8.6.2009
Out of the current financial crisis comes better value for money for international masters and PhD students
An increasing number of international students are finding there is an upside to the current global economic crisis. With the Australian and New Zealand dollars and the British Pound devaluing against the US, tuition fees for international masters and PhD programs are suddenly cheaper than at any other time in the last ten years.
Even the Euro, which has been considerably stronger than many other currencies over the last year, has seen its value decline recently. While cost has always been a significant factor for graduate students in their choice of study destination and program, the recent volatility of the financial markets has added a new dimension to the importance of price when deciding where to study.
Amrita Shah Singh, a final year undergraduate student at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi is certainly more conscious of the cost of studying abroad since the beginning of the current economic crisis. “I have been hoping to go abroad to study my masters degree for some time, but my parents and I can now see that it is much cheaper than even last year. Some programs I would never have considered are much better value against the US dollar and the Indian rupee. For example, although I considered the UK, universities in New Zealand and Australia offered better value for money until the pound started devaluing this year.”
Singh is one of thousands of students more aware than ever that the changes in exchange rates around the world can not only offer them better value for money but access to some of the more expensive graduate programs offered by universities in Australia, UK and throughout many countries in Europe. While it is true to say that the exchange rate fluctuations are unlikely to last in the longer-term, international students considering graduate programs in the next 12 to 18 months are likely to see the overall cost of studying more competitive than ever before, with better value for money for both tuition and living costs.
Higher education becomes the key factor
Universities in the UK have certainly benefited from the changing economic situation, with masters and PhD applications increasing to almost unprecedented levels. The University of Hull, located in the north of the UK, is just one university that has reported an increased interest in its graduate programs from international students. “We have experienced a 20% growth in graduate applications over the last year,” says James Richardson, Director of Hull’s International Office. “On top of our new programs and an improved profile for the University and the city of Hull, the relative lower cost with the pound depreciating has enabled us, and other UK universities, to promote the same good quality degrees for a tuition fee of some 20 to 30% lower than in 2008. This has certainly helped prospective students make a considered choice when choosing the country in which they will study.”
Schools reduce fees
Over the course of the last year in particular, the relative cost of graduate education in a range of countries has plummeted. For example, the cost of tuition fees for masters programs in computer science across four universities in four different countries demonstrates that costs have reduced up to 28% at the University of Nottingham in the UK and Queensland University of Technology in Australia. Similarly, the cost of tuition at New Zealand’s Victoria University of Wellington has fallen by 27% in the exchange rate between the New Zealand and the US dollar. Only in The Netherlands and other European countries, where the Euro has held much of its value against the US dollar, have tuition costs dropped a more modest 15%, as the case of the University of Groningen illustrates.
However, universities are quick to point out that the change in currency valuations may not be the only factor in their programs becoming more attractive to international students. Professor Stuart McCutcheon, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Auckland in New Zealand, sees the relationship between an increase in the number of student applications and the economic situation in far broader terms. “A modest upswing in demand is being reported by many tertiary institutions in New Zealand and other countries feeling the effects of the economic downturn, such as Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States. These new and returning students are looking ahead to brighter times, and building skills they believe are likely to bring significant benefits for themselves and employers in the future.”
Also PhD programs are more requested
The longer PhD programs are also benefiting from an upturn in interest from international students. According to Alan Mackay, Director of the International Office at Scotland's University of Edinburgh, the global financial crisis has prompted many students to think more broadly about their futures as they become concerned with a relatively bleak outlook for international graduate employment in the current climate.
“We are currently experiencing our PhD applications increasing across the board, especially from the larger countries and in some cases the increase is over 50% on last year. Certainly one contributory factor to this increase will be the reduction in the value of the pound in key international markets and another is the global recession. There is little doubt that the global recession is having an impact in terms of overall levels of interest in advanced study or what some people term ‘re-skilling’.”
With negative coverage of the financial crisis dominating the news, the opportunity to look for a brighter side to the story is certainly likely to be welcomed by prospective international masters and PhD students around the world. While the cost of tuition fees and living costs will continue to vary over the coming months, there has possibly never been a better time to look for genuine value for money in international graduate study and an excellent return on your investment in preparation for the inevitable economic recovery. |
