Marketization of Higher Education in the UK---the choices and expectations of Chinese international students

Thesis

UK HE under neoliberal politics has become a marketplace, with policy discourses depicting HE as a private commodity and students constructed as consumers. The increasingly market-based UK HE is influencing students’ HE experiences and attitudes towards HE. This study focuses on Chinese international students receiving HE in the UK, exploring their decision-making process, attitudes, and the extent to which their expectations are met within this marketised system through the lens of ‘student as a consumer'. By conducting semi-structured interviews with 13 Chinese students in a range of HEIs in the UK, this research identifies the aspects that Chinese students consider most when choosing their HEIs: programme setting, institutional reputation and cost. The finding also suggests that despite acknowledging their consumer identity, students are also active learners, and the consumerist discourse is insufficient to fully capture the HE experience of international students. The discussion of self-formation suggests that HE provides the opportunity for students who wish to accomplish self-development, and such experience may be exclusive to international students. Viewing students solely as consumers is over-simplistic. This study provides another perspective on the marketisation of UK HE, highlighting the complex interplay between consumerist identities and the broader educational aspirations of international students.

Authors: Zhai, J

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-bpgw84yok
• Type of award: Mst taught course
• Level of award: Masters
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: interviews; HE2024; students as consumers; HE; marketisation of higher education; Chinese students; UK higher education; international students
• Subjects: Interviews; Education; Education (Higher); Students; Consumers