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Short programmes and a greater number of students from Central and Eastern Europe characterised this year’s Feedback survey as visa changes already seem to have influenced the nationality breakdown at UK language schools.
UK Feedback at a glance
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Total number of students: 87 (female 51, male 25, unknown 11)
Average age in years: 23.9
Average length of programme in weeks: 18
Average number of students in class: 9.5
Average number of hours of language tuition per week: 22.5
% of students who found out about their course through an agent: 43
% of students who booked through an agent or adviser: 47
% of students who had been on another language programme: 29
% of students who would recommend their school: 88.5
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| Respondents by world region of origin |
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Top nationalities |
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1. C & E Europe 36%
2. W Europe 26%
3. Asia 17%
4. Middle East 14%
5. Latin America 6%
No reply 1% |
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1. Kazakhstani 14%
2. Korean 11%
3. Italian 10%
4. Turkish 8%
5. Swiss 7%
5. Saudi 7%
7. German 6%
8. Ukrainian 5%
9. Spanish 3%
9. Czech 3%
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| In my class there are... |
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How easy is it to practise your language skills with native speakers? |
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1. The right amount of students (64%)
2. Too many students who speak my language (13%)
2. Too many students from one other country (13%)
Too many students (6%)
No reply 4%
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1. Quite easy (43%)
2. Quite hard (31%)
3. Very easy (16%)
4. Very hard (7%)
No reply 3% |
| How did you find your programme? |
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Did you book your course through an agent or an educational adviser?
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1. Recommended by an agent (43%)
2. Recommended by a friend/relative (33%)
3. I found it on the Internet (24%)
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Yes (47%)
No (48%)
Unknown (5%)
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Student reasons for school selection included:
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“It’s a small school with few students and has intensive groups”
“The school is a member of the British Council”
“The school has accommodation nearby”
“I heard that the school had a good course and social programme”
“I heard it is the best school in the UK” |
| Before looking for your course, did you know where you wanted to study? |
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Country
Yes (89%)
No (7%)
Unknown (4%)
City/town
Yes (70%)
No (25%)
Unknown (5%)
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School
Yes (55%)
No (40%)
Unknown (5%)
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Student nationality
The nationality breakdown of the students who took part in this years Feedback Survey on the UK vary widely from last year’s results, with Central and Eastern European students making up the largest single world group (36 per cent), up from 13 per cent previously. Last year, the largest world region represented was Asia, which accounted for 28 per cent of students (see LTM June, 2009, pages 32-33). However, this year’s result is skewed by the fact that all but one of the students from Kazakhstan attended one particular school. This large group of Kazakh students meant that Kazakhstan was the top provider country for UK schools, making up 14 per cent of the student body. However, even if we discount this figure, nationalities at UK schools do seem to have changed a lot this year as Chinese students were nowhere to be seen on the top nationality board, despite this nationality making up 10 per cent of the student body last year. This change may well be accounted for by the recent visa changes experienced by the UK in the last few months, making it more difficult for some nationalities outside the EU to obtain a student visa for long-term English language courses.
Student motivation
The largest group (49 per cent) of students were currently using their English for work purposes, with a further 20 per cent currently using English for their studies. Work commitments were also the reason behind their studies for 41 per cent of respondents, while further study in the UK accounted for the motivation for just 21 per cent of students – in contrast with last year’s result when this figure was 28 per cent. This is perhaps a reflection on the fact that a smaller percentage of Asian students took part in our survey this year and these nationalities traditionally make up large numbers at UK higher education. The largest group of students (38 per cent) were on short-stay trips of less than six weeks while the second largest group (29 per cent) were studying on courses of between 20 and 39 weeks.
Student enrolment
Agent usage among student respondents was up this year, with 43 per cent saying they had used an agent to find their course, compared with 33 per cent previously. The percentage of students who had booked their course through an agent was similar to last year’s result, 47 per cent compared with 43 per cent. For 71 per cent of respondents, their current trip to the UK was the first time that they had undertaken a language trip overseas, while for those who had studied a language overseas previously, just eight per cent had studied in the UK before.
Standard of the schools
Overall, 88.5 per cent of students said that they would recommend their school to others, a relatively low figure given that 93 per cent also indicated that their teachers were either good or excellent. The average class size was 9.5 students, however 13 per cent thought that there were too many students who spoke their own language; a large proportion of these were from Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan or Switzerland.
Living in the UK
The average cost of a one-week course including accommodation was estimated to be UK£338 (US$507), a small increase in last year’s figure of UK£315 (US$472). The largest group of students (59 per cent) found the local people to be either very easy or quite easy to talk to.
Thank you to the following schools for participating in our survey: Active Learning, London; Anglo-Continental, Bournemouth; ELT Banbury, Banbury; ETC International College, Bournemouth; Harven School of English, Woking; Internexus Regents College, London; Kaplan International College, Bournemouth; Lake School of English, Oxford; LAL London, London; Wimbledon School of English, London. |
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