The UK is the most preferred international study destination, reveals the latest Business of Branding study by CarringtonCrisp in association with EFMD.

In the study conducted amongst 3,004 business school students from over 20 countries, 40% selected the UK ahead of the US (35%), European Union (26%), Canada and India (both 19%).

“The UK has always been a popular destination, but recent factors lead to its number one position,” comments Andrew Crisp, author of the study. “The return of the two-year post-study work visa, the UK’s prominent Covid vaccination programme, and its strong range of business schools have all contributed to its positive perception globally.”

The study also points to the growing popularity of India as a study destination – in part related to ongoing issues in China. “India and China are the two major business education players in Asia. However, China’s pursuit of a zero covid infection strategy is making international student mobility very difficult. India is a viable alternative and is benefitting as a result,” says Andrew Crisp.

The study also analysed student perceptions of what aspects of business schools are the most valuable. International study opportunities (30%) were viewed as the most valuable, followed by business start-up/small business accelerator programmes (29%), working on live consulting projects with businesses (26%), and tackling society’s grand challenges such as climate change and poverty (22%).

“Aspects that support a student’s career are viewed, not surprisingly, as valuable. However, there is strong demand from students for business schools to offer opportunities to help wider society to tackle global issues such as climate change, as well as more local charitable and voluntary causes. Students want and expect business schools to be able to make a difference,” comments Andrew Crisp.

A key consideration for business schools in attracting students is the various annual rankings. The study looked at student perceptions of rankings and found that the most valuable aspect was the number of high-quality research papers published by faculty (31%), followed by two career-based aspects – percentage of students having an internship/placement longer than a month during a degree (29%) and percentage of students employed within six months of graduation (28%).

“Our study shows that students are judging business schools on a diverse range of aspects, including career support, social responsibility, and academic quality, to name a few. Students do not view schools simply as places of study – this is both a complex challenge and a wonderful opportunity for business schools to adapt to,” concludes Andrew Crisp.

The report is available on the CarringtonCrisp website.