Ireland is growing in prominence as a source of students for UK universities. January 2025 UCAS data shows that globally Ireland is the 4th largest source of applications in 2025, alongside China, India and the United States.
In the EU, Ireland is now the second most important source country after France, for students in the UK (overtaking countries with previously significantly higher numbers like Germany, Italy and Spain).
While the number of undergraduate students from Ireland in the UK continues to grow, the number of students from Ireland studying at the PhD level in the UK continues to increase as PhD students from other EU countries have declined by over 40 per cent.
Across three years (2022 to 2025), the British Council, with the support of the British Embassy in Dublin, has conducted a series of research and insight work on student mobility between the UK and Ireland.
In May 2025, British Council Ireland launched Higher Education Postgraduate Mobility: UK-Ireland.This research identifies specific areas of opportunity for strengthened engagement in higher education research for policy makers and higher education bodies across the UK and Ireland.
In September 2023, British Council Ireland launched the findings of the Higher Education Mobility Report on Undergraduate Student Mobility. This research comprises two studies in one report, with conclusions drawn and recommendations made from surveys and in-depth interviews with UK and Irish students. The research also tracks and analyses trends over time in student flows between the UK and Ireland, with data reflecting a period from 2017–2022. The report can be accessed in the ‘Downloads’ section below.
An outcome of the research is British Council Ireland’s Higher Education Information Guide: UK-Ireland, which offers students (and universities) free useful information and links to support higher education mobility. This guide is updated annually and can be accessed in the ‘Downloads’ section below.
Country Learning Sessions
Below you will find three webinars which reveal the 2025, 2023 and 2022 highlights from the three research projects: