The Future of an Open Academic World

"¡Madre mía!" I learned the results of the referendum from a message sent in the early dawn hours in London by my son-in-law, a Spanish national working for the European Parliament. My daughter, who happened to be in the UK on a business trip, and I were left speechless for a moment. It has already been about four years since that result—a narrow margin for Brexit that surprised not only the Remainers but even the Leavers. After Prime Minister Cameron's resignation and the subsequent May Cabinet, the UK finally left the EU at the end of January this year under current Prime Minister Johnson. While specific "divorce" terms must be negotiated with the EU by the end of this year, the British government continues to maintain a hardline stance, asserting it will carry out Brexit even if negotiations collapse into a "no deal." With the terms of withdrawal remaining unclear even after two general elections since the referendum, the public—regardless of whether they were for leaving or remaining—was suffering from Brexit fatigue. Then came the COVID-19 onslaught. To be honest, at present, neither the UK nor the EU is in any position to worry about Brexit.

Having spent a total of over 40 years in the UK during my secondary school years and as a working professional, I would like to look back on the past four years since the referendum from an academic perspective. With a few exceptions, all universities here are national, but to maintain international competitiveness, they have traditionally recruited faculty from all over the world; as a result, many are from the EU. Although they are national institutions, business schools and others have moved away from the uniform national salary scale to attract talent, with an increasing number of cases offering high salaries rare in academia. Because salaries for university faculty are regulated by the government in some EU member states, UK universities have attracted many scholars from Northern Europe who are fluent in English, as well as scholars from Southern Europe who abandoned the Mediterranean sun, drawn by British salary levels and the strong British pound prior to the Brexit vote.

Immediately after the Leave victory, it was predicted that EU nationals would return home or move to other EU countries for fear of rising anti-EU sentiment in the UK. However, there were also concerns about a brain drain as some British academic colleagues, disgusted by the government's attitude of pandering to the insular Leave faction, moved not only to EU countries but as far as Canada and Australia. On the other hand, some native British colleagues were pleased, thinking that high-paying posts held by EU nationals would open up for them. Like Japan and other developed nations, the UK is facing a declining birthrate and an aging population, and securing student numbers—and thus tuition revenue—is one of the challenges for universities. There are concerns that after withdrawal, EU students will be charged the same tuition as international students from outside the EU—three times the rate of domestic students—and that if work visas are required after graduation, finding employment in the UK will become difficult. Anticipating that students might avoid studying here for these reasons, universities are putting effort into attracting international students from outside the EU.

As a result, at some universities, 90 percent of the students are Chinese international students. While this is a result of being forced to introduce market competition by British government policy, universities are now poignantly realizing the fear of relying on a single market without diversifying risk, as there is a threat that the number of overseas students will plummet next academic year due to the unforeseen COVID-19 pandemic. Keio University is a pioneer in international agreements, but in the UK as well, an increasing number of universities are forming agreements with universities worldwide, including within the EU, as a Brexit countermeasure to implement double degree programs, and some universities are establishing campuses or offices overseas to provide courses locally. Furthermore, now that all educational institutions, not just universities, have been forced online due to COVID-19, online courses that were previously underperforming may see a revival; however, since the local experience is a major factor for students when choosing a course, this may only be a temporary appeal.

Even while a member of the EU, the UK never joined the Eurozone or the Schengen Agreement, continuing to protect its own currency and borders. While political reasons cited for leaving include EU budget contributions and the surge of immigrants from Eastern European member states after EU expansion, perhaps behind this was a sense of discomfort for the UK—which is geographically not part of the European mainland—existing within an EU formed by continental nations, with the exception of Ireland. From my second year at the Yochisha Elementary School, I spent every summer traveling around the UK and the European mainland by bus with my father (the late Ryozo Tanaka, Professor Emeritus at Keio University), whose research subjects were the UK and Europe. I felt firsthand the reality of European countries sharing borders and being connected by land, as well as the achievements of realizing and maintaining peaceful coexistence after reflecting on a past filled with conflict. Growing up in an island nation, I felt envious seeing guides and drivers freely speaking the languages of various regions. After finishing the first term of my first year at Chutobu Junior High School, I accompanied my father on his research at Cambridge University and lived in the UK through secondary school until I entered the Department of Law in the Faculty of Law as a member of the first generation of returnee students. I always thought how lucky I was to be able to live in the UK as a part of Europe.

Although the British government continues difficult negotiations with the EU, the interdependence between the UK and the EU remains high, as seen in the ultra-cosmopolitan city of London. While the entire world faces the COVID-19 crisis and international cooperation is essential, I hope that voters who were born and raised as members of the EU will rediscover that cooperation with neighboring countries is indispensable and choose a path that maintains a tolerant society.