When Max Lu relocated from Australia in 2016 to begin his tenure as vice-chancellor of the University of Surrey, the country he entered was about to change.

Two months after he started, the UK voted to leave the European Union, with significant implications for international student flows, research funding and the wider immigration debate.

The era of Brexit negotiations was followed by the pandemic and then the war in Ukraine and the pressures that brought. The most challenging part of his tenure, however, has been the financial challenges of recent years, the outgoing university leader told 51³Ô¹Ï.

Facing a negative cash flow, Surrey announced job cuts in early 2024, one of the first to begin what has become a painfully common process for universities across the country. Over 160 staff accepted voluntary redundancy and the university is now forecasting a surplus for the current academic year.

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¡°We moved much earlier,¡± Lu said. ¡°We did a very resolute, quick financial resilience programme, which went really well.¡± At the same time, he said, ¡°we didn¡¯t just focus on cuts¡±.

¡°Because you can cut¡­and save, but it wouldn¡¯t be sustainable, so we actually identified growth¡± as well, he said.

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The university has attempted to diversify its revenue streams, with money from research grants growing by?8 per cent in 2023-24. Both international and home recruitment are also doing better, Lu said, with tuition fee income also?8 per cent higher last year than in 2022-23.

¡°We cannot guarantee absolutely there won¡¯t be future job cuts, but I¡¯m quite confident we don¡¯t need that, provided we keep being disciplined, not saying, ¡®Oh, now we have a surplus, let¡¯s just spend¡¯.¡±

In addition, Lu said, Surrey is positioning itself ¡°for future growth¡± by launching Innovate Surrey, a business focused on commercialising academic research through licensing and spin-outs.

The university is also planning to open an Indian campus in Gift City, a special economic zone that allows institutions to repatriate their profits tax-free. If approved, Surrey¡¯s teaching space will be located in the same building as the University of Wollongong ¨C the Australian institution Lu is leaving Surrey to head up.

The India campus would be Surrey¡¯s second foreign outpost. It currently operates a Sino-foreign joint campus in China, offering dual degrees with Dongbei University of Finance and Economics. While the financial position of this institute is not disclosed in the parent university¡¯s reports, Lu said the 20-year-old campus is ¡°doing much better now¡± and does ¡°generate returns¡±.

¡°This is another thing that I¡¯m very proud of in my tenure here as vice-chancellor. We¡¯ve become more global,¡± the China-born academic said.

When he first joined Surrey, Lu was the first ethnic minority scientist to lead a British university. At that time, Lu spoke about the opportunities for encouraging Chinese investment in the UK and forging partnerships between institutions. Nine years on, and in the face of a vastly different geopolitical reality, he appears more cautious when asked about these links.

¡°First and foremost, we value partners from all over the world,¡± he said. ¡°Geopolitics is fluid at the moment.

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¡°In the last few years, before the change of government, there were lots of debates about what should we do or should not do.¡±

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However, he said, he believes in the areas of research collaboration and teaching, ¡°there¡¯s a lot of encouragement from government¡±.

¡°Even on research, our current government is quite positive,¡± he added, conceding that there are ¡°sensitive areas¡± to avoid when it comes to research collaboration.

Lu said Surrey is considering opening another joint campus in China, as well as mulling other options such as Saudi Arabia and Thailand.

¡°Not all of those opportunities will turn into reality. We¡¯re working on exploring the partnership possibility and our principle is: we don¡¯t have or don¡¯t want to commit capital,¡± Lu said.

Partnering with private companies to open foreign campuses is a common model that reduces the risk for cash-strapped institutions looking for alternative income streams as the British government threatens further possible changes to international student visas.

If the government does limit the graduate route, it would be ¡°disturbing to the sector¡±, Lu said.

¡°International students can really contribute tremendously to our skills needs,¡± he continued. ¡°So why artificially constrain the graduate route?

¡°I¡¯m not saying it¡¯s perfect ¨C no policy system is perfect ¨C but if there are issues, address them in a way that¡¯s¡­not really damaging the market.¡±

While he may be departing the UK ¨C a decision he made in order to be closer to his children in Australia ¨C Lu is arguably moving from the frying pan to the fire. With a general election on the horizon, debates about international students are growing louder and Australian institutions are hardly faring much better than their British counterparts when it comes to finances.

Is he prepared to deal with these challenges once again? ¡°Diversification is always good,¡± he said. ¡°Diversify and growing your other revenue streams ¨C that will de-risk the reliance on a single stream like fees or international fees.

But, beyond finances, he said, ¡°our core mission for education will be the same for all institutions. That is, to educate the next generation of professionals who, if we teach them well, prepare them well, [will] become leaders in their field and therefore make contributions to society.¡±

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It is this idea he returns to in the face of challenges, Lu said. ¡°I feel very proud of leaving on a high,¡± he added, ¡°having been going through all the challenges and then coming through very successfully and stronger¡±.

helen.packer@timeshighereducation.com