International student recruitment target ‘remains at 600,000’

New education minister appears to rule out increase in recruitment aim

Education minister Robert Halfon has said the target for the number of international students educated by UK universities “remains 600,000”, despite the number having already been achieved.

The government’s International Education Strategy aims to see 600,000 students from overseas recruited by UK institutions by 2030. But, according to data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency, UK higher education providers hosted 605,130 international students in the 2020-21 academic year.