Signalling the ‘Multi-Local’ University? The Place of the City in the Growth of London-Based Satellite Campuses, and the Implications for Social Stratification

Abstract

Around 2009 some UK universities (based outside of the capital) began to open ‘satellite campuses’ in London. There are currently 14 such campuses at present, which have been developed primarily with an international student market in mind. Concerns have been raised, however, about the quality of teaching on these campuses and the fact that student attainment is ostensibly falling significantly below that for the ‘home’ campus. This project is the first of its kind to investigate, systematically, the ways in which universities are representing themselves in relation to these campuses (data include an analysis of prospectuses, YouTube content, websites and material garnered at open days). Using these data, we discuss the role that the City of London plays as a pivotal backdrop to these developments: the way it serves to substitute and compensate for lower levels of resources provided directly to the student from the university (here we consider accommodation, the outsourcing of teaching, the absence of a substantive campus environment and a general lack of focus on ‘pedagogical’ matters in almost all marketing materials). Instead, the universities place London at the front and centre of attempts to ‘sell’ the campus to potential students. The paper makes some innovative conceptual links between work in migration studies on the role and function of global cities in attracting workers and the way in which the city operates in this case to attract international students. These campuses feed into debates around the increasing inequalities evidenced as a consequence of the internationalisation of higher education, even when such developments are ostensibly ‘domestic’.

The rise of the remote metropolitan branch campus – Definitions, motivations and models

“…There are clear neoliberal justifications for this when examining the two most prominent markets targeted by these campuses. London is a huge draw for international students (Brooks & Waters, 2018). According to HESA (2022), between 2014 and 2022, the number of international students enrolling at London-based universities has increased from 106,815 to 179,425 (70%), compared to an increase of 49% outside of London.…”

“…QAA (2014) highlighted some potential concerns, particularly in relation to the deployment of casual and part-time staff; the use of overseas agents in recruiting students; questionable student progression and achievement outcomes and the differential campus experience between the RMBC and the home location. Brooks and Waters (2018), building on QAA (2014) and drawing on Madge et al (2015) (who discuss RMBCs in the context of internationalisation), provided a first in-depth academic appraisal of the RMBCs in London, with a focus on the way institutions exploit the attractiveness of London as a global capital city to compensate for a lack of resources provided directly by the universities to students. Taking the 14 RMBCs then in existence as their population, they undertook a systematic review of secondary materials, including prospectuses and online content to discuss the role that London plays in their establishment.…”

The Emotional Geographies of Being Stranded Due to COVID-19: A Poetic Autoethnography of an International Doctoral Student

“…The domestic space became a de facto part of my academic space. My home becomes the materiality of my mobility as an international student (Brooks & Waters, 2018). Learning constrained within the domestic space in my home country turned my international education into a lonely academic experience because not much academic discussion occurred.…”

“Because of the Christian Fellowship, I Decided to Stay”: How Participating in a Christian Community Shapes the Social Experiences of Chinese International Students

“…The theory of social capital, developed by Robert Putnam, James Coleman, and Pierre Bourdieu has been widely borrowed to explain social relationships among people that enable productive outcomes (Brooks and Waters 2018). Studies by Coleman, in particular, address the relationship between religion and students' learning experiences-the central focus of this study.…”