Students flee to U.S.
HIGHER TUITION FEES in England may be driving an increasing number of students across the Atlantic to study in American institutions.
According to the Fulbright Commission, an impartial advisory board for British students applying to American universities, the number of enquiries about courses in the US has increased five-fold in recent months, and applications to the States are rising at a rate of three percent each year.
Anthony Nemecek of the commission believes this is part of a wider global pattern of student mobility, but suggests that the introduction of top-up fees in the UK, making the cost of British universities comparable to their American counterparts, will encourage more young people to study abroad. Particular advantages of the American system include flexibility of course structure, superior facilities, and the generous scholarships on offer. Laura Spence, rejected from Magdalen and now studying at Harvard, received a $65,000 bursary to fund her biochemistry course.
In Oxford, this trend is not being treated as a serious threat. The Oxford Admissions Office told The OxStu that it is too early to tell what implications top-fees will have, and their energies will remain focused on encouraging applications from non-traditional backgrounds.
6th Feb 2003