Ambassador drums up support for UK universities

(JB) The British Ambassador to Luxembourg has pledged to double the number of Luxembourg nationals studying in the UK during her time in the Grand Duchy.

HE the Hon Alice Walpole set the challenge at an event at the embassy residence on Thursday to celebrate the efforts of British institutions and individuals at this year's student fair.

During the academic year of 2010-2011 Luxembourg's Centre de Documentation et d'Information sur l'Enseignement Supérieur reported that there were 1,063 Luxembourg students in the UK.

The prospect of doubling this figure, however, does not faze Ambassador Walpole, who presented her credentials to the Grand Duke on September 15.

She said: “I'm trying to double the number of young people in Luxembourg who study in the UK. I look forward four years from now to being able to announce that we've doubled numbers.“

The mother of six, whose eldest twin daughters started university this year, shared her experiences of higher education with those gathered at her residence.

She explained how she had seen her children go through the “long, slow, challenging process” of receiving a conditional offer at the university of their first choice and then waiting to get the grades to be able to take up that offer.

“On top of that I've got twins,” she said, adding: “Each time one got a good place at a university our celebrations would be muted until her sister got a good place. One of them found out that she had her place at 6am. But, her sister had to call her school and they didn't tell her until lunchtime. They were probably the longest nine hours of my life!”

Ms Walpole praised the UK higher education system, which this year welcomed 450,000 foreign students to its institutions. She also stressed the strengths of the British system which she said “encourages young people to think for themselves” and stressed the language benefits for foreign students who, according to the ambassador, will graduate with an “excellent working knowledge of English”.