Last week, our team made the long trek up to Glasgow’s University of Strathclyde to attend this year’s edition of the Scottish Universities International Group conference.
Built around the theme of “Sowing Seeds: Achieving Growth in an Uncertain Climate”, the event brought together representatives of Scottish universities of all ages and sizes to reflect on this year’s hottest topics in higher education.
A remarkable feeling of Scottish togetherness
One of the most noticeable aspects of SUIG 2026 was the strong sense of collaboration and community felt amongst the attending institutions. While there’s still a natural spirit of competition, the top priority for everyone is obvious: work together to better compete in a global market.
Universities in Scotland regularly share data and best practices, collaborate on joint initiatives and actively look to learn from each other. And as many professionals in the industry have worked together at some point, they've gradually built an ecosystem of support that continuously feeds this collaborative spirit.
How Scottish universities are facing a global higher education market
More than any other part of the UK, Scotland as a nation has always been passionate about internationalisation. They strongly opposed Brexit and were always in favour of the UK remaining in the Erasmus scheme, which it is now rejoining.
Consequently, Scotland is now seen as a very welcoming destination for international students, and this is something Scottish universities want to continue working on. They’re also far more focused on banding together to promote Scotland as a study destination than they are on competing amongst themselves.
And maybe that’s the solution, as students today are deciding between not just individual universities, but entire countries, often comparing options across the UK, US, Korea, Japan, Sweden, and hundreds of other destinations. As Scotland is reported to have more top universities per capita than anywhere else in the world, it’s clear to see that universities working as a sector, rather than in silo, is helping to position the country as the premier study destination in the UK.
How do Scottish universities feel about the 2026 UK International Education Strategy?
The recent release of the UK government’s International Education Strategy was a hot topic of conversation at SUIG this year.
While mostly cohesive with Scotland’s own International Education Strategy, and how Scottish universities overall prioritise standing out in a global market, the overarching UK strategy still brings both challenges and opportunities.
There are concerns, for example, about how some UK-wide policies could impact universities in Scotland differently than those in England. At the same time, better government support for transnational education could help Scottish universities expand internationally without compromising on quality and student experience.
For now, they seem to be reacting to this new government document as they do to most things: working together to make the most of it.
Is vocational training in the cards for Scottish universities?
Vocational training is one of the hottest topics for higher education in 2026. Students worldwide are now shifting towards a focus on return-on-investment when it comes to choosing their education, and this made its way into conversations at SUIG – or rather, at the Duolingo-sponsored event the night before.
The final consensus on what role Scottish universities might play in the rise of vocational training ended up leaning towards accepting the responsibility to participate. As AI and automation continue to change the employment landscape, universities should rise to the occasion and adapt to meet the shifting demands of a population that is living longer than ever.
Are Scottish Universities embracing AI?
To some extent, yes, but for the most part universities in Scotland are still very much in the early stages of AI adoption. At a topical session that we attended, when asked how they were using AI in their work, most attendees mentioned implementing chatbots.
It’s easy to see that Scottish universities are still approaching AI with a little uncertainty and a heavy dose of caution, but that doesn’t mean they’re closing the door on it altogether. Rather, they’re looking for guidance on how they can integrate these tools in a way that’s both effective and responsible, as evidenced by many conversations we had with industry professionals while at SUIG.
In fact, most agree that a hybrid approach to AI integration is the best way forward. That means successfully combining the capabilities of AI with human oversight, especially when it comes to admission processes, where AI can help with data analysis and decision-making while keeping humans fully at the wheel.
Could better AI integration solve some of their biggest problems?
Just like universities throughout the rest of the UK, one of the greatest challenges Scottish universities currently face is admissions management. With large volumes of applications to go through, especially during peak periods, it becomes difficult to prioritise quality and quick turnaround times.
A few institutions are using algorithms and historical data to strategically time when they send out offers, based on aspects like subject, demographic and country of origin. While this is a great start, most universities are stretched thin and don’t have the resources they’d need to invest in something like sophisticated propensity modelling.
This is something that many delegates were eager to speak to us about. While implementing AI at scale is almost impossible for universities to do by themselves, they can work with partners like UniQuest to have access to advanced AI capabilities that not only take pressure off their teams but help them make better, faster and more personalised decisions.
