Universities across the UK are stepping up investment in new construction projects as bid to make their campuses more attractive to overseas students.
With higher education institutions keen to recruit students from outside of the UK for economic reasons, new statistics suggest that many are happy to invest big money on building new facilities in order to do so.
Indeed, according to the latest figures from Barbour ABI, UK universities have awarded construction contracts worth a total of £1.5 billion over the past six months alone.
Furthermore, an additional £2 billion worth of contracts are expected to be inked between 2017 and 2020, with the focus on building architecturally impressive halls of residence or departments in order to boost their global prestige.
Releasing the findings, Barbour ABI head economist Michael Dall told the Financial Times: "Since the change in the tuition fee regime universities have focused on improving campus facilities in the increasingly competitive market of attracting prospective students.
"This has involved using increased student fees and debt markets to invest heavily in construction projects."
This comes soon after the new City of Glasgow College Riverside campus was shortlisted for the prestigious Sterling Prize for noteworthy architecture.
