London’s diverse, open-minded, skilled population is our greatest asset. We must keep attracting the brightest, most ambitious people to study, build careers and start companies in the capital through our fantastic international education opportunities.
Why it matters
London is the biggest international student city in the world. London’s alumni become global decision-makers, with an affinity to London that often lasts a lifetime.
International students feed our talent pipeline, and their fees are a vital source of income for our universities and colleges.
More than a quarter of undergraduates and two thirds of postgraduates in London’s higher education institutions came from outside the UK. Many London universities have international campuses and offer online education for international audiences[64]. International education is a productive export sector.
What we will do
To grow London’s priority sectors, we will:
- Grow the skilled workforce: This is the primary task, as all our priority sectors rely on human capital. The plan for this is in the inclusive talent strategy.
- Promote the sectors to win international investors and customers: We will promote London’s strengths in the key sectors and focus our inward investment activity on them. The plan for this is in investment and promotion.
- Dramatically increase investment into innovative companies: This is especially relevant for frontier innovation, but is also critical to grow technology companies. The plan for this is in investment and promotion.
- Support our growth sector businesses to scale internationally: Exporting is key to our ambition to grow global companies. The plan for this is in backing our businesses.
- Set a City Innovation Strategy: Use the power of London’s public sector to accelerate innovation through procurement, data and testing. The plan for this is in backing our businesses.
Learn more about the growth sectors
Frontier innovation
Discover London’s next superpower in life sciences, AI, green innovation and more.
Financial, professional and business
Learn how we will drive growth across finance, law, consulting, built environment, IT, cyber and more.
Creative industries and technologies
Find out how we will grow our creative industries clusters for film, TV, gaming, music and more across London.
Experience economy
Uncover the importance of culture, hospitality, events and attractions to make London a brilliant place to visit, study and live.
Sources:
64. For example the University of London has more than 80 Recognised Teaching Centres worldwide and about 40,000 students studying remotely in 190 countries.