Policy and Research

We aim to promote and protect the interests of international students in the UK by:

• monitoring government legislation that could affect international students and lobbying to ensure any new measures are as fair and workable as possible - read some examples of current and recent consultation responses
• maintaining a dialogue with
  • the Home Office and UK Border Agency about immigration and employment legislation
  • the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the devolved administrations over fees and student support regulations

  to keep them informed about current issues, and ensure we are consulted at an early stage when changes are planned

• working with education sector bodies such as Universities UK, the Association of Colleges and the National Union of Students, to ensure where possible that the education sector has a strong voice and co-ordinated response to new proposals, and to encourage best practice within the sector. See examples from our extensive programme of activity under the Prime Minister's Initiative for International Education (PMI2)
• conducting research into the experiences of international students to add weight to our discussions with government and the sector and to identify areas for improvement - see our research reports
• engaging with the press to get fair and balanced reporting of international student issues - see for example the following articles
  Original article to the Guardian
  Published article in Guardian online
• providing key information to inform policy making and dispel myths - see our rebuttal of common misconceptions