Record numbers of international students choose Wales.

Record numbers of international students are enrolling to study higher education

at universities throughout Wales. For the sixth successive year figures of full-time, non-EU students have increased, and currently 11,374 international students are studying in Wales. The percentage increase of over 19% is the highest increase in the last six years. Since 2005/06 international students in Wales have increased by 73%.

A further 400 international students are on part-time courses in Wales and over 1,000 students are partaking in a distance learning course with a Welsh university. In addition there are over 17,000 students on overseas programmes being delivered by Wales’ higher education institutions.
Wales recruits from over 120 countries with many students from China, India, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Qatar, Libya and the US.

Bangor University has been one of the most successful in recruiting international students, recording the greatest increases in Wales in all main categories of student including undergraduate, postgraduate taught and postgraduate research. Record increases have also been seen at Cardiff University, Glyndwr University, Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Swansea Metropolitan University and University of Wales Newport.

In addition to the 15% increase for undergraduate students 2008/09. Wales has seen record increases in students on postgraduate taught courses. In the last few years universities in Wales have launched a whole new range of post-graduate taught courses in response to the need to internationalise its programmes.

Post-graduate research courses have also had a record increase, indicative of a strong RAE performance in which Wales produced strong performances over a range of subjects from art and design to physics, with world-class achievement in a number of areas including civil engineering, computer science and informatics, psychiatry and neuroscience, psychology and Celtic studies. 14% of all research activity submitted by Welsh institutions was judged to be ‘world-leading’, with a further 35% assessed as ‘internationally excellent’.

Wales also has over 30 centres of excellence offering cutting edge, industry linked research. In the last year alone a number of new collaborative centres of research expertise (The Wales Institute for Social and Economic Research Data and Methods (WISERD),  The Wales Institute of Mathematical and Computational Sciences (WIMCS), The Low Carbon Research Institute (LCRI) and The Research Institute of Visual Computing (RIVIC)) have been launched as part of the St David’s Day partnership of five of the higher education institutions in Wales; Aberystwyth University, Bangor University, Cardiff University, Swansea University and University of Glamorgan.


Figures have been gathered by Wales International Consortium (WIC), a consortium of all universities in Wales. Its unique collaboration of the whole of Wales higher education allows a quick response in developing projects to complement the marketing and recruitment activities of member institutions to serve the needs of international education.

Wales’ success in attracting international students is also due to its focus on student satisfaction with some of the best and most innovative international student support in the UK. Schemes such as Bangor University’s Buddying programme which is one of the largest of its kind in the UK have proved extremely effective in ensuring student satisfaction. In addition, unique programmes like Swansea University’s recent Welsh classes for international students offer a more diverse international student experience and help the integration of integration of international and home students.

Aberystwyth University has recently been voted 1st of 123 higher education institutions worldwide in both “student satisfaction” and “the best place to be” in the International Student Barometer.

In the most recent National Student Satisfaction Survey, Aberystwyth University, Bangor University, Cardiff University, Swansea University and Trinity University College all scored in the top 20% of the UK with the Welsh average score being higher than the UK national average.
UWIC has recently been nominated for two THE Award (Times Higher Education) for “Outstanding Student Admissions Team” and “Outstanding International Strategy” reflecting its approach to welcoming and supporting its international students.

Alan Edwards, International Welfare Officer at Bangor University said, “Our universities recognise that the key to ensuring international students continue to choose Wales is about ensuring that the international student experience is the best in the Wales. The best ambassadors for Welsh education are the students who return to their countries telling others about their great experiences in both study and life in Wales. The award winning international student support teams in Wales are key to the increasing numbers of international students choosing Wales.”

Iwan Roberts, Head of International Office at Bangor University said, “In an increasingly competitive and ever-changing global market impacted by recession, funding and visa regulations the success of universities in Wales is indicative of the excellence of its higher education and the diversity of the student experience in Wales.”