Nearly half of UK vice-chancellors expect their university to be in financial deficit this year, nearly all expect some institutions to breach agreements with banks, while almost none expect government to support a provider in serious financial trouble, with one leader fearing ministers are “determined to drive us out of business”, according to a Times Higher Education survey.
As UK universities fear a domestic funding crisis combined with a fall in financially vital international recruitment amid the government’s tightening of visa policy, THE asked campus heads for their views on sector finances, with 51 responding.
One university leader, who chose to remain anonymous, said given that research and the teaching of home students relied on cross-subsidy from overseas fees, “the government’s recent attitude to international students has been hugely damaging” and “it would appear that the government is determined to drive us out of business”.
Another said that uncertainty across the sector was “at unprecedented levels”, with reduced public funding, inflation and “the government’s hostile approach to our international students” providing “for a perfect storm, which will undoubtedly see a number of universities fail their ‘going concern’ requirements in the near future”.
