{"text":[[{"start":7.399,"text":"An influential US university is planning to offer thousands of degree places to international students in London at rates cheaper than those charged by British universities, in a fresh threat to the UK’s fragile higher education sector."}],[{"start":21.44,"text":"Michael Crow, president of Arizona State University, said he aimed to expand to an annual intake of up to 4,000 students in the UK in the coming years."}],[{"start":30.447,"text":"A small cohort has begun pilot business, engineering and computer science degrees this autumn on ASU’s new London campus."}],[{"start":38,"text":"“We are making this as affordable as possible,” said Crow, a pioneer of lower-cost and online learning in the US, including with the widespread use of AI."}],[{"start":47.605,"text":"“We are looking at how we can eliminate excessive fees and grow more efficiently by using technology in ways to enhance learning,” he added."}],[{"start":55.179,"text":"The move will allow ASU to expand its offerings to British students and provide a base outside the US for American students who prefer to study elsewhere, as well as students from other countries seeking alternatives to the US following President Donald Trump’s hostility to immigration and attacks on universities."}],[{"start":73.337,"text":"It is the latest example of growing interest by higher education institutions to expand beyond their home base as they seek to adjust to domestic demographic declines and shifts in demand from international students."}],[{"start":86.12,"text":"It also comes at a time when British universities are struggling with rising operating costs, falling student numbers and research funding, and restrictions on their ability to raise domestic fees. That has sparked widespread recent staff cuts and several mergers, including most recently Cranfield with King’s College London."}],[{"start":104.599,"text":"The ASU degrees accredited in the UK, which are being offered in premises leased from City St George’s University in central London, provide an alternative for British students at the same rates as charged by English universities, currently £9,790 a year."}],[{"start":119.783,"text":"International students will pay £23,600 annually — and less for those from lower-income families on scholarships — which is below the rates charged by many existing British universities."}],[{"start":131.015,"text":"Foreign universities with multiple international campuses that offer UK-accredited degrees include Northeastern, Hult, Richmond and the EMLyon, which this week acquired a 75 per cent stake in the London Interdisciplinary School."}],[{"start":144.72,"text":"ASU’s move is particularly significant given its record in using technology to reduce teaching costs and sharply expand student numbers to more than 200,000 a year, as well as its embrace of newer approaches with a greater focus on interdisciplinary studies and practical project-based learning rather than traditional classroom work."}],[{"start":165.288,"text":"Its three-year London degrees have the option of an additional year of study in an ASU Arizona campus to add a master’s to the bachelor’s qualification."}],[{"start":175.033,"text":"Nick Hillman, head of the Higher Education Policy Institute, a think-tank, said: “There is a flight to quality within the very best university systems across the world and one way to prove your quality is to extend your global links. ASU is doing that in London. It is more competition but UK universities should welcome the challenge as it will help keep them on top of their game.”"}],[{"start":198.8,"text":"Vivienne Stern, head of Universities UK, which represents the sector, said competition was welcome, but cautioned: “Comparisons of fee levels between providers should be treated with caution given the significant differences in provider missions, subject mix, research activity and student support costs.”"}],[{"start":220.16,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1792219006_6095.mp3"}