This blog post was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Avatar photo

Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of UK in Ukraine

18th October 2010

Choose the best: British Education

It’s autumn.  As temperatures plummet and the new academic year gets under way, students and parents across Ukraineare thinking about 2011-2012.  So it’s good to welcome to the residence on different nights two bodies promoting British educational excellence.  The first is the Edinburgh Business School, whose internationally recognised distance learning MBA programme is one of the largest and most successful in the world.  I was pleased to help the EBS launch its MBA programme in Ukraine and meet some prospective students in January.  So it’s rewarding to see the enthusiastic second intake starting their programme.  All kinds of Ukrainians with an interest in education attend, ranging from employers thinking of sending their staff on an MBA, through business people thinking of taking an MBA themselves, to first and second year students and educationalists.

The second event, organised by the Donstream Education Group, is to mark the visit to Ukraine of James Pitman, director of Study Group.  This includes Bellerbys College, which has four sites in theUK inOxford,Cambridge, Brighton andLondon preparing students for entry toUK universities.  James gives a presentation aboutBellerbysCollege and announces an A-level scholarship competition.  Again, those attending are an inspiring mix of specialists, parents and educational providers, and the networking is immediate.

To show the intensity of educational contacts between the UKand Ukraine, I’m pleased also to trail the third annual “Doing Business in English” fair, organised by Business Link, which the embassy will be helping to open on 20 October.  The fair will bring together 23 British educational institutions, including 5 universities and 4 higher education colleges, to meet potential Ukrainian students.

With four British universities in the world top 10 on the latest ranking and a schools system which attracts some of the brightest pupils from around the world, it’s no surprise that the education sector is now one of theUK’s biggest export earners.  If the enthusiasm on show at these occasions is anything to go by, that position looks set to strengthen in the years ahead.

About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.

Follow Leigh

Tags

Education

Links