Page 72 - EW August 2023

International News

NORWAY a low birth rate, the
End of free for all era wave of emigration
following the political-
NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITIES HAVE A BUSY ly contentious Nation-
summer ahead as politicians argue over the finer al Security Law has
details of international student fees, which will be driven demographic
charged to those from outside the European Economic Area decline. Some 33,604
(EEA) from this month. school-age students
Overall support for the plans from the Norwegian par- left the island in 2021-
liament’s education committee on June 6 confirms the late 22. With the knock-on Foreign students in Hong Kong
summer deadline, despite warnings from the University effect due to be felt
and College Council and others that levying fees would cre- by universities in coming years, internal discussions have
ate costs and that similar changes in Sweden were brought started on how the numbers of non-local students could
in with two years’ notice, rather than two months. increase in coming years.
Among the uncertainties are the exact scope of exemp- “A number of people are saying it’s a question of ‘when’
tions and a scholarship scheme promised by the govern- and not ‘if’,” says Laurie Pearcey, associate vice-president
ment to ensure that some students from low-income coun- for external engagement and outreach at the Chinese Uni-
tries can still come to Norway. versity of Hong Kong.
Local media have reported that the University of Oslo, Other signs, such as recent initiatives to create new path-
University of Stavanger and Norwegian University of Life ways for residency and attract highly educated workers,
Sciences have all collected fees from non-EEA applicants, indicate that a re-evaluation of the policy could be on the
with Oslo and Stavanger making their own decisions on way, he adds. The government is also working on permit-
exceptions for some. The Norwegian University of Science ting undergraduates to work part-time during their studies
and Technology has said it hasn’t yet levied fees. and making it easier for them to stay to work after getting
Agnete Vabø, vice-dean at Oslo Metropolitan University, their degrees.
which has a particularly high share of international stu- Admitting more international students is one way of
dents, told Times Higher Education that her institution is supplementing lower numbers of local students, but the
among those waiting to hear from the ministry how fee ex- strategy is not without controversy. In recent years, some
emptions would work. “These things have been postponed scholars have expressed concern that the growing intake
(while we) wait and see what will be decided. It’s so com- of mainland students has changed the dynamics of Hong
plicated to decide and there are various opinions about it,” Kong institutions.
she says. She is “very surprised” that left-wing parties had Atmosphere aside, taking in more non-local students
chosen to shape the proposal rather than oppose it. also raises questions of funding. Although more interna-
The introduction of international fees in one of Europe’s tional students are ultimately needed to “sustain universi-
last free-for-all systems has faced opposition at home and ties”, they are also seen as a sap on limited government
abroad. Following the committee confirmation, Maika Ma- resources, says Lewis Ting On Cheung, professor of so-
rie Godal Dam, head of the Norwegian Student Organisa- cial sciences at the Education University of Hong Kong
tion, says it was “a betrayal from many quarters” and “a sad (EdUHK).
day for students and for equal opportunities”. While outsiders pay higher fees than locals, they still
receive government subsidies — and ultimately taxpayers’
HONG KONG money. Prof. Cheung believes it’s unfair for Hong Kongers
Lifting foreign admission cap imminent to pay in part for overseas students’ education. Because of
limited land on the island, finding enough accommodation
HONG KONG’S GOVERNMENT HAS BEGUN for students is also a problem.
consulting universities about lifting its cap on Stephen Cheung, EdUHK’s president, says for decision-
international students, potentially bringing thou- makers, the challenge is twofold: figuring out the “right
sands more to the island in coming years, according to se- percentage” of international students, and how much to
nior university officials. Legislators are looking to relax the charge so low-income students can still come. “I’d like to
official 20 percent limit on “non-local” undergraduate stu- see the best students come, and also not at the cost of our
dents — roughly half of whom come from mainland China local students,” he says.
— that the island’s eight government-funded universities While Cheung declined to speculate on how much the
are allowed to admit, sector leaders with knowledge of the cap should go up, he says that raising the international cap
issue told Times Higher Education. is “in general the direction we should move in”.
A rapidly falling population is compelling universities to (Excerpted and adapted from The Economist and Times
think about admitting more overseas learners. Along with Higher Education)

72 EDUCATIONWORLD AUGUST 2023