rose to 127, up from 113 in 2020–21, this remains below the pre-pandemic high of 144. Student mobility remains a vitally important pillar of international activity for universities across the UK, as shown by the findings of UUKI’s 2022 Mobility Management Report, and the gradual recovery reflected in the data highlights the resilience of students and mobility teams in the face of continued challenges and barriers (UUKi Mobility Management Report, 2022).
Mobility rates in Scotland and Northern Ireland have recovered in 2021–22 to a greater extent than in England and Wales. The number of mobile students from Scottish universities in 2021–22 was 61.3% of the 2018–19 total while in Northern Ireland the figure was 60.6%. In England, mobile student numbers have recovered to 51.5% of pre-pandemic levels and in Wales to only 36.7%.
As travel restrictions eased (in comparison to the 2020–21 academic year), the range of destinations for student mobilities increased again. The top three destinations for instances of mobility in 2021–22 were Spain, France, and the United States – together these countries received 49.9% of all mobilities from the UK.
The growth in mobility to North American destinations (USA and Canada) was particularly notable in 2021–22, with the US re-entering the top three countries and Canada re-entering the top 10.
The only country in the top 20 destinations with a significant drop in student numbers from 2020–21 to 2021–22 is China, falling by 26.0% to 935 instances of mobility. All destinations continued to receive fewer instances of mobility in 2021–22 than before the pandemic (HESA Student Record, 2022).
2021—22 marked the first year of operation of the UK Government’s Turing Scheme, which provides funding for students to study and work abroad. Starting in September 2021, universities that submitted successful applications were able to provide Turing grants to their students and recent graduates for mobilities ranging from four weeks to a full academic year to destinations all across the world. A total of 139 higher education providers received Turing funding to provide mobilities for up to 28,997 students, 47.6% of which met the scheme’s definition of being eligible for extra funding as a result of disadvantaged backgrounds (Turing Scheme, 2022).
Data from the Turing Scheme on how many of these planned mobilities took place has not yet been published. Many universities also had some residual funding from the 2014–2020 Erasmus+ funding cycle, with the deadline to utilise this funding extended to May 2023 as a result of COVID-19 (HESA Student Record, 2022). In 2022-23 we can additionally look forward to data reflecting the first year of mobilities funded by the Welsh Government’s Taith Scheme.
Mobilities funded by Erasmus+ accounted for 34.7% of all reported mobility instances in 2021–22, closely followed by non-scheme based, provider-led mobilities at 33.3%, with Turing-funded mobilities at 21.9%. The Erasmus+ share of all mobilities peaked in 2020–21 at 40.9%, before decreasing to 34.7% in 2021–22 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Overall, in 2021–22, 73.0% of instances of mobility abroad were for studying, 22.2% were for working, and 4.8% were for volunteering. Most mobility periods (65.7%) were long-term – that is, more than 14 weeks’ duration. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the share of mobilities that were short term (1–4 weeks in duration) had increased sharply from 21.3% in 2015–16 to 40.1% in 2018–19. However, shorter periods of mobility were heavily disrupted due to the pandemic and have been slow to recover, now accounting for only 20.9% of all mobilities in 2021–22 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Transnational education (TNE) is the delivery of an educational programme in a country other than that in which the awarding body is based. It includes, but is not limited to, online and distance learning, joint and dual degree programmes, fly-in faculty for short courses, and overseas campuses.
In 2021–22, 160 UK universities delivered some form of TNE to 558,085 students in over 230 countries and territories worldwide. The UK is a world leader in this field (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
Note: Historically, Oxford Brookes University students accounted for over 40% of all UK TNE student numbers, due to a partnership with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). However, in 2019–20 Oxford Brookes University changed its reporting practices, resulting in a 256,450 reduction in the total number of students reported to HESA for the Aggregate Offshore Record (AOR) between 2018–19 and 2019–20.
To accurately reflect sector-wide trends over time, the following section excludes Oxford Brookes University in analyses concerning data from 2018–19 and before. This section includes Oxford Brookes University in analyses concerning 2019–20 to 2021–22 only.
Between 2020–21 and 2021–22, the total number of UK TNE students increased by 9.3%. The majority of students (66.7%) were studying for undergraduate degrees. Collaborative provision accounted for 40.8% of the global UK TNE student population, making it the most popular provision. TNE by registration at an overseas partner organisation saw the largest percentage growth out of all types of provision, up 19.5% from 2020–21 (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
In 2021–22, UK TNE delivery was concentrated in Asia. The region accounted for just over half the total of UK higher education TNE students. This was followed by the EU, the Middle East and Africa. The top five host countries and territories for UK TNE in 2021–22 were China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Egypt. The top five host territories accounted for 39.8% of all UK higher education TNE students (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
In 2022, UK universities continued to excel in research, producing high-quality, globally collaborative research, significantly outperforming its demographic weight.
The UK was the fourth largest producer of research publications in 2022. The UK continues to boast the largest share of internationally co-authored publications among the top 10 producers of research publications, with 61.5% of the UK’s research output produced with international co-authors in 2022 (SciVal, 2023).
UK universities receive a significant proportion of research funding from overseas sources, with funding from non-EU sources increasing by 13.0% between 2020–21 and 2021–22. Although UK universities cannot currently receive funding for Horizon Europe projects from the EU, funding for existing Horizon 2020 projects means that nearly half of the UK’s international funding (45.0%) continues to come from EU government sources (HESA Finance Record, 2022).
In 2022, the top three countries by research outputs were China, the US and India. China’s research output grew the most out of the top 10 countries, increasing by 17.1%-points compared with 2020–21. India overtook the UK as the third-largest producer of research globally, with a growth rate of 13.7%-points on the previous year. With the exception of China, India and, to a lesser extent, Australia, the remaining top 10 countries saw a decrease in their research output (SciVal, 2023).
The proportion of internationally co-authored publications produced by the top 10 producers of research output has increased over the past 10 years, with the UK seeing the largest growth. In 2012, 41.2% of UK publications had an international co-author. This proportion increased to 49.9%-points in 2017, and to 61.5%-points in 2022. China saw the smallest growth in international co-authorship between 2012 and 2022, at 4.3%-points (SciVal, 2023).
In 2021–22, 21.5% of UK research funding came from international sources. Funding from the EU (that is, from EU Framework Programmes) still forms just under half of the UK’s international funding (45.0%) due to projects funded through the last Framework Programme, Horizon 2020. This is likely to diminish over time as UK participation in the first two years of Horizon Europe has been funded via the UKRI Financial Guarantee (HESA Finance Record, 2022).
In 2021–22, international industry investment in UK university research and innovation grew by 9.7% compared with 2020–21, but is still slightly below the total in 2019–20. Year-on-year, industry funding from outside the EU grew more rapidly (13.6%) than EU industry funding (7.6%). However, EU industry funding still exceeds its economic weight, accounting for one sixth of the global economy but around a third of industrial investment in UK universities’ R&D (HESA Finance Record, 2022).
The UK’s most frequent collaborative research partners between 2019 and 2022 were the US, China and Germany. Half of the UK’s top 20 partner countries are EU member states, demonstrating that Europe remains our biggest single collaborator.
Collaboration between UK researchers and all of our top 20 partner countries grew by at least 15% between 2019 and 2022. Collaboration with South Africa and Ireland increased by over 30%, and the largest increase was with India (63.7%). European countries make up 12 of the UK’s top 20 partner countries, with three from the Global South (SciVal, 2023).
In 2022, Earth and planetary sciences was the subject area with the largest share of internationally co-authored publications (79.1%). This was closely followed by multidisciplinary research (78.6%) and agricultural and biological sciences (76.4%). All of the top 10 subject areas with the highest share of international co-authorship were STEM subjects, with the possible exception of multidisciplinary research (SciVal, 2023).
Within the top 10 subject areas for internationally co-authored publications, energy research saw the greatest growth, with collaboration in this field increasing by 16.4%-points over five years and 29.7%-points over 10 years (SciVal, 2023).
This section offers an overview of UK universities’ international activity according to world regions. Each regional overview includes a summary of international student and staff recruitment, transnational education, outward student mobility and international research collaboration.
Between 2020–21 and 2021–22, the UK saw growth in the number of international students from every region, with the exception of Europe. While the largest share in 2021–22 came from Asia (374,945), the largest growth rate came from Africa, with an increase of 59.0% (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Similarly, international staff numbers increased in all regions except for Europe and Australasia. While staff from Europe had a marginal decrease (down 0.3% from 2020–21), the number of staff in the UK from the region continues to be higher than the combined total number of staff from all other regions (41,005 from Europe versus 33.070 from all other regions). Staff numbers from Africa were the fastest year-on-year growth in 2021–22, with an increase of 16.5% (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
While still down compared to pre-pandemic numbers, instances of outward student mobility increased for all regions except for Africa between 2020–21 and 2021–22. North America and South America saw the largest year-on-year growth (HESA Student Record, 2022).
A total of 160 universities delivered some form of transnational education (TNE) to students in over 230 countries and territories worldwide. The overall trend sees strong growth across all regions since before the pandemic, though Australasia has seen a slight dip of 4.7% between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
Africa was the fastest-growing market for student recruitment, sending 59.0% more students in 2021–22 compared to 2020–21.
Nigeria remained the top sending African country for students coming to the UK in 2021–22. Moreover, Nigeria was the fastest-growing market for students on the continent and third-fastest globally. The Nigerian student population in the UK grew by an astonishing 108.4% between 2020–21 and 2021–22. Student numbers from Ghana also grew significantly over the past academic year, increasing by 47.0%. (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of African academics working at UK institutions increased by 16.5% between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The growing importance of African research partners is shown by the substantial rise in the number of co-authored publications from the region. Publications co-authored by authors from the UK and African countries grew by 50.5% between 2019 and 2022. Nigeria, Ghana and Egypt saw the highest percentage growth in publications; however, South Africa remains the UK’s main research partner in terms of the number of co-authored publication (SciVal, 2023).
UK TNE student numbers in Africa grew by 3.9% in 2021–22 compared to the previous academic year, reaching 58,650 students. Egypt remained the continent’s top host for UK TNE, with 24,545 students (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
The top African destination for mobile UK students is South Africa. Between 2020–21 and 2021–22, Uganda, South Africa and Tanzania were the region’s fastest-growing markets, increasing by 844%, 525% and 516%, respectively. Although this shows substantial growth since the previous academic year, the numbers are still significantly lower than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Total number of international students from Africa in the UK in 2021–22: 66,605 (up 59.0% compared to 2020–21).
Total number of international academic staff from Africa in the UK in 2021–22: 4,030 (up 16.5% compared to 2020–21).
Total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in Africa, 2021–22: 58,650 (up 3.9% compared with 2020–21).
The most common mode of TNE provision was collaborative provision.
Total UK publications with a co-author from Africa between 2019 and 2022: 43,501 (growing 50.5% between 2019 and 2022).
Asia remains a particularly important market for student recruitment.
Students from China and India represented 22.8% and 18.2% of all non-EU enrolment, respectively, in 2021–22. Bangladesh and Pakistan were the region’s fastest-growing markets, with numbers increasing by 98.2% and 76.0% respectively between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of international staff from Asia grew by 10.8% in 2021–22. The number of staff from Pakistan also grew increasingly fast (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Research collaboration with Asia remains strong, with the number of co-authored publications in the region growing by 38.8% between 2019 and 2022. China continues to be the UK’s main research partner in the region in terms of number of co-authored publications, which reached 85,805 between 2019 and 2022. Meanwhile, India’s growth in the number of co-authored publications during this period was particularly notable (20.3%) (SciVal, 2023).
Asia continues to be the largest host region for UK TNE, with rising student numbers in China and Sri Lanka driving growth. TNE student numbers in Sri Lanka have increased the most (+27.4%). Hong Kong saw a slight decrease of 1.8% in TNE student numbers compared to 2020–21 (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
The outward student mobility numbers highlight South Korea and Hong Kong as the top destinations, increasing by 132.3% and 93.0%, respectively, between 2020–21 and 2021–22. Nevertheless, China decreased by 26.0%, which is considered to be linked to the country’s unstable domestic situation towards the end of 2022. Although the overall trend for Asian countries shows substantial growth since the previous academic year, the numbers are still significantly lower than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The total number of international students from Asia in the UK in 2021–22 was: 374,945 (up 23.2% compared with 2020–21).
The total number of international academic staff from Asia in the UK in 2021–22 was: 15,450 (up 10.8% on 2020–21).
The total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in Asia in 2021–22 was: 284,930 (up 12.7% compared with 2020–21).
The main type of TNE provision was collaborative provision.
Total UK publications with a co-author from Asia between 2019 and 2022: 170,397 (growing 38.8% between 2019 and 2022).
Australasian students represent the smallest regional cohort of international students. Australia remains the top domicile for Australasian students, having increased by 2.6% in 2021–22, followed by New Zealand, although numbers fell by 1.8% for this period.
The number of TNE students in Australasia decreased in 2021–22 by 4.7%. Australia and New Zealand are by far the two most important host countries for UK TNE in the region and both saw a decline in student numbers in 2021–22.
The total number of Australasian staff decreased in 2021–22, driven by declines in the number of staff from Australia and New Zealand.
Research collaboration with Australasia remains strong as Australia continues to be UK’s main research partner in the region in terms of number of co-authored publications, which numbered 58,259 between 2019 and 2022.
The total number of international students from Australasia in the UK in 2021–22 was: 2,600 (up 2.1% on 2020–21).
Total number of international academic staff from Australasia in the UK in 2021–22: 1,875 (down 3.4% on 2020–21).
Total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in Australasia in 2021-22: 2,955 (down 4.7% on 2020-21)
The main type of TNE provision: distance, flexible or distributed learning.
Total UK publications with a co-author from Australasia between 2019 and 2022: 67,760 (growing 16.6% between 2019 and 2022.)
The number of students from Europe decreased significantly in 2021–22 (down 19.1%).
The number of students from the top three major sending countries (France, Italy, and Spain) all decreased compared to 2020–21. The fourth top sending country, Ireland, increased marginally by 0.9%, the only one of the top five countries not to see a decline (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of European academic staff declined for the second consecutive year in 2021–22 (down 0.3%), marking the first period of decline since 2004–05 (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
Europe remains the UK’s second largest TNE market after Asia, with 102,390 students (up 5.9% since 2020–21). After two years of decline, the number of TNE students in Cyprus increased by 6.6%. The strongest growth rate amongst the top five TNE host countries was seen in Germany, with an increase of 12.6% (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
The top five European destinations for mobile UK students all saw significant increases in instances of mobility between 2020–21 and 2021–22, with the Netherlands seeing the largest growth rate (155.1%). Spain overtook France as the most popular destination for mobile UK students. Although there has been substantial growth since the previous academic year, the numbers are still significantly lower than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic (HESA Student Record, 2022).
Total number of international students from Europe in the UK in 2021–22: 134,445 (down 19.1% on 2020–21).
Total number of international academic staff from Europe in the UK in 2021-22 was: 41,005 (down 0.3% from 2020-21).
Total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in Europe, 2021–22: 102,390 (up 5.9% on 2020–21).
Main type of TNE provision: distance, flexible or distributed learning.
Total UK publications with a co-author from Europe between 2019 and 2022: 305,580 (growing 12.0% between 2019 and 2022.
In the Middle East, trends in student recruitment from previous years continued in 2021–22.
Saudi Arabia continued to send the largest number of students to the UK, while the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait showed the strongest growth, with student numbers increasing by 14.4% and 6.6%, respectively, compared to 2020–21 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of academic staff from the Middle East grew in 2021–22 by 9.8%, with staff from Iran representing over half of this group (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
The region is an established TNE hub. TNE student numbers in the Middle East have been growing, with a 9.0% increase in 2021–22, reaching 77,400. While the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were the largest markets for UK TNE, the largest growth was seen in Saudi Arabia (21.9%). Kuwait and Bahrain also saw substantial growth, increasing their TNE student numbers by 3.2% and 6.5%, respectively, in 2021–22 (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
The Middle East is the fastest-expanding region in terms of research collaboration with the UK, with co-authored publications growing by 55.4% in 2019–2022.The primary research partners in the Middle East were Saudi Arabia and Turkey. However, collaborations with the UAE increased the most, growing by 28.6% between 2019 and 2022 (SciVal, 2022).
The top Middle Eastern destination for mobile UK students is Jordan, followed by the United Arab Emirates. However, Israel was the region’s fastest-growing market, increasing its share by 418.2%. Although this shows substantial growth since the previous academic year, the numbers are still significantly lower than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic. Jordan, the top destination in the region, has almost recovered to pre-pandemic levels, with only a 2.0% reduction in student numbers in 2021–22 compared with 2018–19 (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The total number of international students from the Middle East in the UK in 2021–22: 36,835 (up 5.1% compared with 2020–21).
Total number of international academic staff from the Middle East in the UK in 2021–22: 2,705 (up 9.8% on 2020–21).
The total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in the Middle East in 2021–22: 77,400 (up 9.0% on 2020–21).
The main type of TNE provision: registered at an overseas partner organisation.
Total UK publications with a co-author from the Middle East between 2019–22: 49,927 (growing 55.4% between 2019–22).
The number of international students from North America increased by 15.1% in 2021–22 following two years of decline.
The top three sending countries (United States, Canada and Mexico) saw an increase in student numbers, with the US – the region’s majority sender – seeing the most significant increase (19.9%). In contrast, the number of students from Bermuda and from Trinidad and Tobago decreased by 6.0% and 8.8%, respectively (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of North American academics working at UK institutions increased marginally by 3.9% between 2020–21 and 2021–22 (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
Since a decrease in TNE student numbers in North America between 2016–17 and 2018–19, the region has seen year-on-year growth. In 2021–22, UK TNE student numbers increased by 3.3% between 2020–21 and 2021–22. The United States continues to grow as the region’s largest TNE market (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
The UK has long-standing research relationships in North America, and the number of research collaborations continues to grow across the US, Canada and Mexico. Research collaborations with Costa Rica also increased between 2019–22 (9.9%). The US remains the UK’s top collaborative research partner worldwide, with 146,197 co-authored publications (SciVal, 2023).
Instances of outward student mobility to North America increased significantly between 2020–21 and 2021–22. The United States remained the top destination, with 3,220 instances of mobility, an increase of 364.9% on the previous year. The substantial growth since the last academic year shows the region recovering from the impacts of COVID-19, though still not reaching pre-pandemic levels (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The total number of international students from North America in the UK in 2021–22: 34,040 (up 15.1% on 2020–21).
Total number of international academic staff from North America in the UK in 2021–22: 7,255 (up 3.8% since 2020–21).
The total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in North America in 2021–22: 27,905 (up 3.3% on 2020–21).
Main type of TNE provision: distance, flexible or distributed learning.
Total UK publications with a co-author from North America between 2019–2022: 178,799 (growing 13.2% between 2019 and 2022).
Despite declining over the previous four years, the UK’s South American student population, while still much smaller than other regions, has grown by 9.8% between 2020–21 and 2021–22.
This increase was fuelled largely by significant increases in numbers from Peru, Colombia and Chile (39.3%, 18.4% and 12.7% respectively), while the region’s top sender – Brazil – saw a marginal decrease of 0.6% (HESA Student Record, 2022).
The number of international staff from South America increased, up by 13.7% in 2021–22 on 2020–21 (HESA Staff Record, 2022).
In 2021–22, the growth rate of TNE students in the region slowed compared to the previous two years, with student numbers increasing only marginally by 3.1%. The most popular destination was Guyana (1,005 students), and the largest growth rate was seen in Chile, up 12.5% since 2020–21 (HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, 2022).
While the pace of growth has slowed, strong research collaboration between the UK and South America continues, with an increase in co-authorship of 25.1% between 2019 and 2022 (SciVal, 2023).
The total number of international students from South America in the UK in 2021–22: 4,965 (up 9.8% on 2020–21).
The total number of international academic staff from South America in the UK in 2021–22: 1,755 (up 13.7% on 2020–21).
The total number of students on UK higher education TNE courses in South America in 2021–22: 3,160 (up 3.1% on 2020–21).
Main type of TNE provision: distance, flexible or distributed learning.
Total UK publications with a co-author from South America between 2019 and 2022: 33,738 (growing by 25.1% between 2019 and 2022).
In 2021–22, there were 285 higher education providers in the UK that returned data to the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
For further information on higher education providers visit HESA’s website: www.hesa.ac.uk/support/providers.
The HESA student record in HESA’s data analytics service Heidi+ omits students from alternative providers and institutions that restrict the use of their data in Heidi+. Consequently, we have used the Heidi+ total of 654,435 international students on full-time, part-time, and sandwich courses in our analyses. According to HESA, the true total for international students on full-time, part-time, and sandwich courses in 2021–22 was 679,970 students.
In 2019–20, Oxford Brookes University changed its reporting practice to reflect the point at which students engage directly with their component of the BSc (Hons) Degree in Applied Accounting, taught in partnership with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). The longitudinal analysis in this report excludes Oxford Brookes University where appropriate to reflect sector-wide trends more accurately over time.
We have continued to disaggregate EU students in the data as in some years covered by this analysis, they were still treated as home students.
HESA Student, Staff, Finance and Aggregate Offshore Records are a copyright of Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited. Neither the Higher Education Statistics Agency Limited nor HESA Services Limited can accept responsibility for any inferences or conclusions derived by third parties from data or other information supplied by HESA Services.
All HESA figures quoted in the publication that relate to student, staff, mobility and TNE numbers have been rounded to the nearest five in accordance with HESA data protection protocols. Unknown domiciles and nationalities were excluded from HESA figures and percentages.
All percentages have been calculated using raw figures and rounded, therefore rounded figures may not sum precisely and vary by figures of five. Due to the nature of this publication, data is collated from several sources published on different dates. All data in this publication is correct as per the date it was accessed.
This report uses data from the full-person equivalent (FPE) versions of the HESA Student Record, HESA Aggregate Offshore Record, and HESA Staff Record. For more information, please visit: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/support/definitions.
A type of TNE provision. Students register at a UK-based higher education provider study overseas for the provider’s award. This includes, for example, joint and dual degrees, but does not cover studying at an overseas campus of the provider.
The cost centre describes where resources deployed to teach the student are located and is similar to the academic department of a university.
A type of TNE provision. Students register at a UK-based higher education provider but study in-country via distance, flexible and/or distributed learning for the provider’s award.
A student’s permanent country of residence.
Higher Education Provider
Higher Education Statistics Agency.
The Horizon 2020 programme was established by the European Union (EU) as a collaborative financial instrument that would help secure Europe’s global competitiveness in research and innovation. The programme – which ran from 2014 to 2020 – offers an open, simple structure for accessing funding in order to remove barriers to collaborative innovation, get new projects off the ground quickly and achieve results faster. Funding calls are based on three areas: excellent science, industrial leadership and societal challenges.
Some students have a number of mobility experiences as part of their course outside of the UK. These are counted separately and not aggregated.
A publication on which a UK researcher has collaborated with at least one overseas institution.
The country of legal nationality of staff.
The net impact (benefits minus costs) is an estimate relating to the on- and off-campus spending of a cohort and their visitors over the entire course of their studies.
A type of TNE provision. Applies to students studying overseas for an award of the reporting provider in a manner not covered in other types of TNE provision, for example, via multiple UK or international partners delivering a programme, or through a combination of other types of provision.
A type of TNE provision. Applies to students registered at the reporting provider who study for a UK higher education provider award at an overseas campus.
A type of TNE provision. Applies to students who register with an overseas partner organisation to study overseas for a UK higher education provider award. The majority of teaching is delivered in-country; this arrangement includes validation and franchise arrangements.
The Research Excellence Framework is the system for assessing research in UK higher education institutions, and is carried out every six or seven years.
A sandwich placement is a type of validated work experience, part of a degree course. It usually takes place in the penultimate year of a four-year degree.
SciVal is a research information tool that offers easy access to the research performance of 7,500 research institutions and 220 nations worldwide. Produced by Elsevier it uses bibliometric information from the Scopus database from 1996 onwards.
Higher education transnational education (TNE) is the delivery of degrees in a country or territory other than that where the awarding provider is based. It can include, but is not limited to, overseas campuses, distance learning, online provision, joint and dual degree programmes, double awards, fly-in faculty, and mixed models traditionally referred to as blended learning.
Erasmus+ available at: https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/the-uk-and-erasmus accessed June 2023
London Economics (2023) The benefits and costs of international higher education students to the UK economy, available at: www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Full-Report-Benefits-and-costs-of-international-students.pdf
HESA Aggregate Offshore record, 2021–22, available at: www.hesa.ac.uk/collection/c21052
HESA Finance record, 2021–22, available at: www.hesa.ac.uk/collection/c21031
HESA Higher Education Student Statistics: UK, 2021—22 - Where students come from and go to study. Available at: www.hesa.ac.uk/news/19-01-2023/sb265-highereducation-student-statistics/location
HESA Student record, 2021–22, available at: www.hesa.ac.uk/collection/c21051
HESA Staff record, 2021–22, available at: www.hesa.ac.uk/collection/c21025
Home Office Immigration Statistics, 2023, available at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-system-statistics-year-ending-march-2023/how-many-people-continue-their-stay-in-the-uk-or-apply-to-stay-permanently
REF, 2021, available at: https://ref.ac.uk/results-analysis/, accessed June 2023
SciVal, 2023, available at: www.scival.com, accessed April–June 2023
Turing Scheme, available at: www.turing-scheme.org.uk/funding-opportunities/funding-results/, accessed June 2023
UNESCO Institute of Statistics, 2022: Education: Other policy relevant indicators, available at http://data.uis.unesco.org
UUKi (2022) The management of outward student mobility programmes in the UK, available at: www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/universities-uk-international/insights-and-publications/uuki-publications/management-outward-student-mobility
