Professor Karen Holford CBE FREng, Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor of Cranfield University, writes:
I want to reassure anyone with ambition and enthusiasm who wants to learn, that you are welcome here at Cranfield. International students have an important place at our University and we will support you to achieve your ambitions and to take your new skills into the workplace after you graduate.
I know that the Graduate Route Visa is an important and valuable approach for international students coming to the UK, so it was pleasing to see that the recent Migration Advisory Committee report to the UK government reinforced this. As a result, the UK government are not proposing changing the visa.
Having given evidence to the Committee and written about the pipeline of skilled people that the Graduate Route brings, I’m among many in industry and education who are extremely positive about the contribution that international students make to the UK.
UK universities have the enviable reputation of offering the best research-informed teaching in the world. Speaking with many students, alumni, parents and partners on a trip to India earlier this year, and in fact whenever I connect with people from all over the world, I can clearly see how much the higher education experience here is valued.
At Cranfield we have built that value even further by working extremely closely with global businesses and industry leaders, helping address real-world challenges and giving our students unrivalled, practical experiences.
It’s this combination that ensures our graduates at Cranfield build the skills and knowledge needed in today’s workplace, which lead to valuable careers. And career progression is something that we support beyond graduation too, with alumni having lifetime access to our professional careers service.
Our doors are open, and I invite you to join us, so we can become part of your own success story.
I look forward to welcoming you here at Cranfield in the future.
