As an eLearning professional, it is probable that a candidate’s core responsibilities centre on some kind of learning, engagement, and outcomes, but these are approached differently in the Higher Education and Commercial sectors. In Higher Education, roles can be centred on students or academic staff, retention and learning outcomes, work across technology systems such as Blackboard, Canvas, and Moodle, and have a focus on deep learning and pedagogy. On the other hand, eLearning has more of an L&D focus centred on improving the productivity, performance, and behaviours of staff, utilising different learning systems such as Docebo and Cornerstone, and moves at a faster pace. There, while the tools and outcomes may differ, key elements of the roles such as designing and developing learning, LMS administration, and learner engagement, easily translate between the two.

Transitioning from Education to Commercial

The challenge for Higher Education professionals looking to transition to the private sector includes being perceived as too academic or not used to the ‘pace’ of the commercial space. They may also have had less exposure to metrics and may not be familiar with the kind of business stakeholders within this sector. To position yourself correctly, it could be worth rephrasing some wording in your CV to show fluency with the new sector. It could also be worth building a commercial portfolio, focusing on onboarding or compliance to show an understanding of L&D. This can be done using trials for tools such as Articulate Storyline and Rise, and starting small with a collection of examples which can eventually build up to portfolio size. Aside from this, you may need to really emphasise any transferable skills you have, such as managing an institution-wide learning platform such as Canvas, and therefore having confidence with picking up a new commercial platform such as Docebo or Cornerstone.

Transitioning from Commercial to Education

Commercial candidates can be viewed as able to work at a fast pace with tight deadlines and with a performance-focused mindset. However, the challenge for these professionals when looking to transition into Education is that they will of course have less familiarity with academic governance, pedagogies, and may be viewed as ‘too corporate’. To overcome this, commercial candidates could emphasise their understanding of well-known learning theories and models, as well as focusing on occasions working with SMEs or knowledge experts, particularly those working as academics. Hiring managers will also be looking for an understanding of learner diversity and designing programmes in line with accessibility guidelines such as WCAG.

As mentioned, both sectors will value good quality learning design, created with appropriate learning outcomes in mind, and will look for individuals with clear communication, technical fluency, and a learner-first mindset. As a result, you just need to communicate exactly what you have done but make it relevant to the sector you’re looking to break into. Having a good CV to translate this is really important, but a portfolio covering either side even with just a small sample of examples can help even more.

Hiring challenges are always evolving, which is dependent on a number of factors. However, we’re often asked the same core questions by clients. So, we’ve pulled together a quick Q&A based on the most common client queries.

What roles are most in-demand in 2025?

Right now, we’re seeing the highest demand for:

• Learning Technologists (Primarily Canvas and Moodle)
• Specialists within Data, Analytics & AI Fluency
• Learning Designers (both generalist and subject-specific)
• eLearning Developers (Articulate, Rise, Storyline)

In truth, the core positions we get asked to provide most regularly has largely remained the same over the last 5-10 years. By this I am referring to Learning Designers, Digital Learning Developers and Learning Technologists. However, recently we have seen a marked increase in the demand for Data & AI specialist.

What are the going rates and salaries?

We recently published our 2025 Salary & Day Rate Guide, which benchmarks average pay for digital learning roles across the education sector.

Want the full breakdown? Just get in touch and we’ll send you a free copy!

What’s the current market like for contractors?

The contractor market is going strong. Due to sector wide redundancies, many Institutes are operating with very lean structures, and therefore when there is a particularly busy period, organisations simply don’t have enough resource to cope. Especially for business-critical projects such as platform migrations.

Education providers are increasingly using contract resource for flexibility, especially where budgets are tight or internal approvals for permanent posts take so long to get approved.

IR35 compliance and ease of onboarding remain important to clients – which is why we’ve built processes that minimise admin and risk.

How quickly can we get someone started?

Contract hires: We can source suitable candidates within 24 – 48 hours of receiving a brief. Permanent roles typically take 1 working week to source, depending on how niche the requirements. For very specific skill sets, this may take slightly longer.

In terms of getting somebody started in post, you can expect to wait 6-8 weeks depending on notice periods, interview stages, and salary competitiveness.

All candidates are fully vetted and pre-screened meaning they can hit the ground running.

Can you provide teams for larger digital learning programmes?

Absolutely. We regularly support:

• Institution-wide LMS rollouts
• New online course launches
• Digital transformation and AI-led learning projects
• Content digitisation and accessibility improvements

We can provide a blend of contractors and permanent hires, or fully contract-led delivery teams with embedded PMs as an Statement of Work (SOW) contract

What we’re looking for is a bit of a ‘Unicorn’ can you help?

Yes, we frequently get asked to provide Unicorns. After all, if Unicorns were easy to find, we would be out of a job!

As an example, we have experience placing:

• VLE migration consultants, with specific VLE’s
• SC-cleared instructional designers, Digital Learning Developers etc
• Accessibility specialists – WCAG 2.2
• Multilingual Learning professions: Mandarin, Dutch, Arabic etc.
• Learning analysts with Power BI/Tableau skills
• AI and Chatbot learning developers

We maintain deep networks within the sector, meaning we can often find talent others miss.

Have a question we haven’t covered?

Feel free to get in touch – whether you’re benchmarking, planning, or just exploring options, we’re always happy to help.

With an ever-evolving political and economic landscape, Universities have had to remain cautious, and rightly so. Unlike the golden age of 2021-2022, funding is now scarce. Not only that, but recruitment processes have also become cumbersome, largely due to self-inflicted institutional challenges.

If a hiring manager has an urgent need for a Learning Technologist for example, they will need to advertise the position for a period of 4-6 weeks, after that there will be a period of review with an interview date scheduled for 2-3 weeks after the application deadline. Not to mention if a successful candidate isn’t selected, the process will need to start all over again. All in all, it could take 3-6 months from the point of advertising for a position, to having somebody in post.

Occasionally, time isn’t necessarily the driving factor. In this case, the above process can work just fine. However, when a piece of content needs to be developed on a tight deadline, or a VLE needs to be integrated for a specific academic term, the timescales above aren’t viable, and the consequences of not having the right talent onboard can be catastrophic.

In summary, Education institutes need a more effective way of securing talent, on-demand at point of need and hiring contractors can offer a cost-effective solution that provides the flexibility required.

Benefits of hiring a contractor

• Hiring contractors is a great way to keep the costs down – that’s right, hiring a contractor can be cost-effective! Unlike their permanent counterparts, the organisation won’t be responsible for holiday pay, sick pay, pension contributions, and general payroll expenses. This prevents institutions from incurring the ongoing costs of full-time employment.
• A flexible resource – Contractors are the perfect solution for project-based work and allow you to easily manage peaks and troughs in business demand. All of Instincts’ contracts are fully flexible and managed on a monthly time-sheet basis, meaning you only pay for the time a contractor works!
• True expertise – All contractors provided by Instinct are seasoned professionals, with many years of industry experience. Additionally, your teams can be upskilled by learning from the best and formulating new ways of working. Any contractor provided by Instinct would have likely worked through us previously, giving you the peace of mind that they can be trusted to deliver high-quality work.
• A quick turnaround – Instinct can provide you with a short list of fully vetted contractors within 24 hours. This can help free up your internal team to deliver against BAU projects, without suffering from ‘burn-out’. 
• You can still recruit on a Permanent basis – Often what you need is a new permanent head on the team. However, a contractor can be a great interim solution whilst your internal teams work to source a more permanent appointment. Allowing you to still deliver against deadlines.

With growing competition among UK universities, as well as from international institutions for students, it’s crucial that we adapt to the evolving expectations of today’s generation.

It is widely accepted that Gen Z prefers the involvement of digital tools in learning, after all, they are digital natives as opposed to adopters and what a good educational offering looked like to a student 30 years ago, is very different to what it looks like today.

But to be able to deliver the high-quality Digital Learning offering required, we need to reflect on the quality of talent who are developing it, and potentially some of the ways we are procuring and attracting that talent.

By no means is the above a suggestion that we move away from permanent recruitment, as that would simply not be viable. However, what is clear is that from conversations we have with Education institutes on a daily basis, many are simply not aware of how procuring a contractor works in practice and in fact how straightforward the process can be.

If this resonates with you, please give me a call for a no obligation chat!

The core role of an eLearning developer is normally to work at the later stages of the production process, essentially bringing to life the higher-level designs of Learning Designers / Instructional Designers.

Typically, developers are given a brief to transform a storyboard or written content. They may have a rudimentary understanding of pedagogy but really their role is to create a final piece of material, therefore, often working alongside Instructional Designers on the same project.

Developers leverage technology to amplify the learning material to be more engaging, effective and accessible to all. To facilitate this, developers have a multifaceted range of skills and responsibilities.

Skills and Responsibilities

The Essential Skills and Responsibilities of a developer include:

Communication – Communication is key to understanding briefs and working effectively with fellow creatives such as instructional designers, graphics designers and sometimes SMEs. 

Creativity – It is essential developers have creative vision and a keen eye for detail to be able to develop engaging learning material that is not only aesthetically pleasing but content that captures and retains the learner’s interest.

Multimedia Creation – To avoid learners mindlessly scrolling through monotonous content, developers use authoring tools to create animations, graphics, interactive elements and videos, to make the learning materials more engaging.

Technical Skills – Technical skills and proficiency in authoring tools allow developers to bring creative visions to life. There are many different authoring tools which offer slightly different functionalities and useability. At Instinct, the most common authoring tools we come across are Articulate Storyline, Adobe Captivate and Rise. Typically, contractors are expected to have their own licenses to use the authoring tools.

Experienced developers also use graphic design software such as Adobe Creative Suite, Photoshop, and Illustrator, as well as technical skills in video/audio editing tools like Adobe Premiere Pro and Audacity.

Maintenance – To ensure the learning material stays relevant developers will regularly review, refine, and evolve the content.

Developers have the constant challenge of creating effective, engaging and accessible content that caters to the diverse learner’s needs. Technological advancements such as AI, AR and AR provide opportunities for developers to create innovative learning solutions that could shape the future of education.

After working in the Education Team at Instinct Resourcing for over 2 years, I have spoken to countless teachers looking to make the career move into the eLearning sector. Although many career paths can lead to eLearning, a teaching background is often the most logical route to making the leap. Who wouldn’t see the appeal in flexible work arrangements, scrapping endless hours of marking, but still utilising your expert knowledge of learning theories? In this article, I will cover some of the trends I have seen firsthand that have assisted ‘transitioning teachers’ into eLearning.

Deciding which eLearning role is right for you. 

Before delving into some tips and tricks on how to transition into eLearning, let’s identify the eLearning roles you could potentially move into.

Starting by breaking down the entry-level roles into three positions:  Instructional Designer, eLearning Developer, and Learning Technologist. These are some of the most popular entry-level roles we recruit for.

• An Instructional Designer meets with Academics/SMEs, determines learning objectives, implements a pedagogical approach, and builds a course blueprint.
• An eLearning Developer takes the blueprint and creates the course using authoring tools, develops media, and interaction pieces, and presents the course for review.
• A Learning Technologist maintains the Virtual Learning Environment (Moodle, Blackboard, Canvas, etc), uploads courses, ensures easy navigation of the platform, troubleshoots, ticketing, and supports and trains staff and students on best practices of the VLE.

The role responsibilities do crossover and are open to interpretation, but I would say at an entry-level position these are the three roles you could start in your eLearning career.

Although skill sets are not exclusive to a role, in my experience each role tends to attract similar skill sets. Typically, Instructional Designer’s research adult learning principles, and understand how students learn best, as well as being strong writers. eLearning Developers have a creative flair with an eye for the arts and multimedia. While Learning Technologists help people to use the technology, lead workshops and enjoy working with technical tools.

How to transition into eLearning 

If the role of an Instructional Designer is more suited to you, I suggest researching the Instructional Design principles. These are practices and theories of how to create an eLearning course. Including the ADDIE Model, SAM, ABC, 70:20:10, 5DI, etc.. They are the backbone of eLearning courses and if done well, ensure a good student experience. There are several courses, including a course by the Digital Learning Institute, which is a paid-for course that will cover the above. Also, various University degrees are available to complete, and charities are always looking for volunteers to help.

Portfolio, portfolio, portfolio. I cannot stress this enough. While Teachers create lessons day after day, they are not the same as an eLearning course. You may have the knowledge of creating a pedagogically sound classroom lesson and there are similarities to this and an eLearning course, but keeping an individual focused and entertained without using your presence is a new skill. You can download a demo of Articulate 360 and familiarise yourself with its tools and techniques. Just remember to save these courses and create a portfolio, make something you are proud of. Also, LDN Apprenticeships have a course on how to use an array of authoring tools, so you are ready to walk into a role as an eLearning Developer.

Lastly, for a Learning Technologist position, it may be hard to get your hands on a VLE, unless your current employer has one, but some skills are easy to bring out into your CV. You will be coaching members of staff and students on how to use certain tools, leading workshops, 1-to-1 sessions, and drop-in sessions. Working with students to understand their queries and advising how to fix them. We would likely see people from a technical background or an Academic background where they can advise on TEL (Technology-Enhanced Learning) Tools.

As is the same with moving to any new position, it can probably be broken down into 4 key steps, earn a qualification, develop technical and specific tools, get relevant work experience, and then keep on being proactive in learning more and more. While I cannot guarantee this advice will lead to instant success, this is advice I give daily to the education sector.

If you a teacher looking to make the transition into eLearning, it would be great to hear from you. Or, if you have already made the leap into eLearning, what was a determining factor that helped you get your first eLearning position?

Get in touch today – gus.beecroft@instinct.co.uk

UNICEF notes that “blending online learning with face-to-face teaching generally produces better outcomes than face-to-face or online learning alone”, it was described to also engage students on an emotional level, positively impacting students’ attitudes, enjoyment and interests towards the learning which increased participation and completion rates.

But, why is this?

Some believe that learners have the flexibility to learn when suits them, enabling them to tune into their natural cycles when they feel they can retain information rather than being forced into learning when they may be otherwise occupied, others note that the interactivity and creativity of online learning enhances the student experience and provides something different which students embrace. “When properly designed, delivered and evaluated, online learning initiatives based on a solid digital learning strategy can change a company’s corporate culture, improve employee engagement and increase retention” (CCL, 2020).

With professional development, time is of the essence, particularly for corporate organisations where they will see staff away from their work for periods of time to complete learning programmes. The CIPD (2017) outlines that digital learning requires less time for learning, with 40-60% less ‘time to learn’ than traditional classroom learning. This was then coupled with digital learning resulting in a higher retention rate, the Research Institute of America (2020) outlined retention rates from digital learning to be between 25 and 60%, rather than traditional classroom learning peaking at 10%. With these statistics, it seems to be a no-brainer to include digital and blended learning in the learning and development strategy.

Some would argue that the digital element would be a considerable investment, and the upfront costs into the unknown just aren’t worth the risk. However, with the lost working time, retention and cost of face-to-face training to consider, the digital learning element would (in time) pay for itself. The resources can be used time and time again for other learners, the higher retention rates mean that organisations wouldn’t have to continually re-train their employees. The US Navy implemented VR training combined with immersive learning, initially investing $1.28 million. Closely tracked, they calculated a whopping $4.24 million in avoided costs and an ROI of $2.96 million (Beck, in CIPD, 2021). Not all organisations can splash out $1.28 million on a new immersive learning programme, but it demonstrates that the ROI can be incredible if an organisation is willing to take the plunge.

To conclude, with a huge increase in retention of learning, a reduction of ‘time to learn’ for employees thus enabling them to return to work and an impressive track record of ROI, it seems digital and blended learning is only securing itself a place in becoming part of the ‘norm’ for a learning strategy, rather than being viewed as a fancy and frivolous piece of technology.

UNI CEF (2021). https://www.unicef.org/media/103246/file/Effectiveness%20of%20digital%20learning%20solutions%20to%20improve%20educational%20outcomes%20-%20A%20review%20of%20the%20evidence.pdf

CCL (2020). How Technology in Education Improves Student Engagement | ACC Blog

CIPD (2021). Digital learning in a post-COVID-19 economy: a literature review (cipd.org)

Research Institute of America – WeForum (2020). The rise of online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)

Instinct can appreciate why certain processes are in place, however we will share some of the more arduous processes we have encountered and why we would suggest steering away from certain routes. Likewise, we will share the most successful processes for candidate retention and therefore securing the perfect person.

The (really) Bad

Safe to say, the most outrageous interview process was a whopping 13 stages stretched over a period of 10 months. Yes, you read that correctly, 13 stages over 10 months. We understand that Senior level professionals need to speak to relevant members of the company, and the fit needs to be correct, but our view is that 4 stages should be sufficient for any Senior/Director level posting.

Process Duration

There are many drawbacks of lengthy recruitment processes, the main being – if you move too slowly, your favourite candidate (usually the best candidate) will be offered a new position from a company (competitor) that moved quicker. Your own competition will beat you to the best candidate.

Candidates (especially if the recruitment process is not outlined from the start) will view the process, and therefore the company, as inefficient. Their impression will be that in order to get anything done within the organisation, they will have to get through layers and layers of red tape whilst trying to jump through several hoops simultaneously. This will either make them not interested in the role or chose another company (with a streamlined process) and you will be firmly back to square one.

Initial Application

Before getting to the interview stage however, candidates need to apply. Instinct does not disagree with this, it is very important that they apply, and that the hiring manager can see information about the candidates before moving them forward within the process. However, is it necessary for them to fill in an online form taking 3 working days detailing their life story in a series of boxes, attaching their CV, and a personalised cover letter along with a copy of their medical history, diversity monitoring and their family tree? No, it isn’t!!!

The longest application form we encountered was an outrageous 9 pages with the request for a diversity monitoring along with their CV and Cover Letter. Suffice to say, the best candidates, with multiple opportunities declined this unnecessary admin.

Attracting the Best

The highest quality candidates are usually rather busy individuals. They have a job, they have a social life & responsibilities, they may have children and any of the spare time they do have doesn’t need to be spent writing their autobiography for a career application page. If people aren’t actively searching and desperate to move, then the chances are they won’t be willing to do this lengthy application process therefore, this automatically narrows your pool of suitable candidates.

We understand “if they aren’t willing to do the form, then they aren’t invested in the process”, however, we find that following a first initial call directly with the client to find out more about what you can offer them, that candidates automatically become more interested and invested. This call can be 15-20 minutes of your day – a similar amount of time it takes you to read through the form.

Instinct’s Value

At Instinct we thoroughly screen all candidates, give them an insight into the company and the position along with any additional information. If the candidates have the correct skillset, you will see their CV. This process acts as an initial application process, so you can be assured that the candidates are relevant to your opportunity and have provided written confirmation that they would like to apply. For the candidates, all they need to do is provide an updated version of their CV.

Our Polite Suggestions

Throughout our 10-year history, we have found the following to be the best for a recruitment process:

Following an initial screening call with Instinct, you will see their CVs & Portfolio (if applicable)…

Contract:

·        Junior & Mid-Level: 1 stage

·        Senior/Director Level: 2 stages with presentation or task

Permanent:

·        Junior & Mid-Level: 2 stages (with task or presentation if necessary)

·        Senior/Director level: 3 stages (with task or presentation if necessary)

Overall, there is no reason to complicate things. Keep it simple, be agile and don’t miss out on the perfect person because of a slow, unnecessary process.

With a large proportion of conversations relating back to the topic of the election and what impact (if any) this will bring to the education space, whether through extra funding or visa changes, we’ve heard many say it’s easy to feel helpless against it all.

Therefore, we wanted to take a look at what the digital learning space could be doing to engage the current students and we can look to build an attractive and engaging provision for the future in a space where universities are having to do more than ever before to draw in students.

What student engagement looks like & the benefits 

Increasing student engagement seems to be an aim for most institutions, but often one that many will admit can be overlooked in the busy day-to-day of programme production.

It goes without saying, that improving the engagement of current students has a direct positive impact, but a secondary effect that is sometimes overlooked is that it often also proves to be an effective method of increasing the appeal of the learning to future students when the course is generating high-level results. This can be a simple and cost-effective method of increasing the desirability of an organisation’s education offering, as it is often achievable through a change in mindset and strategy.

So, what do we actually mean when we talk engagement? The definition of student engagement is the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn (EdGlossary). Studies have shown that there is a moderately strong and positive correlation between overall student engagement and academic achievement, and an analysis of the domains of behavioural, emotional, and cognitive engagement showed that almost all had a positive correlation with students’ academic achievement (Social Behaviour and Personality, 2018).

Student Engagement through Digital Learning 

Digital learning has come so far over the years, but many still have a perception of it as a click-through course. Creating learning that allows for ‘power-clicking’, a term I’ve heard across the industry, is something I think most creators can hold their hands up to do, especially when feeling stretched for time and pressured to develop straightforward/beginner-friendly pieces of learning. However, in reality, if a course allows for power-clicking it will always be the easy option for a learner to take and naturally one that most opt for over truly engaging with the content.

“I never like seeing courses that lock learning down to a series of clicks. I think if learners are trying to get to the end as quickly as possible, we’ve probably already failed to provide them with an engaging learning experience. I don’t expect engagement to suddenly materialise just because we’ve asked them to click on something. It has to start much earlier than this.”  Laura Giles, Head of Learning

So, if engagement is what we’re striving for, this poses the question of ‘how do we truly engage the learner?’. There are in fact multiple ways to affect this, and they’re often referred to as the different modes or dimensions of engagement (see below).

Figure 1 – Dimensions of engagement (Redmond et al., 2018).

Redmond et al wrote about the topic in 2018 and the above illustration is an effective visual showing the different methods he covered which can affect engagement. Examples of each of the engagement modes, specifically in the space of digital learning, were proposed by Redmond et al such as:

Figure 2 – Redmond Online Engagement Framework for Higher Education

It is all well and good having plans for increasing the engagement, however in order to be able to engage students, we must first have students enrolled and in a position to start the course. So how do we create an attractive offering and ultimately get people through the door?

How to attract them to be able to engage them… 

As student numbers have fallen, there’s been a lot of information batted around this year about what learners are actually looking for from digital learning, and therefore different organisations seem to each have taken their own individual approach to creating an attractive, yet effective, learning portfolio.

Although much smaller than in earlier years, convincing students to enrol onto digital learning courses still remains a challenge for the sector. EYs 2024 study of 3000 Higher Education learners found that the application process was vital to this and that digital pathways should be designed in such a way that it takes prospective students through the application within just a few clicks. They also suggested that those who abandon their applications part-way should be intercepted and personally re-engaged to increase levels of enrolment. 80% of those in the study also stated that courses that appeared to improve career prospects and those that adapted to the changes in the topic’s market were extremely attractive to them whilst they were choosing where to enrol.

McKinsey & Company’s 2023 study of 7,000 students across 17 countries identified 8 key dimensions that were important to learners, specifically within the area of digital learning (see below).

Figure 3 – McKinsey & Company

As a market, I can honestly say I think the digital learning space is always seeking to provide nothing but the best for students, and I’m sure many of the above 8 areas are already being addressed in most institutes, but there’s always room for improvement, right?

I am, of course, a recruiter, not a digital learning expert, and therefore a little bit on the outside looking in. However, I truly believe that from what I’ve seen and heard, with a whole lot of resistance, some innovative thinking, and a bit of backing from the government (hopeful, I know!), we can pull through this current downturn.

Many universities are grappling with financial difficulties, as well as the need to adapt to the demands of future-proofing their institutions, to not only restore financial stability but to prosper in a rapidly changing environment.

Regardless of the institution, many Vice-chancellors and Provosts across the UK have expressed similar concerns and challenges. The issues expressed to us stem partly from stagnation in government funding and the general inflationary environment, in conjunction with reports of a decline in student enrolment, specifically international students.

The figures

I don’t think many would disagree that international students are paramount for the UK economy, with international students generating a total economic benefit of approximately £41.9 billion in the academic year 2021/22 alone.

In terms of tuition costs, for undergraduate programs, the fees for international students typically range from £11,400 to £67,892 per year, with the cost generally higher for subjects like medicine and lower for arts and humanities (Save the Student). Postgraduate fees also vary, with MBAs at about £21,754(Save the Student)(British Council Study UK). In 2022/23 fee income from all international students was £11.8 billion. This was 23% of total income, up from around 5% in the mid-1990s.

The figures illustrate that there is a significant financial commitment required for international students pursuing higher education in the UK, a commitment international students have been willing to make for years. After all, the UK has long been one of the most popular destinations for study. Largely due to the range of courses offered and internationally recognised degrees. If it weren’t for a less-than-tropical climate, the appeal could be greater still!

So, what’s the problem?

Data from an international student enrolment platform suggests that postgraduate entrants in January 2024 were down by around one-third. Noted, there has been delays with the publication of comprehensive student data for 2022/23, however there are some strong signs of a fall in student numbers in 2023 and early 2024.

The number of student visas granted fell by 5% in 2023. And a recent article published by the Guardian gathered data from more than 60 UK universities which shows that the number of study visas issued has fallen by 33% this year compared to the same time last year.

A separate survey of 70 universities by Universities UK, found that enrolments in postgraduate taught courses were down by more than 40% since January’s immigration changes, which announced some new restrictions on student visa conditions, in which people coming to do taught postgraduate courses lost the right to bring dependent family members to the UK, and new students have been prevented from switching into a work visa before the end of their course.

That being said, any further changes have since been postponed, with the Sunak Government reaffirming its commitment to the International Education Strategy.

Universities with the help of the Government (whoever that may be), need to do all they can to ensure the UK remains a leading destination of choice for those choosing to study in the UK from abroad and worth noting that some positive articles actually praise the growth in student enrolment over the last 10 years when looking at the broader view.

So, what can we do?

One approach would be to leverage technology. During May 2024, there have been several interesting developments that highlight the crucial role that Digital Learning plays in the Higher education sector. Credit to Kate Lindsay (SVP Academic Services at Higher Ed Partners) for compiling this list in a recent LinkedIn post:

The Higher Education Commission released a report on Digitally Enhanced Blended Learning, emphasising the benefits of technology in higher education, including widened participation and improved student outcomes.

Data from the US shows a significant increase in younger students enrolling in online programs, with undergraduate enrolments rising by almost two-thirds.

The Open University published a research report on relaxed tutorials in online learning, showcasing how it can offer a more inclusive education for students with disabilities.

The World Economic Forum’s latest report looks into AI’s impact on education, advocating for responsible AI integration in educational systems worldwide.

HEPI’s new report on student attrition calls for a new approach to non-continuation, highlighting challenges that impact online learners specifically.

The latest Transnational Education data sheds light on the international online student market, showing modest growth and untapped potential.

It’s no secret that digital learning has become increasingly important for higher education, offering numerous benefits and opportunities for both institutions and students. In fact, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, digital learning played a crucial role in helping UK universities maintain continuity, support students, and adapt to unprecedented challenges.

Higher education is likely a few steps behind other industries and although there is no single way to achieve digital transformation successfully, as it depends on the context of each organisation/institute, there is still a massive opportunity for growth.

The necessity for it is widely recognised, but there is still a limited understanding of the most effective way to progress. Get it right and reap the rewards!

Disclaimer

I don’t claim to be an expert within the higher education sector, I just provide Digital Learning resource to it. But whilst writing this blog I was surprised at the amount of contradicting literature / articles around the challenges facing UK universities. Some were far more optimistic than others!

I would be interested to hear the thoughts of those working in the industry. Is the Higher Education sector in crisis? Or is this just another blip that will soon usher in a return of more promising times (again)?