A sizeable percentage of UK universities are made up of international students.
According to information from UEA’s website, there are currently 2,221 international students enrolled. UEA’s student population is 17,707; 12,434 of whom are undergraduates, and 5,273 being postgraduates.
International students account for 12.5% of UEA’s student population.
This is considerably lower than larger trends within the UK. According to a study done by the UK Parliament in June 2026, 685,565 of the UK’s 2.86 million higher-education students last year were international. That’s around 24%.
Brexit, that infamous portmanteau, and the far-reaching ramifications it has wrought, is still being felt throughout higher education. As an American, myself a cognisant but captive participant in a political clown-show that has lasted for years, I remember watching from across the pond wondering just what in the Sam Hill was going on over here?
But as is true for most of history, we can trace back short-sighted legislation brought about by loudmouthed, stodgy pugilists and populists to ages-old xenophobic paranoia, fear of the other, and so on and so forth.
Back to the task at hand, I interviewed a few students about their experiences coming from abroad to study at UEA. There were undoubtedly some common threads, yet I found that certain respondents highlighted unique challenges or benefits of studying in the UK that I had never considered. Here are some responses:
What prompted you to study abroad?
Aitana Leinster Beloqui, Tarragona, Catalunya: “I always wanted to study in the UK. Brexit made it harder to do undergrad, so I set my sights on the Masters.”
Samhita Vashist, Bangalore, India: “I believed that the opportunities I wanted to access would be in a foreign country. While India has great colleges, I wanted a fresh perspective and a bigger leaping board for professional pursuits.”
What have been some surprises, good or bad?
Alec Rousseau, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S: “The biggest surprise for me is probably the amount of other international students here, whether they be here from the Americas, Asia, or wherever else.”
Oscar Zueck, Mexico City, Mexico: “I was surprised by Norwich’s warmth… I found a place where I feel at home, even though I didn’t grow up here.”
Do you miss home?
Madyson Lauderman, Columbus, Ohio, U.S: “Distance makes experiencing life with others difficult because you miss out on the day to day. There’s such a felt difference between hearing my friends process or tell me stories about their days as they are unfolding versus receiving updates or chronologies with weeks in between.”
Vaishnavi Dukkidi, Hyderabad, India: “I miss the little things… like having someone around without having to plan a call or explain how my day went.”
Are you interested in remaining in the UK after graduating, or looking elsewhere to remain abroad?
Alec Rousseau, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S: “If things work out, I’d love to stick around in the UK…Financials are always a concern, though, so I’ll prioritise stable employment over anything right now.”
Madyson Louderman, Columbus, Ohio, U.S: “I think a large part of that decision will depend on what opportunities become available to me after graduation.”
Most answers for that last question were focused on employment. Being that our ability to live is inextricably linked to the regular depositing of currency into our bank accounts, this is understandable. If the jobs are here, that’s where we’ll be.
There were tons of interesting topics to cover in the responses.
Madyson’s sense of distance is one that showed up constantly, and something I feel as well. Every city, every institution such as this, is a world unto itself. People, like ants on a grain of sand hurtling through the universe, crawling around. When we sell our possessions back home in anticipation of a new life abroad, boarding a flight to cross an ocean or three, we leave behind our familiar grain of sand for a new one. It’s a testament to the bravery it takes to make the leap and I’m not trying to self-edify here. I’m genuinely quite impressed with everyone I meet from far-flung lands.
So, the next time you spot someone sitting alone, perhaps, politely strike up a conversation. You may encounter someone with a vast richness of difference from yourself, someone full of knowledge and traditions that exist outside your own.
What is a university, if not a place for people of all cultures to come together and learn from each other?
A warm shoutout to all the international students getting it done.
Image credit: Charlotte Ward
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