In recent years, Nigeria has emerged as a significant source of students for top study destinations worldwide. However, it is also an increasingly high-risk market due to internal macroeconomic turmoil, including the depreciating value of the Nigerian naira. Recent reports indicate that Nigerian students are actively seeking opportunities to study abroad.
Between 2021 and 2023, there was a dramatic rise in interest among Nigerian students in international education. However, by the end of 2023, a gradual decline in enrollment was observed, particularly in fields such as Business & Management (-23%) and Applied Sciences (-33%). Nigeria is currently the fourth largest source of students interested in bachelor’s and master’s programmes abroad, and this decline poses a challenge for universities.
UK universities are especially vulnerable to this challenge, as they have relied heavily on Nigerian students for overall international enrollment growth. A new UK government policy now restricts students in one-year taught master’s programmes from bringing dependents, which is likely to affect Nigerian student applications significantly.
Between the 2017-18 and 2021-22 academic years, the number of Nigerian students in the UK increased from 10,685 to 44,195, a growth rate of 314%, making Nigeria the third largest market for the UK after China and India. Nigerian students predominantly seek one-year taught master’s programmes in the UK, but the new policy changes are likely to impact this trend.
From April 2023 to March 2024, the destinations hosting the largest number of Nigerian students saw the following trends:
– UK: -55%
– Canada: -12%
– US: -13%
– Germany: -7%
– Australia: -21%
These figures suggest that Canadian institutions, in particular, are vulnerable to the macroeconomic issues affecting Nigerian students and their families.
