Launched by Prime Minister Tony Blair on 18 April 2006, the Prime Minister's Initiative for International Education (PMI2) was developed in consultation with the education sector to build on the success of the first PMI, which had come to an end having achieved its targets in 2005.

The first PMI was launched in 1999, its aim to increase the number of international students following a UK education, in recognition of their importance in fostering international relations and bringing long-term political and economic benefits to the UK.

What did it involve?
The main elements of the PMI involved investment in a UK education marketing campaign managed by the British Council, the streamlining of entry procedures and work rules for overseas students, and increasing the number of Chevening scholarships.

Who was involved?
It involved stakeholders from UK Trade and Investment, Ministry of Defence, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Home Office, UK visas, the devolved administrations and the British Council. The initiative was managed by a Project Working Group chaired by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES – now the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, DIUS).

What were the agreed strategies?
The British Council led on marketing UK education to provide a competitive edge for the UK within an increasingly crowded market place. The marketing campaign included developing:

			brand: we developed a umbrella brand under which all educational institutions could market themselves and their products more effectively;
			website: we developed a website accessible to millions of students and their influencers around the world to market UK institutions and the courses they provide;
			publications: a number of guides and magazines to provide advice and  profile and showcase UK education providers;
			campaigns: to celebrate and raise the awareness of UK education, e.g. the International Student Awards and Real UK;
			working with agents: working with education agents as our marketing partners and developing services to increase the number of agents working for UK education providers.

What were the targets?
Targets were set to attract an additional 50,000 international students to higher education and an additional 25,000 international students to further education by 2004 / 2005.

Were the targets met?
The student recruitment targets were met and the PMI’s success has clearly shown the value of integrating the activities and resources of the Government, education institutions from all sectors, and the British Council to market UK education abroad.

What happened next?
A consultation document titled Positioning for Success was distributed throughout the UK education sector that outlined a new strategy to ensure that the UK was positioned to capitalise on future opportunities and to strengthen its position within the increasingly competitive international education market. This outline strategy and the feedback subsequently received proved to be the first stage of development of the Prime Minister’s Initiative for International Education.

Further information
Prime Minister’s Initiative to attract more international students to the UK: launch press release (74KB) - published 18 June 1999
Positioning for Success (347KB)