Category: Education

An astute new study, Tibelius Amutuhaire’s Internationalization and Student Mobility: Exploring the Mobility of Higher Education Students in East Africa, examines international education movement in East Africa with a special focus on Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi.

The study is also Mr Amutuhaire’s December 2024 dissertation for his PhD from the Bayreuth International Graduate School of African Studies. It is rare in terms of its lens, regional subject matter, and observations about the current and potential shape of international student mobility (ISM) in the three countries.

Today, we will focus on Mr Amutuhaire’s paper and what it suggests for the future of student mobility from – and to – East Africa. Stay tuned for a follow-up article that looks more deeply at what is driving student flows from – and to – East Africa.

Methodology

The study report was informed by quantitative research (a survey of international students in two Ugandan universities, Makerere University and Kampala International University) and by a panel of in-depth interviews with international students, staff from international student offices, staff from the country’s higher education regulatory agencies, and a senior immigration officer. In addition, it relies on an extensive literature review.

Unique mobility patterns

Underlying student mobility trends in the three countries are a host of historical, economic, and demographic factors. In brief:

• Uganda is the most balanced in terms of inbound/outbound mobility;
• Rwanda sends many students abroad and hosts relatively few international students;
• Burundi is also mostly a sending market, though it attracts some students from Rwanda and DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo).

The following excerpt from the paper’s conclusion provides a slightly longer, but concise, outline of what has driven international student mobility patterns in the three countries:

“Uganda has internationalized its HE [higher education] sector primarily by attracting international students from other countries to its institutions. This has required Uganda to improve the quality of its HE offerings, particularly to expand the number of academic programs in universities. These actions have been complemented by lower tuition fees, a comparatively secure environment, the language policy, and the historical aspect of MU [Makerere University] being a high-quality institution that trained some past regional presidents – all of which have been additional advantages for the university and the country.”

Rwanda puts more emphasis on outbound, rather than inbound ISM. This relates to the country’s long-term absence of a robust HE system, due to political instabilities and the genocide that destroyed social structures. Outbound ISM possibilities were adapted to solve human resource challenges amidst a weak HE system; for example, the government provides scholarships to students to study in foreign countries. The country’s HE system is yet to amass the capacity to meet the needs of all students, especially regarding quality staff and the number of academic programs on offer. These issues and the change in the country’s language policy from French to English encourage outbound, rather than inbound ISM.

Burundi experienced a high rate of outbound ISM in the 1970s when political instabilities weakened the country’s HE system and encouraged the extent of brain drain. The brain drain and a weak education system worsened as qualifications from Burundi’s HEIs lost global recognition, and its graduates could not compete globally. The country adopted changes in 2011 to improve the quality of HE and made it more compatible with other systems worldwide. Consequently, Burundi has attracted international students from Rwanda and DRC. As the HE system became more compatible with those in the rest of the world, students from Burundi can now study efficiently in other countries. However, there is still a high rate of outbound ISM in Burundi since the country’s education language policy (still primarily French) puts it at a disadvantage.”

The future of mobility

Central to Mr Amutuhaire’s research is the concept of the Global South and Global North. Mr Amutuhaire emphasises that these terms describe much more than relative geography. They also represent countries’ relative power and wealth, with the North comprising more wealth and economic advancement than the South (i.e., “the low- or middle-income brackets as understood by the World Bank …located in Africa, Asia, Oceania, Latin America, or the Caribbean”). The power imbalance is evident when we look at the shape of global and intra-regional mobility.

Brain drain – from the South to the North, and from more challenged African countries to more prosperous/stable African countries – has been a major factor historically and persists to this day, as Eastern Africans migrate to countries for better education and economic opportunities.

Mr Amutuhaire argues that African countries must:

• Adopt student mobility practices – and create official internationalisation strategies – that “do not exacerbate the challenges of south-to-north ISM”;
• Deepen cooperation and agreements within the region.”

He points to “smart internationalisation” a term coined by Professor Damtew Teferra, the renowned founding director of the International Network for Higher Education in Africa (INHEA) at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and convenor and founder of the Higher Education Forum for Africa, Asia and Latin America (HEFAALA).

Prof Tefera argues that traditional concepts of internationalisation are Eurocentric/Western and do not benefit the Global South because they either promote brain drain or are not relevant to the economic and cultural contexts in Africa. Prof Tefera proposes that “smart internationalisation strategies make the process locally focused, though with an international flavour.”

Going forward, Mr Amutuhaire says it is necessary to explore whether nations recruiting students from Africa – or setting up transnational education partnerships – are acting in ways beneficial to African countries. Too often, he notes, there is too much reliance on the economic rationale for recruitment (e.g., the much higher tuition fees international students from the Global South are often required to pay at universities in the Global North).

Mr Amutuhaire advocates for more strategic collaboration between African states to establish intra-African ISM aimed at diminishing – not replicating – the challenges associated with south-to-north ISM. In other words, intra-African mobility should not mimic the power imbalances that tend to characterise Eurocentric internationalisation, but rather chart new ground to ensure students from Africa, and the Global South in general, benefit as much from study abroad and TNE as the countries and institutions that host them.

Stay tuned for more articles exploring this crucial idea and the East African context for mobility.

For additional background, please see:

If you’ve been reading our coverage for the past couple of years, you’ll know why a strategically set-up customer relationship management system (CRM) is such a powerful student recruitment tool. Among other benefits, this marketing automation helps teams to respond quickly to prospects whose information has been gathered on a lead capture form on the institutional website. The CRM is helpful for the entirety of the student journey. It allows staff across relevant departments to see who is working on different elements of the enrolment funnel and to track the progress of leads.

However, a CRM system is not a substitute for human-to-human interaction. There is still a huge role for staff to play in terms of designing content and communications for prospective students. Today we’ll look at good practice in email correspondence between marketing/admissions staff and prospects, and we’ll proceed with an assumption that a student has submitted a form on the sales/marketing team’s CRM.

Delegate, respond quickly, and provide options

School or university staff reading a well-devised form can quickly discern basic details such as the student’s name, city, country, and level (e.g., undergraduate, postgraduate, foundation). In addition, the form can indicate:

• Programmes of interest, as well as other priorities (scholarships, accommodation, internships, visa processing, etc.);
• Language preferences;
• And more.

The more information you can collect, the better – but keep in mind that many leads will drop off if they see a long form asking them to submit too much information. One solution is to make certain fields optional.

Once a form is submitted, it should be clear in CRM who is responsible for following up. Higher Education Marketing (HEM) makes a good point:

“A key element of building your workflows is ensuring that your follow-up is handled by the right staff. Even if you are working in a very small school with just one or two team members, having each of you take ownership of specific workflows can ensure your work is distributed evenly and your time managed efficiently.

It also allows you to maximize the strengths of each individual team member. For instance, you may have staff who are much more experienced at processing applications and dealing with prospects further on in the enrollment journey, whereas others might be more adept at making an impression on new leads. Likewise, some of your team members might have specific knowledge of certain courses, or even speak the native language of those in one of your key target markets. By assigning your workflows to the right people, you could dramatically increase your chances of success.”

Segmenting and writing emails for automation

The information you collect through the website form allows you to construct student segments for automated emails. Asking for relatively detailed information on the form allows for smaller segments because students have distinguished themselves based on the specific information they have provided. Smaller segments allow for more personalisation in the email templates staff create based on what their CRM is indicating. For example:

• Template A goes out to students with a specific interest in agricultural programmes.
• Template B goes out to students who say they are open to any programme for which they are eligible.
• Template C goes out to students who want to communicate in Spanish and want information about visas.

In other words, the different templates correspond to different student segments.

The following is an example of an automated email – created by staff – that would go to a student who had indicated their name, location, and preferred programme in a fictional university we called ANP. Note the friendly tone, one-to-one style (as opposed to a corporate tone), and openness to a range of communication platforms.

Hi Sakura,

Thank you for reaching out to us at ANP University. We’re excited to provide you with information about our campus and engineering programmes.

My name is Kate, and I’m here to help you with any questions you have about studying at ANP and living in Picton. I’d be happy to connect with you in whichever way works best for you: email, phone, or a messaging platform of your choice (e.g., WhatsApp or Messenger).

If you’d like to connect by phone, you can schedule a call with me at the following link: [link to calendar platform].

In the meantime, I encourage you to look at our available resources on our website. Here are some quick links to get you started:

• Undergraduate engineering programmes
• Internships
• Working while studying
• Tuition fees and scholarships
• Budgeting calculator
• Accommodation
• Student testimonials
• Virtual campus tour
• Living in Picton

I look forward to chatting with you soon!

All the best,

Kate

The importance of speed and tone

Not least because we are now trained by artificial intelligence to expect immediate responses via live chat bots, students want quick responses from institutional staff to their email/social media queries.

According to Forrester Research, more than three-quarters (77%) of consumers say that the best customer service a company can provide is valuing their time. What’s more, customers say that the following emotions are the most impactful in terms of how they share their opinion of a company, purchase behaviours, and brand loyalty:

• Valued
• Appreciated
• Respected

For marketing and sales teams at schools and universities, inspiring those positive emotions means responding quickly, precisely, politely, warmly, and personally.

As for the negative emotions the Forrester research found to be most detrimental to a customer’s trust and willingness to purchase, they are:

• Frustrated
• Annoyed
• Disappointed

There are some clear actions to take to avoid triggering negative emotions, even when institutions are short on budget or staff:

Avoid frustration: Hubspot research has found that 90% of customers say an “immediate” response to customer service questions is “important” or “very important,” and that 60% of those customers consider “immediate” to be 10 minutes or less.

This is where a good chatbot can be useful. However, if you have a chatbot, ensure that it provides an option for students to speak with a human being if the AI chat is not delivering what they need.

Avoid annoyance: If staff can’t respond immediately to a student’s request to speak with a human via email, automate a friendly email response in the CRM that acknowledges the query and tells students what to expect in terms of timing (e.g., a reply within 24 hours, 48 hours, etc.) UX designers call this the “first reply” and consider it the most important response to all queries. It provides prompt reassurance.

The first reply is also strategically important because it allows staff to take required time to respond meaningfully and helpfully to students. There are no gains to be had by rushing that crucial email that answers specific questions; conveys a friendly, legitimate, and confident brand; and increases the odds students will stay in the enrolment funnel.

Avoid disappointment: If you say you will respond in a certain amount of time, keep your word. Research shows that waiting times are the number one complaint from consumers.

Lean into the follow-up

How many of us have placed a desired item in a website shopping cart, then left it there without purchasing it? Research shows that 70% of shoppers abandon their shopping cart, meaning that only 3 in 10 consumers complete their purchase. Reasons for leaving a website before making a purchase include:

• The items were put in the cart on impulse and the impulse passed;
• The items were in a category the shopper was exploring from multiple brands (this is especially true of students who are considering more destinations and institutions than ever);
• The shopper knows from experience that many companies respond to an abandoned shopping cart by emailing the shopper with a discount or other incentive.

All the above points pertain to students as much as general consumers. Education is both consumed and invested in by students and their families. It is a big-ticket item. As a result, it can take multiple attempts to encourage a student along the enrolment funnel, and it can take a value-add or incentive. This is why it is key to master the art of the follow-up.

Research by business-to-business marketing firm Woodpecker has found that sending just one follow-up email to a customer who has ignored the first email increases the replay rate by 22%, and that the reply rate to that first follow-up is 40% higher than to the first email. And a blog post on the automation firm Ignition notes that following up “also shows you are engaged in the client’s journey and helps to set and reinforce expectations.”

Clearly, there is a synergy created by combining – and aligning – good chatbot, email, and branding strategies.

For additional information, please see:

The first time Donald Trump was president of the United States, he implemented a ban on travel to the US from seven Muslim-majority countries, suspended the issuance of H1-Bs (post-study work visas), and cancelled thousands of Chinese students’ study visas, among other orders impacting international students.

Not even a month into President Trump’s second presidency, the US international sector is bracing for immigration changes that could affect their students as well as their ability to recruit overseas.

So far, President Trump has issued several Executive Orders that may have negative consequences for both prospective and current students. Within one of the orders is a direction for his administration to “begin the process of restoring a potential travel ban within 60 days.”

Protecting the US is priority number one

On 20 January, the President signed an order that while vague, sounds ominous: “PROTECTING THE UNITED STATES FROM FOREIGN TERRORISTS AND OTHER NATIONAL SECURITY AND PUBLIC SAFETY THREATS.”

The order mandates that immigration officials adopt the following guidance, which will likely affect the issuance and processing of some study and work visas:

• “Identify all resources that may be used to ensure that all aliens seeking admission to the United States, or who are already in the United States, are vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible;
• Evaluate all visa programs to ensure that they are not used by foreign nation-states or other hostile actors to harm the security, economic, political, cultural, or other national interests of the United States;
• Identify countries throughout the world for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries pursuant to section 212(f) of the INA;
• Identify nationals from those countries have entered or have been admitted into the United States on or since January 20, 2021, and take immediate steps to exclude or remove that alien unless she determines that doing so would inhibit a significant pending investigation or prosecution of the alien for a serious criminal offense or would be contrary to the national security interests of the United States;
• Take additional actions to protect the American people and our constitutional republic from foreign threats.”

NAFSA assessed the potential ramifications for the industry from the order, and determined that:

• “Increased scrutiny could result in delays and additional requirements for student and scholar visa applicants.
• Students and scholars from countries identified through the process described in Section 2 may face bans on admission to the United States or increased visa denials.”

Legal firm Feagre Drinker provides this analysis:

“The language of this order appears to authorize the government to deny visas or entry to the United States based on perceived political opinions, religious beliefs or cultural backgrounds. The order further authorizes the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to remove nationals of those above-identified countries who are already legally in the United States, unless doing so would impede the pending investigation of that foreign national for serious criminal offense, or if doing so would be contrary to the national security interests of the United States.

It is not yet certain which vetting techniques the U.S. Department of State may use to carry out these directives, but it is expected that additional enhancements will only add to already increased wait times for clearances.”

Free speech on the line

President Trump signed another Executive Order on 29 January meant to combat antisemitism in the country. He pledged to deport any international student who has participated in a pro-Palestinian rally.

Jayden Joeckel, a University of San Francisco student belonging to the group Students for Palestine, told ABC News:

“It is scary knowing that we have to be cognitive about [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] coming into our campus. It is scary that we have to worry about [the Department of Homeland Security] stalking our students and keeping tabs on them for activism.”

He continued:

“[Students] are telling us that they are scared. I think it’s completely reasonable to live in a country where you have rights that are expected to be granted, and when a new administration comes in and tells you that you can be deported for expressing your First Amendment rights – it’s shocking.”

Lawyers are preparing to defend affected students. Jeff Wozniak, attorney with the National Lawyers Guild said:

“These students that are on F-1 visas have First Amendment free speech rights. You don’t get an F-1 visa based on your political views. It is for you to go to college and get an education.”

The University of San Francisco sent an email to students who might be affected, assuring them that:

“The director will not share any student or employee information unless compelled to by a signed court order or a verified claim of imminent danger to public safety.”

Cancelled celebrations

Fears about actions President Trump may direct immigration enforcement officials to carry out on campuses led to Michigan State University’s College of Communications Arts and Sciences cancelling its Lunar New Year celebrations this week. Lauren Gaines, the college’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director Lauren Gaines wrote an email to students explaining the decision:

“This decision comes in response to concerns shared by members of our community regarding the current issuance of Executive Orders related to immigration and diversity, equity, and inclusion. These actions have prompted feelings of uncertainty and hesitation about gathering for events that highlight cultural traditions and communities.”

Ms Gaines then wrote to faculty, some of whom objected to the decision:

“I ask you to view this decision not as a statement of policy, but rather as an appropriate on-the-ground response given a very short decision window and input from students who voiced concerns about gathering for this cultural celebration.”

President Trump has issued several Executive Orders demanding that Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) mandates and employees be terminated in wide-ranging areas such as government, the military, the private sector, and most recently, aviation.

Nothing is confirmed yet

While the Executive Orders may be cause for worry, it’s also possible that the majority of foreign students going to and already studying in the US will be unaffected by them. A Reuters article quotes NAFSA CEO Dr Fanta Aw as saying:

“When you think about the U.S. and its economy, it’s not only about the students, but who they become afterwards. These students become workers, researchers and leaders back home. It’s an important component of U.S. international engagement. Meanwhile, while they’re here, they contribute economically. That is something the U.S. cannot afford to ignore.”

Reuters also investigated study visa approval rates during President Trump’s first administration (2016-20) and found that rates did not change significantly during his time as president.

What’s more, President Trump’s ally and the co-leader of the newly formed “Department of Government Efficiency,” Elon Musk, is in favour of the H1-B visa given how its workers fuel innovation in science and technology. President Trump seems to have changed his tune on the visa category. In his first term, he called H1-B visas “very bad” and “unfair” for US workers. But recently, he has claimed in a phone call with the New York Post that:

“I’ve always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That’s why we have them.”

Overall, we can anticipate a mix of immigration policies – some that favour certain types of international students and some that dissuade or prevent students from certain countries from coming.

Julia Gelatt, associate director of US immigration policy at the Migration Policy Institute, said that along with slower visa processing, “some prospective students may be deterred by the unfriendly rhetoric and opt to study elsewhere.” But she does not believe there will be a significant decrease in demand from international students to come to the US:

“The reasons that people come to the United States, the economic and educational opportunities we have here, are still so strong. As long as the US is relatively stable with a strong economy, I think people will want to continue to come.”

For additional background, please see:

The Canadian government has just released information about its target caps for study permit issuance for 2025, and a breakdown of how those targets will be distributed across the country according to the Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL) formula introduced in 2024. Since the introduction of caps on new international students last year, students (with some exceptions) have had to include a PAL with their study permit application, and each province receives an allocation of PALs they can distribute among their Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs).

Study permit targets for 2025

For 2025, the government plans to issue a total of 437,000 new study permits, a 10% reduction compared to the overall cap level of 485,000 permits for 2024. Some of those study permits will go to students exempt from the cap (K-12 students, exchange students, students with study permits applying for extensions at the same institution) and some will be specifically reserved for graduate students, which are now factored in the cap as well.

Overall, 316,276 of the 437,000 study permits will go to students who must apply with a PAL. That includes college students, undergraduate students, language students, students in graduate diploma programmes, and master’s and doctoral programmes. Those segments make up most of the applications submitted every year to study in Canada.

These are the broad cap allocations for study permit issuance by type of student for 2025:

And these are the targets broken down by province:

Breakdown of PAL allocations

So far, we have covered the target for approved study permits in 2025. Now we’ll move on to the allocation of PALs. The table below essentially shows the maximum number of PAL-required student applications allowed per province, i.e., the number of applications that Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will process per province. As you can see, some of the PALs (about 17%) are reserved for master’s and doctoral students.

Most will go to postsecondary students

In Ontario, the Canadian province with the most international students, the provincial government intends to allocate 96% of its PALs to public postsecondary institutions, with only 4% going to language schools and zero going to private colleges. The Ministry of Colleges and Universities said: “All public institutions will receive at least the same number of applications as they used in 2024.”

Nolan Quinn, Ontario minister of colleges and universities, said: “As we have been from the beginning, our government is laser focused on ensuring students in Ontario receive the skills they need to succeed in industries that address our province’s labour market needs.”

Of Ontario’s 181,000 allocations, 32,000 will be reserved for master’s and doctoral students.

Last year’s cap led to roughly half as many applications approved as in 2023

In 2024, the number of approved study permits fell by about 45%, according to a recent analysis from ApplyBoard, and based on a 50% average approval rate for submitted study permit applications up to October 2024.

As the enrolment cap – and related policies around post-study work eligibility and more – were being introduced throughout 2024, many observers suggested that the government response was an overcorrection. These latest estimates for 2024 study permit issuances appear to bear that out. Indeed, the new policy environment has introduced sufficient confusion into the marketplace and otherwise dampened student interest that actual study permit volumes for 2024 appear likely to fall below the cap level for the year.

For insights about how the Canadian international education sector has responded to the new policy settings, please see IDP’s recently released Canada Sector Survey whitepaper.

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France remains the top destination in the world for international students to learn French and to study in French, with Canada in second place. Most students go to Canada for English-language programmes, but for several reasons, demand could rise significantly for French-language programmes as well.

Factors that could lead to a spike in demand include:

• More active student recruitment in French-speaking countries in the past few years. Three Francophone markets were in Canada’s top 20 markets in 2023: France, Algeria, and Morocco. Algeria was up 78% year-over-year and Morocco was up 43.5%. The growth is even more striking when we look back at enrolments in 2019: that year, there were 3,620 Algerians in Canadian programmes of at least 6 months, compared with 13,335 in 2023. A total of 4,510 Moroccans studied in those programmes in 2019 – by 2023, there were 10,310. Other Francophone markets are also growing fast for Canadian institutions: enrolments of students from Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Tunisia, and Senegal more than tripled between 2019 and 2023.

• Immigration priorities and policies. The Canadian federal government is taking a different approach to French-speaking immigrants than English-speaking immigrants. Since January 2024, restrictive policies have been in place to curb the number of temporary migrants in Canada, but the government want to increase the number of immigrants in Francophone communities outside of Québec. To that end, it launched the Francophone Minority Communities Student Pilot (FMCSP) in August 2024 to encourage international students to study in French in minority Francophone communities outside of Québec – and then to stay on as immigrants. The programme allows participating students a faster route to permanent residence, and it includes robust integration and settlement supports.

The officially bilingual province of New Brunswick – which holds the second-largest proportion of French-speakers in Canada (30% of the total) after Québec – is a priority region under this pilot, as are several other smaller Francophone communities. For the first year, the pilot will be offered to 2,300 students, and then another target will be set in August 2025.

The government has added an incentive as well to boost applications for students to apply for a study permit through the FMCSP:

“To improve the approval rate, students and their families will be exempted from having to demonstrate that they will leave Canada at the end of their temporary stay. In addition, the required financial threshold will be adjusted to reflect 75% of the low-income cut-off associated with the municipality where the institution’s main campus is located.”

Students must be from following countries and enrol in a study programme of more than two years leading to a diploma or degree:

• Bénin
• Burkina Faso
• Burundi
• Cabo Verde
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Comoros
• Côte d’Ivoire
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Dominica
• Republic of the Congo
• Djibouti
• Egypt
• Equatorial Guinea
• Gabon
• Guinea
• Guinea-Bissau
• Haïti
• Lebanon
• Madagascar
• Mali
• Mauritania
• Mauritius
• Morocco
• Niger
• Rwanda
• Saint Lucia
• São Tomé and Principe
• Senegal
• Seychelles
• Togo
• Tunisia

In addition, in 2023, Canada’s popular Express Entry system that qualifies foreigners for work in Canada changed its formula for selection, with French-language proficiency now counting for more “points” towards approval. The following chart from the Globe and Mail shows that French-language proficiency now counts more towards applicants getting an invite than even priority study areas such as STEM and healthcare. As a result, some Anglophone international students in Canada are now learning French to increase their odds for the Express Entry system.

According to the Globe and Mail:

“Alliance Française, an international non-profit agency that administers the French-language tests – mainly used for immigration purposes – reported the same number of test registrations [in Canada] in the first six months of 2024 as the entire year before.

Samuel Coeytaux, the director of the Ottawa branch of Alliance Française, said his organization has seen a significant increase in the number of people taking the TEF and TCF exams across Canada this year. The organization administered 3,681 exams last year but had already reached that total in the first six months of 2024.

Some clients registering for the exam, he said, don’t have a background in French – ‘people from countries not deemed francophone, like India, China and other countries in Latin America as well’ – but they study the structure of the test and prepare well.”

Québec government leans into enrolling students in French-language programmes

Of Canada’s overall population of about 37 million, 22% speak French as their first language, and 84% of that proportion lives in Québec. Most college-aged students enrol in Québec’s French-taught higher education programmes, with the remaining 22% choosing to study in English. According to Québec’s French-language commissioner, Benoît Dubreuil, that percentage is too high. He has recommended to the government that 85% of courses delivered by Québec’s universities be offered in French.

In addition, Mr Dubreuil wants to see 31% of courses at English universities in Québec delivered in French. This would deter some students from studying at universities including McGill, which is ranked 29th in the world by QS and which hosts around 12,000 international students.

Québec is already very attractive to Francophone students from certain countries. Under mobility agreements between Québec and France and Québec, French and Belgian bachelor’s students are eligible to pay the same fees as Canadians who are non-residents of Québec, and French and Belgian master’s and doctoral-level students are eligible to pay the same fees as Québec residents.

But that’s not all: Québec also has mobility agreements with 39 other countries that allow some students from those countries to avoid paying an average international student tuition fee of CDN$20,000 per year. These agreements have caps attached to them, unlike those with France and Belgium. Currently, about 90 Moroccan students, 80 Algerian students, 65 Tunisian students, 50 Senegalese students, and 50 Mexican students are studying in Canada under fee-reducing mobility agreements.

Mohamed El Mahdi Gaouane, the deputy head of the mission of the Kingdom of Morocco, has stated that he wants to “increase and expand, as much as possible” the number of Moroccan students who receive exemptions.

Francophone international student numbers in Canada and France

The following table shows enrolment trends for top Francophone markets in Canada and France in 2023:

Listen in as ICEF’s Craig Riggs and Martijn van de Veen recap some recent industry developments, including Irish higher education’s record-high foreign enrolment and Malaysia’s growing popularity.

This month’s episode features a discussion with leading experts from North America, Europe, and Australia who share their perspectives on the year ahead, discuss the various factors impacting our sector, and debate how best to respond to a rapidly changing marketplace.

Martijn and Craig are joined by special guests Roger Brindley, President – North America for Acumen | Sannam S4 Group; Sarah Todd, Vice President (Global) at Griffith University; and Harris Rosen, Barrister and Solicitor with the Harris Rosen Professional Corporation.

We conclude with a closer look at Sri Lanka as the latest stop for our “Keys to the Market” segment.

You can listen right now in the player below, and we encourage you to subscribe via your favourite podcast app in order to receive future episodes automatically.

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Many European countries have welcomed more students than ever over the past few years (e.g., Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland). International students are drawn to quality education and to lower tuition relative to the leading destinations of Australia, Canada, UK, and US (aka the “Big Four”). But in Europe, students often face the same kind of issue as do students in the Big Four: there is insufficient purpose-built student housing (PBSA) and expensive rental fees.

Last year, there was a shortage of 3 million beds for students across Europe and the situation is expected to worsen in the next five years, when there will be a need for an additional 200,000 more beds, according to a 2024 analysis by global real estate firm JLL. This is in part because Europe’s student population is expected to grow by 10% by 2030/31, reaching 23.5 million, with half being international students.

Top student cities in Europe are the worst off in terms of supply, with 40 cities accounting for 40% of the 3-million bed shortage.

Only 40% of PBSA beds across Europe are privately funded. The rest are publicly owned or subsidised and not always accommodating of all types of students/budgets. The situation, says JLL, equates to a “€450bn investment opportunity.”

As it stands, most PBSA investment in Europe is in the UK, and JJL observes that “key markets in continental Europe would need to grow, on average, 13 times to match the UK 2018-2022 [investment] average.” For example:

“The largest student markets like Germany and France could see their investment grow from an average of €0.5bn to €7bn necessary to meet unmet demand. In more nascent markets like Italy, at the current pace of investment it would take over 100 years to deploy the necessary investment.”

To narrow the gap between supply and demand, Dominika Mocova, a senior analyst at JLL EMEA Living and Research Strategy, says: “Greater market transparency and understanding from planning authorities is necessary to unlock the full potential.”

Her colleague Julia Martin, JLL’s head of EMEA Student Housing, points out that PBSA is part of ensuring a good student experience: “The affordability and provision of a well-rounded student experience continues to set PBSA apart from traditional rental accommodation.”

Ms Martin continues:

“With developers now having a better grasp of the cultural nuances and design requirements through the different European countries, they are set to introduce the next generation of fit-for-purpose schemes, aimed at addressing the growing demographic student population as well as rising international student demand for quality accommodation across Europe. The continent is now home to the highest number of globally ranked universities, with 203 universities in the top 500 according to the 2024 QS World University Ranking. Given the current shortage of student accommodation in key cities and the vast untapped potential in countries such as Italy and Germany, addressing the standing imbalance between supply and demand will unlock a huge €450 billion growth opportunity in the market, with PBSA playing a crucial role.”

Ireland: Construction causing delays

In 2024, Ireland’s education department examined the student housing situation in a paper called Funding the Future: An Annual Options Paper on the Cost of Higher Education 2024. It found that:
 
“On average there are three applications for every one student bed on campus. This does not take into account the Technological University sector. Those students who are unsuccessful in obtaining a place are forced into the private market.”
 
As reported in The Irish Times:

“Construction cost increases, fuelled by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Brexit and Covid, are having a significant impact on the supply and affordability of new rental accommodation for higher-level students … The impact on supply has been significant, with more than 10,900 units with planning permission within the university public and private student accommodation sector not having been activated.”

France: Danger of dropouts and student hardships

In Paris, a January 2024 study by SeLoger.com found that the number of available rentals for students in Paris dropped by 50% compared with 2023 and 73% over three years. Jacques Baudrier, deputy mayor for housing, told The Diplomat: “The private sector has nothing left to rent, agencies are closing, and the crisis is exponential.”

Barbara Gomes, delegate for Tenant Protection in Paris, explained:

“If you can’t find housing, you give up your studies or move farther away, and the longer commutes add to fatigue. More than half of the students work part-time, and the risk of academic failure increases with such challenges.”

Spain: Tourism overload

In Spain, where soaring tourist numbers are squeezing residents out of the housing market, the government is taking action to provide more student accommodation for students enrolling in certain types of tertiary institution. A protocol was signed at the end of 2024 by the ministries of housing, economy, and universities that mandates that new private universities offer housing for their students.

In addition, reports The Guardian, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government has instituted a tax of up to 100% on properties bought by non-residents from countries outside the EU, such as the UK. President Sánchez defended the new policy by noting:

“In 2023 alone non-EU residents bought about 27,000 houses and flats in Spain. And they didn’t do it to live in them, they didn’t do it for their families to have a place to live. They did it to speculate.”

A persistent and challenging issue in higher education

International students have enough to think about without worrying about whether they will find affordable housing on or at least near to campus. Housing stress is closely associated with poor mental health, and it means that affected students’ attention is often – and of necessity – elsewhere than in their studies. In extreme cases, housing issues can cause students to drop out.

Stephen Madsen, writing for EConsult Solutions, a US-based economics and policy thinktank, notes: “As the market continues to struggle with meeting the demand for affordable housing options, increasing on- or near-campus student housing can be an attractive amenity and marketable edge for universities looking to maintain or increase enrollment.”

But he also points out the sometimes-impossible solutions higher education institutions are up against:

“Ultimately, financing and development costs remain the largest hurdle in addressing this issue for many institutions. Public funding for universities has fallen in many states over the past several decades—limiting many institutions’ ability to take on additional debt for capital improvements. During the same period, the cost of residential construction has risen significantly. The combined effect leads to a challenging development environment for higher education institutions, absent outside equity or public subsidy.”

Mr Madsen provides several examples of US colleges working hard and thinking creatively to try to come up with solutions:

• “Middlebury College in Middlebury, VT is providing a stipend, or financial incentive of $10,000, to take a half-year leave of absence to upper classmen to accommodate housing for incoming students. 
• In Knoxville, TN, the University of Tennessee has rented out local Knoxville hotels to accommodate incoming students. 
• Virginia State University, in Petersburg, VA built on-campus modular developments to house incoming students.”

Mr Madsen concludes: “For [institutions] looking to ensure an affordable and inclusive education, the housing issue must continue to be addressed.”
 
For additional background, please see: