WESTMINSTER plans to link visa controls for overseas students to the quality of universities will create a damaging two-tier system, the Scottish Government has said.
Shirley-Anne Somerville, the Minister for Higher Education, issued the warning after Home Secretary Amber Rudd suggested the plan in October.
Under the new drive to reduce overseas students - who account for 167,000 of the UK’s 600,000 new migrants each year - visa rules would be linked to the quality of institutions and courses for the first time.
In a letter to Jo Johnson, the Westminster Minister for Universities, Ms Somerville said: “I am deeply concerned by the suggestion that the quality of Scotland’s universities or their courses, is being, or will be called into question.
“Any Home Office proposals to reduce numbers of international students in Scotland through immigration measures that would effectively create a two tier university sector... will be strongly opposed by the Scottish Government.
“I am disappointed that in the face of clear evidence as to the many benefits brought by international students to Scotland and the UK as a whole the Home Secretary should still be seeking to take steps such as these.”
Student body NUS Scotland said migrants, including EU and international students, contributed “huge amounts” to society.
Vonnie Sandlan, president of NUS Scotland, said: “The current negativity we’ve seen towards international students and migrants flies in the face of the values of inclusivity and diversity that the student movement celebrates.
“For the government to turn their back on these students now is not only shameful, but presents a huge loss to our country.”
Meanwhile, MSPs at the Scottish Parliament were warned that the international reputation of Scottish universities could be at risk if UK legislation is passed allowing private providers to offer degrees.
The Higher Education and Research Bill will create a new Office of Students which will be able to award degree-conferring powers to new for-profit institutions south of the border.
Although different funding rules mean the move would not apply in Scotland, key figures from the sector told Holyrood’s education committee that Scottish universities could be affected by an overall “diminution” of the UK’s higher education brand.
Mary Senior, of the University and College Union Scotland, said the change could see a “university of Trump in England”.
President-elect Donald Trump’s now-defunct for-profit university is currently subject to legal action in the US by former customers who allege the institution misled them.
She told the committee: “One of the things the Bill provides for are new providers and private providers into the sector in England, so at one extreme we’re going to have a university of Trump in England.”
Alastair Sim, director of Universities Scotland, added: “There is a reputational issue here for the UK. One of the huge brand advantages that the UK has is the integrity of the reputation of our universities.”
Mr Sim added: “You don’t get to call yourself a university unless you have jumped over some pretty high hurdles.
“I do have a worry about the diminution of the UK brand and the effect that would have on Scottish universities if institutions are not given an appropriately high hurdle to jump over before they can call themselves universities and offer degrees.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel