Abstract:

UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) face mounting financial and regulatory pressures driven by tightening visa policies, declining international student enrolments, geopolitical instability, and funding volatility. In many institutions, overseas tuition fees constitute a substantial proportion of income, creating concentrated exposure to policy and market shocks. This structural dependency has revealed the fragility of tuition-driven internationalisation as a dominant growth model and has prompted exploration of alternative strategies for long-term resilience. This research argues that academic–industry collaboration represents a structural reconfiguration of the university business model rather than incremental engagement activity. Drawing on Resource Dependence Theory, Business Model Innovation, Sustainable Business Model theory, and the Triple Helix framework, the study conceptualises universities as hybrid platform organisations embedded within innovation ecosystems. Through comparative institutional analysis, the paper distinguishes between tuition-concentrated, hybrid, and ecosystem-oriented universities. It examines mechanisms such as Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, collaborative R&D, regional innovation districts, enterprise clusters, and ecosystem-integrated transnational education. These models redistribute financial risk, diversify revenue streams, and align with SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals). The paper concludes that sustainable higher education strategy lies not in expanding recruitment alone, but in building impact-driven academic–industry ecosystems that enhance resilience, innovation capacity, and inclusive regional development.

Please choose your submission type: Developmental Paper

Primary Track: Sustainable and Responsible Business

Keywords: responsible business;international business;education;mixed method;case study

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Ms. Krutika Ganeru