Regarding the official statistics released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, Studying-in-UK.org noted a significant increase in the number of Portuguese students in UK universities. As these statistics show, their enrollment in UK universities had one of the most impressive growths among all EU students.


As of 2014/15, 2,730 Portuguese citizens were seeking to get a degree in the UK. The majority of them (2,375 students) chose English universities over Scottish (245), Welsh (95) and Northern Irish (10).


Statistically, 2,350 were full-time students as opposed to 380 part-time students.


As per the academic level, most of these students were attending undergraduate courses. In absolute numbers, 1,585 out of the total number were undergraduate students, compared to 1,140 enrolled at postgraduate level.


Following the 2014/15 academic year, the number of Portuguese students in UK universities followed a steady upward trend. As a result, their number increased by 72 percent in 2017/18 to reach 4,700 students.


As per the country of HE provider, England tops the list with most Portuguese students; England – 4,320 students, Scotland – 245 students, Wales – 125 students and Northern Ireland – 10 students.


Full-time students counted for most of these students.


According to statistics, during the past academic year, 163 Higher Education providers in the UK which offer their enrollment data to HESA, reported 4,355 full-time students from Portugal while the remainder were part-time students.


In terms of the academic level, most Portuguese students were pursuing an undergraduate degree (3,550 students) while a smaller portion (1,150 students) were enrolled in a postgraduate course.


The cross-border traffic between Portugal and UK is nothing new to us.


It is estimated that more than 300,000 Portuguese nationals reside in the UK and around 45,000 (according to Home Office data) UK citizens reside in Portugal as of 2017.


Higher education has been one of the major sectors upon which both countries have maintained strong links. Lately, the
Portuguese government has clearly stated their commitment to continue maintaining this close relationship even in case of a no-deal Brexit.