A LEADING Scottish university is discussing a controversial partnership with a private sector company to recruit and teach overseas students.

Strathclyde University, in Glasgow, is considering joining forces with the London-based educational company Into, which already has partnerships with a number of other UK institutions, including Glasgow Caledonian University.

Under a typical arrangement, Into recruits overseas students to a feeder college on the campus of the host university and teaches them language and foundation courses costing up to £15,000 a year.

Successful candidates are then guaranteed entry to a degree programme, usually going straight into the second year and paying fees to the university for the duration of their course.

Universities that already have partnerships with Into such as Exeter, Norwich, East Anglia and Newcastle, argue it is a legitimate way to bring in lucrative overseas students, who pay fees at the market rate. The recruitment of overseas students has become vital to the financial health of the university sector in recent years as public funds become increasingly stretched.

However, critics believe the arrangements amount to “creeping privatisation” of publicly funded universities and say the motivation is profit, rather than educational advancement.

Tony Axon, a spokesman for the UCU Scotland lecturers’ union, said: “We are opposed to all moves to privatise education, which should be a benefit for all and not used to make profits.

“We are particularly concerned about Into because it seems to get involved in property deals with universities as part of the arrangements with them, which should have no place in the public sector.

“Where universities have gone down this road, there is little evidence that it has significantly increased overseas student recruitment, and an institution of Strathclyde’s standing should steer well clear.”

Robin Parker, president of student body NUS Scotland, added: “I can’t see how introducing profit-making companies into education in Scotland is in the best interests of students.

“The opportunity to study alongside people from all over the world is one of the things that make Scotland’s universities and colleges special, but there’s no excuse for universities to outsource that responsibility to profit-making companies.”

A spokeswoman for Strathclyde said home students would “benefit enormously” from being taught alongside students from different cultures, while Glasgow itself would benefit economically and culturally.

“The university, which has a number of arrangements with education partners who are a source of international students, is currently exploring the potential of a relationship with Into which would see the establishment of foundation programmes to prepare students for study at Strathclyde,” she said.

“In any partnership, the responsibility for all the academic matters will remain with the university.”

An Into spokesman added: “We have had initial discussions with the university with regard to a possible joint-venture to support the university’s growth ambitions through provision of pathway courses for international students.

“If successful, the partnership would become part of a growing network already including seven universities across the UK and two in the US.”

MPs warned yesterday that David Cameron’s pledge to crack down on immigration with tougher restrictions on student visas seriously risks “diminishing” Scotland’s universities and could cost the UK economy £900 million a year in lost income.