UK universities are witnessing a deep plunge in applications of international students wanting to study in the UK, as leaders of academic and industry institutions fear that the graduate visa entitlement, allowing international graduates to work in the UK for up to three years could be shut down.

As reported by The Guardian, citing a report by the migration advisory committee (MAC) to be delivered to the government on Tuesday, more restrictions on student visas would collide the flow of talent for the UK's creative industries.

Creative UK, which represents these industries, states that curtailing the ability for international students to stay and work in the UK post-graduation would damage a sector worth £108 billion a year.

A survey of 75 UK universities by the British Universities’ International Liaison Association revealed that nine out of 10 institutions had less international applications for the next academic year, with a 27% drop in total applications for taught postgraduate courses compared with the previous year.

A joint letter by Creative UK and Universities UK, representing vice-chancellors, called on the government to reject the agenda to remove or restrict the graduate visa plan, as they call international graduates integral to the creative industries, which are proving to be more significant than the UK’s aerospace, life sciences, and automotive industries altogether.

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The letter stated, “Following further increases to visa fees and salary thresholds, the graduate visa represents one of the few routes left which enables talented graduates to remain in the UK and contribute to our growing creative industries.”

It added, “Whether it’s a young Jimmy Choo developing his craft at Cordwainers or world-renowned DJ Peggy Gou, who studied at London College of Fashion, the role our universities play in attracting the best creative talent from around the world goes to show the soft-power influence of our institutions.”

'Students are more important than you think'

Sally Mapstone, the vice-chancellor of St Andrews University and president of Universities UK, relayed in an interview with Sky News on Sunday, “International students are incredibly important to UK culture. They contribute a huge amount to universities, to the economy, to skills and jobs and we think it would be a tragedy – calamitous not just for institutions but actually for the UK as a whole – if the government took what would actually be quite unnecessary further action to restrict the number of international students.”

Abolishing the graduate visa, the British Academy told the MAC would "stifle the vibrancy of the UK’s academic and research landscape," as the drop in numbers threatens the financial sustainability of universities, which would trigger course closures and staff redundancies.

Fears began to rise when UK Home Secretary James Cleverly commissioned the MAC “to ensure the graduate route is not being abused. In particular, that some of the demand for study visas is not being driven more by a desire for immigration.”

This comes as Robert Jenrick, a former immigration minister, released a report last week with the Centre for Policy Studies think tank, urging for the graduate visa to be stopped, claiming it “allowed people to come and work in the gig economy and on very low wages."

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A government spokesperson responded to these updates by saying, "We are fully focused on striking the right balance between acting decisively to tackle net migration and attracting the brightest students to our universities, recognising the significant contribution they make to the UK."