VIETNAMESE, Chinese, South African and Russian students are being encouraged to study for degrees at Blackburn College.

College bosses have revealed they are expanding their international student intake in a bid to secure its financial position as well as countering the impending Government cuts and funding shortfalls.

Principal Ian Clinton alongside other senior members of staff have been travelling across the world to hold discussions and forge links with countries such as Russia, China and India.

And Mr Clinton will be flying to South Africa tonight(thurs) to form relations with the University of Western Cape, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town University, several high schools and Cape Town College.

He said: “A-level courses are popular in China, degree level courses are popular in the Middle East and foundation degrees are popular.

“They are interested in a range of subjects including skill based areas, but with the international market we want to make a workforce that can do the job. We are no Oxford or Cambridge so our niche are skill-based courses. ”

The college currently gains £1million income from international students who pay upto £9,000 per year and it hopes to raise an extra £500,000 this year.

And this year they anticipate to take on upto 300 international students increasing to 400 next year and as many as 600 the following year.

Mr Clinton said the college is aiming for profits between 25 and 30 per cent which will be pumped back into the college.

He said: “We are trying to make up the shortfall in the budget reductions. But we will invest the profit back into the college.”

The college is focusing on the Indian sub continent where the majority of its international students currently enrol from.