International students should be exempt from the planned cap on pharmacy student numbers, the Pharmacy Schools Council (PhSC) has argued.

There was a "strong case" for exempting non-EU students from proposals to cut student intake by up to 15 per cent a year between 2015-16 and 2019-20, unveiled earlier this week (September 2), the academic body said.

Although the PhSC backed a cap on home and EU student numbers, it stressed that international students funded their studies themselves and should not face restrictions, in its response to the proposals yesterday (September 3).

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	Many chose to complete their pre-registration placements outside the UK, it added. "This would have the distinct advantages of freeing up more NHS placement funding for home/EU students and ensuring that international students continue to be welcomed to study at English universities," argued PhSC chair Professor John Smart.

But the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) expressed more uncertainty over how to manage international student numbers in its workforce analysis, published at the end of last month.

Although one working group member argued that international students were an "increasingly important aspect" of UK higher education and should not face restrictions, another said it was "not an option" for numbers to go uncontrolled.

The RPS highlighted that international students could incur costs as well as generating revenue.

"The UK is recognised as a world leader in higher education and, although overseas students contribute significantly to the costs of their university education, in some instances they still generate costs, especially in relation to clinical placements," it said. "There is a limit on the capacity of the NHS and providers of NHS services to provide clinical placements."

International students account for 14 per cent of pharmacy undergraduates in Great Britain.