25 October 2026

Not so long ago, the Principal of the University of St. Andrews, Professor Dame Sally Mapstone, reported to the press that there were 140 nationalities represented within the University community. Some are more widely represented than others like students from America and Asia. Nonetheless, this is astonishing.

It made me wonder whether other universities had a similar composition or whether there was something unique about St. Andrews? That was my first question. The second was whether the University’s diversity had something to do with the fact that it is currently judged to be the best in the UK?

One of the good things about studying at St. Andrews University over fifty years ago was the size of the University. It was only a third of its current roll. This meant that whatever your faculty, you were bound to engage with students who belonged to others. This expanded horizons and opinions.

Students who come from different countries and cultures have more in common with each other precisely because they have all been brought up in an increasingly more complex technological world and in a world which is becoming ever more unstable.

What the contemporary University teaches us is the importance of belonging to a diverse community where people are encouraged to co-operate with one another and to see that there is much more about human beings of one generation which unites rather than divides.

Burnham’s move to grow closer to Europe is to be commended. Serious issues like global warming, nuclear warfare, energy sufficiency, migration etc. will be resolved much more satisfactorily together than apart. Ultimately, we all belong to Planet Earth rather than Scotland, the UK or even Europe!