Getting higher education abroad is a very expensive undertaking, especially at top-ranked universities
Battle for Foreign Students
The United States has been and remains the number one country for educating foreign students. However, the heightened security measures introduced after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks noticeably weakened the American higher education market. For example, in 2007, the American Council on Graduate Education noted an 8% increase in applications for master's programs compared to 2006. In 2006, growth was 12%, while in 2005 and 2004, declines of 5% and 28% were recorded respectively. Educational institutions participating in surveys for the fourth consecutive year note that compared to 2003, the shortfall of foreign students is 27%.
Overall, across all university programs in the United States in the 2002/03 academic year, foreigners accounted for only 0.6% of the total student body; from 2003, an annual decrease in the number of foreign students was recorded at 2.4%, 1.3%, and 0.5%. Only from the 2006/07 academic year did the share of foreigners in American universities reach 3.2%.
If in 1995 the United States educated 30% of the total number of international students, now according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United States accounts for 22%, or over 564,000 people. The United Kingdom educates almost half as many (12% or 330,000). At the same time, the United States significantly lags behind the United Kingdom in terms of the ratio of foreign students to local students. If in the UK, 16% of students in national universities are from abroad and 84% are residents of Foggy Albion, then in the USA this proportion is 3% and 97%.
And in this respect, the United Kingdom's position is more advantageous. This indicates that in the UK, a larger number of universities have experience working with foreign students; they compete among themselves to attract them, and therefore are interested both in improving the teaching process and in creating more comfortable living conditions. They regularly conduct surveys of foreigners on their satisfaction with the level of teaching and the content of courses. This year, commissioned by the higher education supplement to The Times newspaper, the research company i-graduate conducted a survey of 40,000 foreign students studying at various UK universities. Respondents noted that the level of education they receive in the United Kingdom is very high.
The British government pays increased attention to the development of university education. 1992 was the starting point in the UK for the mass transformation of state university colleges and polytechnic institutes into universities. They received the right to award degrees on par with the old academic universities. If before 1992 there were 52 full-fledged universities in the country, then over the decade from 1997 to 2007, another 54 were added.
The British government was forced to take such measures after conducting a serious analysis of the situation in the national and international labor and higher education markets. Let us name the main conclusions made by the Committee on Higher Education, established in 1997. First, the labor market annually demands more and more specialists with higher education. Second, the number of adults who did not receive higher education in their time but have matured for it later is increasing. Third, the UK had to respond adequately to the growing competition in international markets, where the quantitative growth of knowledge, advanced industrial and information technologies leads to processes of lifelong education, which is preferably carried out closer to the consumer. Fourth, the development of the national economy is impossible without the development of higher education, without building a knowledge-based economy, what in the West has been called a knowledge-based economy. Fifth, higher education contributes to the overall progress of society and the development of its social and moral potential.
It should be noted that the increase in the number of universities does not merely mean a change in status. The government allocates funds amounting to millions of pounds sterling to the newest universities for the reconstruction of old and construction of new academic buildings, laboratories, and student dormitories. Often, universities become the main employers in their region.
The new universities duly repay the money invested in them and fulfill the mission entrusted to them – to provide higher education and conduct scientific research. And despite their youth, they are actively breathing down the necks of their competitors – the old academic universities. For example, in the Guardian ranking, the University of Plymouth and Robert Gordon University, which gained university status in 1992, surpass the University of Liverpool (university since 1903) and Newcastle University (university since 1963). Over time, there will be a place in national rankings for completely new universities, such as Worcester or Winchester, which became universities in 2005.
Positions in Rankings
The success of British education in the international market is evidenced by the fact that in the THES/QS 2008 ranking of the world's best universities, the top ten included four British and six US universities. As last year, Harvard University took first place. Cambridge and Oxford took third and fourth places, right after Yale. Imperial College London and University College London were ahead of the California Institute of Technology but surpassed Princeton, the University of Chicago, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Some British universities have significantly improved their positions in the global THES/QS ranking. For example, King's College London took 22nd place, the University of Edinburgh - 23rd, the University of Manchester - 29th, and Bristol - 32nd.
As explained by Barry Taylor, Director of Marketing and Communications at the University of Bristol, the success of British universities is linked to the new ranking methodology. While in 2006 the data on the citation index of university faculty research was based mainly on publications in English-language sources, from this year it included information published in other languages. Also from this year, faculty members who evaluated other universities were prohibited from speaking in favor of their own institution.
In total, out of the 200 leading universities, the US accounted for 58 positions, and the UK for 29.
Paradoxical as it may seem, the placement of British universities in the world ranking is better than American ones, since the US has a population of 300 million, while the UK has 60 million. Consequently, in the US, one of the world's top universities corresponds to 5 million people, while in the United Kingdom it corresponds to 2 million residents.
Competition by Specializations
According to the Institute for Higher Education Policy, the US lags behind the UK in the number of bachelor's students studying science and engineering disciplines. The majority of US university students (42%) specialize in social sciences, business, and law (42%). Among those studying sciences, engineering, and mathematics – 17%, arts and other humanities – 15%, pedagogy – 8%, other disciplines – 13%.
In the UK, the picture looks more balanced. Social sciences, business, and law – 32%, sciences, engineering, and mathematics – 27%, arts and other humanities – 22%, pedagogy – 3%, other disciplines – 16%. That is, the US loses in university education in those fields of knowledge that are most in demand by modern economic development.
Cost of Education
Education is a huge financial market. According to a study by The Economist, the annual turnover of the international education market is $30 billion. The US and the UK are the main players in this field. The US income from educating international students is estimated at $13.3 billion per year, the United Kingdom – $17.5 billion per year.
Getting a higher education in both the US and the UK is a very expensive endeavor, especially in top-ranked universities. And on this issue, the countries have a certain parity.
Tuition fees at the top ten universities in the THES/QS ranking are $34,000-38,000 in the US, and £15,000-17,000 in the UK, which is essentially equivalent for now, if the dollar does not continue to fall.
However, American universities have more opportunities to provide financial support to the most talented students. And in this regard, British universities lose to their overseas competitors.
Based on materials from Parta.org.