Higher education exchanges between China and UK should not be easily cut off by politics 中英高等教育交流不应轻易被政治切断

2020年9月，中国学生搭乘包机从中国西南重庆飞往英国曼彻斯特。图片来源：cnsphoto

By Wan Hengyi Published: Sep 13, 2023 11:17 PM Updated: Sep 13, 2023 11:08 PM

由万恒毅撰写 发布日期：2023年9月13日 下午11:17 更新日期：2023年9月13日 下午11:08

The expansion of university enrollment, including those in the UK, especially the recruitment of more international students, is determined by the trend of globalization and internationalization, and cannot be simply cut off for political reasons and racial discrimination, analysts said.

大学扩招，包括英国在内，尤其是招收更多国际学生的趋势，受全球化和国际化的影响，不能仅仅因政治原因和种族歧视而切断，分析人士指出。

UK universities will suffer greatly from the continuing diplomatic rift between China and the UK, as more than one in every four PhD places now goes to Chinese students, a report led by a former minister has warned.

英国大学将因中英持续的外交分歧而遭受巨大损失，一份由前大臣领导的报告警告称，目前四个博士名额中就有一个分配给了中国学生。

The study, co-authored by the former universities minister Lord Jo Johnson, found that many leading institutions remain highly dependent on Chinese students for tuition fee income as well as to fill postgraduate research courses in subjects such as economics, science and technology.

这项由前大臣乔·约翰逊领导的研究发现，许多领先机构在学费收入以及填补经济学、科学和技术等学科的研究生课程方面仍然高度依赖中国学生。

A sudden rise in tensions between the two countries – recently a parliamentary researcher was arrested for allegedly spying for China – could see the pipeline shut off, leaving UK universities with few viable alternatives after the collapse in EU student numbers coming to the UK since Brexit.

两国之间紧张局势的突然升高 – 最近一名议会研究员因涉嫌为中国间谍而被捕 – 可能导致这一渠道关闭，在英国脱欧后，欧盟学生前来英国的人数大幅下降，使英国大学在此后几乎没有可行的替代方案。

The estimated total benefit to the UK economy from 2021-22 first-year international students over the duration of their studies was approximately £41.9 billion- up by 34 percent from £31.3 billion in 2018-19, according to a report released by UK educational institutions.

根据英国教育机构发布的一份报告，2021-22年度首年国际学生在其学习期间对英国经济的估计总收益约为419亿英镑，比2018-19年的313亿英镑增长了34%。

Chinese students make up the largest proportion of international students in the UK, with 99,965 newcomers from China entering UK universities in 2021/22, accounting for a quarter of international students in the country.

中国学生在英国国际学生中占据最大比例，2021/22年有99,965名来自中国的新生进入英国大学，占英国国际学生总数的四分之一。

At present, most universities in the UK do not have severe restrictions on Chinese students due to political considerations, an employee at a Beijing-based study abroad agency told the Global Times on Wednesday.

目前，由于政治原因，大多数英国大学对中国学生没有严格的限制，一位在北京的留学机构员工周三告诉《环球时报》。

“However, students applying for nuclear-related programs need to provide additional materials for their visa application,” said the employee.

“然而，申请核相关专业的学生需要为签证申请提供额外的材料，”该员工说道。

Since the US tightened restrictions and controls on Chinese students a few years ago, students who come to the inquiry have been asked whether such restrictions will be extended to UK universities, she added.

由于几年前美国对中国学生加强了限制和控制，前来咨询的学生被问及这些限制是否会扩大至英国大学，她补充道。

The exchange between students from both countries has always been an important part of China-UK cultural exchanges, and has for a long time strongly promoted the mutual communication and understanding between the two peoples, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in response to relevant matters.

中英两国学生之间的交流一直是中英文化交流的重要组成部分，长期以来促进了两国人民之间的相互沟通与理解，中国外交部一位发言人在回应相关问题时表示。

The expansion of university enrollment, especially the recruitment of international students, is determined by the trend of globalization and internationalization, Liu Xin, a professor at the Institute of Organization and Human Resources at the School of Public Administration of Renmin University of China, told the Global Times.

中国人民大学公共管理学院组织与人力资源研究所的教授刘欣告诉《环球时报》说，大学扩招，特别是招收国际学生，是由全球化和国际化的趋势决定的。

Since the vast majority of Chinese students do not work or stay in the UK in the long run, there is no significant adverse impact on local society, said the expert.

该专家表示，由于绝大多数中国学生不会在英国长期工作或居住，对当地社会没有明显的不利影响。

As more and more international students come to the UK after the haze of the epidemic has lifted, many Chinese studying science and engineering, just like me, are particularly worried that our studies will be interrupted at any time due to the increasing tensions in bilateral relations, just like some of the Chinese students in the US, an undergraduate student surnamed Sun in the UK told the Global Times on Wednesday.

随着疫情阴霾逐渐消散，越来越多的国际学生来到英国，像我一样，在英国攻读科学和工程专业的许多中国学生特别担心由于中英关系的紧张局势不断升级，我们的学业会随时中断，就像一些在美国的中国学生一样。这是一位在英国的大三学生孙同学周三告诉《环球时报》的。