Analysis of data obtained from the UK’s Higher Education Statistics Agency reveals that a total of 128,770 Nigerian students have enrolled in universities in the United Kingdom from 2015 to the end of 2022.

This growing number of Nigerian students seeking education abroad can be attributed to their pursuit of better education and quality of life, as they try to escape the challenges of bad governance and disruptions in academic activities caused by unions such as the Academic Staff Union of Universities and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities.

The statistics show variations in the number of Nigerian students enrolled over the years. In the 2015/2016 academic year, there were 16,100 Nigerian students enrolled, but this number dropped to 12,655 in the 2016/2017 session, which experts attributed to the recession in Nigeria.

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The number further decreased to 10,685 in 2017/2018 but slightly rose to 10,810 in 2018/2019. However, there was a significant increase in enrollment during the 2019/2020 academic session with 13,020 students, and a remarkable surge to 21,305 students in the 2020/2021 session, representing a 64% increase.

The latest available data shows that 44,195 students were enrolled for the 2021/2022 session, marking the highest number since Nigeria’s independence in 1960.

Nigeria ranks third, behind China and India, in the top 10 list of international students studying in the UK. The migration of Nigerian students to foreign institutions has also benefited the economies of the host countries.

In 2021, Nigerian students and their dependents in the UK contributed approximately £1.9 billion to the UK economy.

Education activist Ayodamola Oluwatoyin attributes the trend of Nigerians seeking educational opportunities abroad to poor government policies in Nigeria.