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The number of foreign students in the UK has risen by nearly a third in a single year to reach a record high, according to a new study. The Centre for Migration Control (CMC) found a record 787,000 international students studied in UK universities during the academic year of 2022/2023.

According to the latest official data, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), 679,970 foreign students were studying in the UK for the 2021/2022 academic year. The CMC, a think tank dedicated to reducing migration, submitted Freedom of Information requests to 80 higher education authorities, representing more than half of all foreign students in the UK.

The findings revealed a 28.1 per cent rise in foreign students attending British universities from 2021/22 to 2022/23, which is the equivalent of 107,740 extra students. If the increase in foreign students applied to all UK universities, the CMC projects more than 870,000 international students could be in the country.

Robert Bates, the CMC research director, says: “These figures are not an accident; Since 2019 the Department for Education has deliberately looked to increase the number of international students filling places at our universities. The department has been unequivocal that there should be no cap in place and that the numbers should be allowed to go higher and higher, while the Home Office failed to stand up for migration controls.
The decision means that thousands of British students are being squeezed out every year. Universities now prioritise admitting international students who pay much higher tuition fees than domestic applicants.”

Figures released last month show that net migration into Britain hit a record high in 2022, standing at an estimated 745,000 in the year to last December. In 2019 the Government set itself a target of recruiting 600,000 international students into the British higher education system by 2030. However, the target was reached almost a decade early in the academic year 2020/21.
In May 2023, Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said she was “hugely proud” that more than 600,000 students were studying in the UK. Official figures on international students residing in the UK are due to be released by the HESA in February.