Opening or closing borders to international students? Convergent and divergent dynamics in France, Spain and the UK

While attracting international students is the declared objective of many countries of the global North, the regulation of movements of this migrant group does not escape the tensions that characterise policymaking on migration. This paper compares the evolution of student migration policies in three major European destinations – France, Spain and the UK – since the late 1990s. The aim is to evaluate whether policies in this area have converged or not, and the factors behind their evolution. Our findings suggest that despite common forces encouraging convergence, country-specific factors, such as countries’ migration history and the political force in power, seem crucial in explaining important differences in actual policies across the three countries