Universities join forces to attract foreign students

Five Finnish institutions of higher education, together with education export company Edunation, are aiming to bring 150,000 new foreign students into their programmes by the year 2020, reports Yle.fi.

Edunation first contacted the Lappeenranta University of Technology and signed a deal to double the university's enrolment figures from abroad, especially from China and India. The names of the rest of the domestic institutions involved will be announced in the near future, says Edunation Chair Tuomas Kauppinen.

Applications for residence permits from higher education students from outside the 31 countries of the European Economic Area have fallen by close to a quarter, after Finland's government decided last year to charge these students tuition. The Finnish Immigration Service says about 4,300 foreign students had applied for the permits as of late September, 23% fewer than the previous year.
Full report on the Yle site