Historically, universities traded on their academic reputation. Strength of teaching, research performance, subject rankings and graduate pedigree all shaped perceptions and drove demand. While those foundations still matter, the competitive landscape has widened considerably. Today’s institutions operate on a much bigger chessboard, also competing on factors such as price, employability outcomes, visa success rates, accommodation quality, campus experience and brand perception.
One of the clearest ways this new competition shows itself is in food. The old image of jacket potatoes in a fading canteen or Pot Noodles in halls no longer reflects expectations. In many ways, modern campus catering and student experience now mirror what we see in corporate workplaces, where food, space and service design are central to employee engagement, wellbeing and retention.
At the same time, recruitment conditions have become more challenging. Following changes to immigration policy and sustained cost pressures, many universities have seen a fall in international student numbers. The financial impact of that decline is hard to ignore. International students have long underpinned the commercial model of many universities. When that income tightens, the pressure is felt quickly across services. Domestic recruitment therefore takes on greater importance, but so does keeping the students you already have.
That puts a spotlight on the quality of the on-campus experience, where food, cafés and social spaces help shape open-day decisions, influence daily habits and feed directly into how students judge whether the institution is living up to what it promised. For estates teams, this brings food directly into conversations about experience, space, infrastructure and even long-term asset performance.
Catering for cost-conscious students
Affordability now sits behind almost every decision students make. Rent continues to absorb a growing share of monthly budgets, while spending on food is also under pressure. Financial stress affects not only what students buy but also when and how they eat. Skipping meals, trading down to cheaper options and minimising discretionary spending have become common coping strategies.
For campuses, this shows up in shifting trading patterns. Peak periods are sharper, discretionary spend is more fragile, and footfall can fluctuate across the day and week. Yet expectations of a lively, social campus environment remain. Balancing affordability with vibrancy is one of the defining tensions facing university catering today.
At the same time as budgets have tightened, expectations of quality and choice have risen. Student populations are more diverse in dietary needs, cultural backgrounds and personal values than ever before. A decade ago, a solid vegetarian option might have been enough. Now food offers must accommodate vegan diets, allergens, lower-carbon choices, high-protein trends and a wide range of preferences.
Cultural influence plays a role too. UK students are more globally exposed, more adventurous in their tastes and quicker to adopt new food trends. Social media has lifted the baseline of what “good” looks like. As a result, food spaces are increasingly expected to feel like destinations in their own right.
For estates professionals, this evolution has physical consequences. Food spaces must now support faster switching of concepts, flexible layouts, higher throughput at peak times and different styles of service through the day. What was once a fixed-function refectory increasingly operates as a multi-use destination.
Competing in a delivery-driven world
Today, universities are competing with the entire high street, delivered to a student’s door in minutes. Platforms such as Uber Eats have reset expectations around choice and convenience. If the on-campus offer feels slower, narrower or poorer value by comparison, many will simply default to their phone.
Universities are responding in different ways. Click-and-collect, app-based ordering and on-campus delivery are becoming more common. We have introduced autonomous delivery robots across some universities to take food directly to students across campus. This may sound like a novelty but it reflects the shift in behaviours.
The result is a very different competitive landscape. Campus catering is now judged against national brands, real-time promotions and the ease of having food arrive to the students.
Human contact still matters
Yet for all the growth in digital ordering and cashless systems, students still value human interaction. Since the pandemic in particular, there has been a noticeable appetite for more personal, reassuring everyday experiences. Being able to ask what’s in a dish, understand where ingredients come from or discuss dietary needs directly still matters.
This shapes how food spaces feel. Visible kitchens, open counters, clear allergen communication and approachable front-of-house teams all influence whether an environment feels safe, inclusive and welcoming. Sustainability and ethical sourcing also increasingly factor into how students judge the places they choose to eat. Food spaces have become visible expressions of institutional values as much as service points.
Food as engagement
Food spaces now sit much closer to the centre of student engagement than they once did. Markets, pop-ups, live cooking and themed events help animate parts of campus that might otherwise fall quiet, encourage mixing between cohorts and create reasons for students to spend time in shared environments.
There is also growing recognition that students want a voice in shaping these spaces. Feedback platforms, menu trials and student panels allow rapid adjustment and avoid static, top-down assumptions about preferences. When students feel a sense of ownership over campus food spaces, they are more likely to use and protect them.
Looking ahead
With recruitment under pressure and students more price-conscious than previous cohorts, universities are entering a more competitive and uncertain phase. The overall student experience is under closer scrutiny, and every square metre of the estate is expected to work harder.
Catering spaces now play multiple roles at once. They support affordability and wellbeing, drive daytime and evening footfall, activate mixed-use buildings and contribute to how a campus feels to live in. The takeaway for estates managers should be that food has become part of the physical and emotional architecture of the modern university. How well it is integrated, supported and adapted will increasingly shape not just daily student life, but how institutions compete in a tightened market.
About Craig Stewart
Craig Stewart is the divisional managing director – stadia and universities, for Elior UK. He joined Elior in 2010, spending eight years as operational manager and one year as an operational director before taking on his current role. He has a demonstrated professional experience in the food and beverage industry and is skilled in menu engineering, catering, budgeting and operations management.