Aust-One Education Services

Important Changes to Student Visa Processes from 5th November

2011-11-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

The Genuine Temporary Entrant Requirement
This new requirement will affect all student visas, regardless of the student’s country of origin or assessment level. Each prospective student will be assessed on whether their individual circumstances indicate that their main aim is for a temporary stay in Australia and that their intention is to not stay in Australia after their studies. The Australian Immigration Department will look to identify people who are looking to come to Australia on a student visa for motives other than gaining an education: to work, migrate or seek asylum, for example.
At this point it is unclear how each student will be considered and the visa official will have to make a personal judgment. PIER recommends that if there is a possibility that a student may not be considered a “genuine student”, the agent should help them prepare a study plan for their education pathway in Australia and a statement of their intentions after they finish their studies to return home (or leave Australia). Note that undertakings to leave Australia following studies would not be binding, but would provide the visa officials with the information they need to make a positive decision.
Some examples that might cause a visa official to doubt that a student is genuine are:

The economic circumstances of the student gaining a particular qualification reduces the likelihood for them to return home, as they couldn’t make sufficient money in a related career in their home country.
The course considered is not consistent with their current level of education of the prospective student. For example, a graduate student seeks to undertake a trade qualification in an unrelated field.
If on a previous visit to Australia, they did not comply with the conditions of their visa.

While the intention of the criteria is to ensure that only individuals who are genuine students gain a student visa, it is likely that there will be variation in the way in which this requirement operates in practice. It will be helpful for all education agents to get information about how negative assessments of this requirement are being made.

Further information can be found http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-genuine-temporary-entrant.pdf
English Language Test – More options than IELTS
The Immigration Department will accept test scores from alternative English Language tests than IELTS. IELTS is still accepted.
The test equivalencies the department will be using are reproduced below:
Test score equivalencies for the alternative tests are provided below:

Test score equivalencies for the alternative tests are provided below: IELTS SCORE Band	4.0	4.5	5.0	5.5	6.0	6.5	7.0	7.5	8.0	8.5	9.0
Test of English as a Foreign Language internet based Test (TOEFL iBT)	31	32	35	46	60	79	94	102	110	115	118
PTE Academic	29	30	36	42	50	58	65	73	79	83	86
Cambridge English Advanced (CAE) from Cambridge ESOL test scores	32	36	41	47	52	58	67	74	80	87	93

Financial Easing of arrangements for Assessment Level 3 & 4

Students applying under AL 3 will need to supply evidence of 18 months of funds (rather than 24 months previously).
Students applying under AL 4 will need to supply evidence for 24 months of funds (rather than 36 months previously). If showing a cash deposit, the savings history will only be for 3 months (not 6 months as currently)
More information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-vet-schools-non-award.pdf

Removal of English Language Requirements for Assessment Level 4 ELICOS Students

Independent ELICOS (subclass 570) visa who are subject to AL 4 will no longer be required to provide evidence of an English language proficiency test to support their claims for the grant of a student visa.
AL 4 applicants for ELICOS courses must provide evidence of their English language proficiency to their proposed education provider rather than the department as is the case for all other assessment levels currently.
More Information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-elicos.pdf

PVA processing Finishes

AL 3 and AL 4 student visa applications made outside Australia will need to include CoEs as part of their student visa applications.
Education providers will no longer receive a PVA letter before issuing CoEs to students. This change is intended to reduce the time it takes to process a student visa.
More information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-visa-processing-improvements.pdf

Homestay Fees

Pre-paid formal homestay fees will be allowed to be included in the financial assessment process (but not pre-paid rental accommodation or private homestay arrangements).
More Information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-vet-schools-non-award.pdf

Further Changes to come

The government has proposed that the new streamlined visa processing arrangements for universities and post study work-rights will be implemented in the first half of 2012. However at this stage no further details have been released regarding this recommendation.

Source: PIER education agent bulletin

Updates: Aug, 2011

2011-09-03T18:06:00.000-07:00

Melbourne named world's most liveable city

Updated August 31, 2011 09:16:50

Melbourne has finally knocked Vancouver off its perch as the best city in the world to live in.

Melbourne claimed the title of the world's most liveable city in the Economist Intelligence Unit's latest survey, with Sydney, Perth and Adelaide also making it into the top 10.
It is the first time in almost a decade of the global liveability survey that Vancouver has not ranked as the best place to live.
Melbourne had shared first position with Vancouver in 2002 but finally nabbed the top spot in its own right in the August survey, released on Tuesday.
Economist Intelligence Unit survey editor Jon Copestake said Melbourne managed to move up one spot to claim the top ranking, thanks to a slight fall in Vancouver's infrastructure score, which is one of the measures of liveability.

Most liveable cities

1. Melbourne, Australia
2. Vienna, Austria
3. Vancouver, Canada
4. Toronto, Canada
5. Calgary, Canada
6. Sydney, Australia
7. Helsinki, Finland
8-- Perth, Australia
8-- Adelaide, Australia
10. Auckland, New Zealand
21. Brisbane, Australia

The Canadian city slipped to third spot, behind Vienna in Austria.
Sydney made it to sixth position in the London-based research company's latest ranking of 140 cities, from seventh in the February survey, while Perth and Adelaide again shared eighth place.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," Mr Copeland said in a statement.
"Despite the rising cost of living driven by the strong Australian dollar, these cities offer a range of factors to make them highly attractive."
Melbourne scored 97.5 per cent, just beating Vienna on 97.4 per cent and Vancouver on 97.3.
A ranking of 100 per cent is considered ideal.
Brisbane was number 21 on the survey, two spots ahead of Wellington but behind Auckland which was number 10.
The debt crisis in euro-zone countries led to a slight fall in European cities' liveability rankings.
Greek capital Athens dropped five places due to its austerity measures and civil unrest, with its 67th place putting it below cities in emerging economies such as Montevideo in Uruguay.
Expats working in Athens could now qualify for a hardship allowance, the survey said.
The survey said the Arab Spring uprisings and the Libyan civil war pushed down scores across the Middle East and North Africa, with the Libyan capital Tripoli falling into the bottom 10 for the first time.
Bottom place went to Harare in Zimbabwe, which scored 38.2 per cent.
The survey ranks 140 locations as having the best or the worst living conditions, with cities scored on political and social stability, crime rates, access to quality health care, cultural events, the environment, education and the standard of infrastructure.

Topics: lifestyle-and-leisure, travel-and-tourism, tourism, industry, melbourne-3000, vic, australia

First posted August 30, 2011 15:41:07

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-30/melbourne-wins-world27s-most-liveable-city/2862628

Updates: May, 2011

2011-05-30T05:53:00.001-07:00

Australia to increase skilled migrant visas

Release date: 26 May 2011

Australian government plans to increase visas in skilled migrant category that was targeted by cookery and hairdressing students by almost 30 per cent under its 2011-12 migration programme.
According to a report in 'The Australian' newspaper, the program projected over 29.6 per cent increase in independent skilled migrants, lifting the number of places to 44,350.
The government had been scrutinising this category after visa grants scam to low-skilled overseas students came into light, the report said.
The report quoted Monash University researcher Bob Birrell as saying that the extra spots were good news for former overseas students waiting for a decision on migration applications.
The government said the queue had shortened from 150,000-plus in May last year to just below 132,000 in April this year.
A tougher points test emphasising advanced skills and superior English starts on July 1.
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen spokesperson said it would take time for applicants under the new points test to make their presence felt in the system.
"While it is not possible to predict accurately, it is likely that initially a large proportion of skilled independent visas will be granted to people who are assessed under the old points test," she said.
These could include former overseas students whose professions, such as accountancy, were on the new, better targeted occupation list, Birrell said.
Universities Australia chief executive Glenn Withers said more places in the independent category, together with the new points test, would help universities replace retiring academics and hang on to promising post-graduate students.
When the new points test was foreshadowed last November, they had been working to reduce the dominance of the independent skilled category, departmental officials said.
"In 2006-07, the independent category was about 55 per cent of the (entire skilled] migration program. That's come down now. We're projecting it's going to come in at about 30 per cent in 2010-11, they added.
But in the 2011-12 program, the share allocated to the independent category rises to 35.2 per cent. And the employer-sponsored category gets only a modest 4.19 per cent increase to 46,000 places.
"That's quite striking in the light of rhetoric about favouring employer-sponsored migrants," Birrell added.
Bowen's spokeswoman said, "The decision to balance skilled migration planning levels between employer-sponsored and independent migration reflects macroeconomic conditions, the need for skills in key occupations, and the likely demand for various visas. Priority continues to go to employer-sponsored categories.
Source: Times of India

Updates: April, 2011

2011-04-14T21:52:00.000-07:00

International student visa assessment levels lowered in Aus

Release date: 11 Apr 2011

Melbourne Australian government has lowered the visa assessment levels for International students from 38 countries, including India, under which they would now be required to provide less documentary evidence to support their claims for the grant of visa.
International student visa assessment levels were lowered for 38 countries including India across one or more subclasses from April 2nd this year, according to official statement released recently.
In 2009-10, there were 270,499 student visas granted across the seven subclasses, with 382,710 student visa holders in the country as of 30 June 2010, of whom 80,450 were from India, 80, 010 were from China and 21,720 were from South Korea.
The assessment levels are periodically reviewed and adjusted to reflect changing immigration risk outcomes.
Following the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) review in 2010, the government has decided to implement changes to reduce some student visa assessment levels.
A student visa entitles international students to come to Australia on a temporary basis for a specified period to study at an Australian educational institution.
"Prospective students and their families, agents and education providers should be aware that these changes will lower the minimum evidentiary requirements needed for the grant of a student visa for the selected countries and education sectors," a DIAC spokesman said in the statement.
"However, the reductions to assessment levels do not change the likelihood of a former student in Australia obtaining permanent residence. While many international students apply for permanent residence when they complete their studies, this is an entirely separate process and there is no guarantee that, on the basis of having held a student visa, a person will meet the requirements to be granted permanent residence," he said.
The skilled migration programme is designed to meet the needs of the Australian labour market and strengthen the economy.
Requirements for permanent skilled migration will change from time to time and there is no particular course that guarantees a permanent visa.
"Students should not make educational choices solely on the basis of expecting to achieve a particular migration outcome, because the skilled migration programme will continue to change and adapt to Australia's economic needs," the spokesman said.
Applicants will be required to provide less documentary evidence to support their claims for the grant of a student visa. These may include evidence of English language proficiency, financial capacity and academic qualifications.
Meanwhile, a report in 'The Australian' newspaper has criticised the federal government for not changing the IELTS English test that is prerequisite for granting student visa after a onshore fraud was caught at a test centre in Perth.
At the Curtin IELTS test centre, former staffer Keith Low admitted taking 1500 dollars to falsify results for overseas students including from India needing better English test results to qualify for permanent residency as skilled migrants.
The report said that Low sometimes changed scores on original IELTS test papers.
Eileen Tyson, whose US-based TOEFL test has been lobbying against the monopoly since 2005, said the falsification of results at the Curtin University centre "highlights the need for alternative testing methods", the report said adding both TOEFL and the new Pearson test claim their systems are not open to the manipulation seen at Curtin.

Source: South Asia Mail

Overseas student intake falls

Release date: 07 Apr 2011

INTERNATIONAL student enrolments have dropped again, with the federal government recording a 2.5 per cent fall on last February's results.
The figures, out this week, will do little to quell fears that the slump is set to continue into 2012.
The fall is a sharp contrast to the average February growth rates for enrolments since 2002 of 10 per cent per year.
Advertisement: Story continues below The biggest drop was in the vocational sector - which includes courses such as cooking and hairdressing - with a 21.5 per cent fall in enrolments.
Indian student numbers took another hit, with enrolments from that country across all sectors dropping 30.3 per cent on February 2010. India is still the second biggest market for international education, with a 12.3 per cent share, behind China on 30.5 per cent - up 8.2 per cent on last year.
But the sector is also concerned that the rising Australian dollar will prolong the slump, as destinations such as the United States become price competitive.
Simon Marginson from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at Melbourne University said the rising dollar combined with high costs of living in capital cities would make it more difficult to persuade potential students to choose Australia.
''[Because of the cost of living and housing] you would find there would be places in Australia that are more expensive than the US,'' he said.
''The cost advantage has clearly narrowed.''
Professor Marginson said federal government visa changes last year were a bigger problem than the rising dollar, but that the two combined would cause a lot of potential students to look elsewhere.
China, one of Australia's largest source markets for international students, would look to places such as the United States and Canada if problems surrounding visa processing were not fixed, he said.
''The US has a prestige advantage and if the cost trend is working against us and the US retains its prestige advantage, then that makes things difficult for us.''
Universities Australia chief Glenn Withers said he expected the slump to continue through 2011 and into the future. ''All indications suggest a significant downturn in student commencements for 2011 and for the immediate future,'' he said.
Dr Withers said the problem had been caused by visa changes, the rising dollar, aggressive competition in the international student market and image problems including the recent attacks on international students.
He said there was no evidence the dollar was the decisive factor but it was ''a compounding influence given the more troubling impact of the changes to migration rules and regulations and the reputation damage inflicted by the student safety issues and college closures,'' he said.
Source: The Age

Updates: March, 2011

2011-03-21T21:54:00.000-07:00

Extend tougher language standards

Release date: 22 Mar 2011

Alex Barthel, public officer of the Association for Academic Language and Learning, said pathway students, who gain university entry on the assumption they are adequately prepared, are often the weakest performers.

"The sooner the standards are brought in the better, because it is something that needs to be cleaned up," Mr Barthel said.

The number of universities carrying out post-enrolment language assessment to get a truer understanding of skills among students has increased from 18 in 2008 to 25.

Mr Barthel said a draft of English-language standards was submitted to the federal government last year, but they have not yet been released for consultation. The steering group that developed the standards, and of which he was a member, had been asked by the government to toughen good practice principles into standards that could be applied by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency.

The draft sets out standards that describe universities' responsibility to ensure students have adequate English skills and support, early diagnosis of poor performance and the integration of English language learning into the curriculum. The proposed standards would apply to all, not just international, students.

Fellow steering group member Sophie Arkoudis from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne, said the inclusion of attainment strategies should be considered, which could be measured in a variety of ways. These include embedding English standards in assessment practices and including it in peer review benchmarking.

Dr Arkoudis said it was important the standards fitted into the new framework being developed by TEQSA.

Mr Barthel said development of the principles had raised awareness of the issue and the sector was putting more effort into English language provision, but more needed to be done.

Since 2008, the number of universities providing English tutoring had increased from 16 to 23 last year, and 37 universities provide generic English language units such as essay writing, up from 28.

There is also a trend to embed English language learning in discipline-specific courses.

The 2008 good practice principles define language proficiency as "the ability to organise language to carry out a variety of communication tasks [and] distinguishes the use of English language proficiency from a narrow focus on correct use of grammar and sentence structure".

"The guidelines have had a desired effect. Standards are the next step," Dr Arkoudis said.

Source: The Australian

Visa centre corruption probe

Release date: 22 Mar 2011

The Corruption and Crime Commission revealed yesterday that it was investigating possible corruption at Curtin University's English language testing centre in Perth, but indicated the probe would also examine other testing centres.

Curtin vice-chancellor Jeanette Hacket said the university became aware of possible misconduct at its centre last year and immediately referred it to the CCC.

She said the officer who triggered the alarm was no longer working there.

Curtin's testing is primarily used for immigration visas.

The CCC said public hearings would begin next week to investigate whether any past or present public officer engaged in misconduct and whether the International English Language Testing System had been compromised.

It said the policies, practices and operating environment at the Curtin centre would all be examined to determine if they were sufficient to deter corruption. Professor Hacket said the university was working with the CCC to ensure any misconduct was detected and able to be prevented.

Source: The Australian

What international students want to study

Release date: 21 Mar 2011

Predicting where future international students will come from and what subjects they go abroad to study has become a mini-industry in receiving countries such as Britain and Australia, where some courses are highly dependent on overseas student fees.
Delegates and experts at the British Council's Going Global conference, held in Hong Kong from 11-12 March, agreed that demand for overseas courses from Asian students will carry on rising.
"Overall demand for international education will continue to grow in the low single digits in the next decade," said Tony Pollock (pictured), Chief Executive of IDP Education, an international student placement service.
However, subject choices may be changing as sending countries like China and India become more affluent, students from Singapore prefer to study at their own excellent universities and Malaysia reduces the number of government scholarships for students on expensive overseas courses.
Medicine and related courses in the West have long been popular with students from India, Malaysia and Hong Kong, while business-related degrees and engineering have been the top choice for students from China, Taiwan and Vietnam.
This is according to a survey of 5,000 prospective international students in 14 countries by Hotcourses, a web-based company that advises students on course choice internationally.
Students from Pakistan are looking for high quality courses in engineering and technology, and Indonesian students are looking at the natural sciences.
South Korean students, on the other hand, go abroad to study creative arts and design, while students from India and Malaysia are interested in social sciences and communications, said Mike Elms, Chief Executive of Hotcourses.
However, patterns are changing in key markets such as China, which last year sent 440,000 students to study abroad, overtaking India as the top sending country.
Prospective students from major Chinese cities may be broadening out the subjects they want to study abroad, according to research by the British Council - information which could also be important for decisions by a number newly emerging regional higher educational hubs on what courses to offer to attract international students.
The British Council's Education Intelligence Unit research into prospective students' intentions in the coming years found that there have been shifts in the most popular subjects chosen for study in the UK in the last two to three years.
Students from China are still most likely to study business administration and engineering and technology at overseas universities, but growth in the number of students selecting these subjects is slowing while students from China wanting to study mass communication and documentation, and creative arts and design, has shown much bigger growth.
"We were trying to capture the student decision-making process before the student embarks on a course," said Janet Illieva, head of research at the British Council in Hong Kong. "For China we have seen decreased demand for engineering."
"There has been a shift in demand towards non-traditional subjects in China at the city level," she said. This was most evident in large cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. "We think this is because of the rise in the middle class in these cities. While in the medium-sized cities, there is definitely a rise in those who say they want to study engineering."
For example, one in four prospective international students in the city of Shenyang want to pursue engineering. In Nanjing, Xi'an and Chengdu the rise was 17% to 18%, taking over where Beijing was a decade ago. These are also cities where there has been a rise in heavy industry and manufacturing, Illieva said.
Students from China saying they want to study mass communication has risen by 81% since 2008, a possible reflection of the burgeoning use of the internet. Prospective Chinese students wanting to study creative arts has risen by 54% during the same period, compared to 25% to 29% growth for business and engineering. Architecture, building and planning has seen 35% growth in interest from China in the last two years.
Mass communication has soared to become the third most popular choice for Chinese students wanting to study overseas, rising from 8th most popular in 2006-07. Creative arts has risen to fifth place behind social studies compared to ninth place in 2006-07.
The findings have implications for universities hoping to replace declining applications at home with students from overseas, particularly in science and engineering.
But Hotcourses' Mike Elms said the key motivator for students looking for courses abroad is "to get a better education. They want a higher quality course than is available to them in their own (education) market," he said.
Source: University World News

Updates: February, 2011

2011-02-24T22:05:00.000-08:00

Relief as draft TEQSA legislation released

Release date: 25 Feb 2011

The release of draft legislation to establish the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency by tertiary education minister Chris Evans is the first time debate on its content will be extended beyond the previous closed door consultations.
Peter Coaldrake, chair of Universities Australia, issued a statement roundly welcoming its release and the majority of its content, describing it as "sound and workable".
But he said there were still concerns about universities' ability to self-accredit courses and several transitional issues which still needed to be addressed.
But postgraduate students are frustrated that some of the language on standards in the legislation has been watered down in the effort to allay university concerns over autonomy. Students now fear that there will be little in the new system to ensure the quality of postgraduate courses.
In particular students are disappointed that the legislation has dropped a specific reference to TEQSA being able to use "maintaining a particular student/teacher ratio" as a possible condition of registration. It has been replaced with the vauger "maintaining a particular staffing profile."
Tammi Jonas, policy advisor at the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations said the change "doesn't instill a lot of confidence that coursework postgrads will be ensured a high quality experience in smaller classes."
"While we would be loathe to see universities lose their relative autonomy, as public institutions they must be held accountable for providing a quality experience for students. We're not sure the draft legislation assures this yet," she said.
"If the provider standards don't really address real standards for minimum resources, then the new body is of very little interest to postgraduates," she said.
Final provider standards are still being developed with a third-draft expected to be released soon.
Senator Evans said the legislation would be introduced into Parliament on the week of 21 March and he would also refer it to a senate committee.
"This is important legislation for the future of higher education in Australia and it is important that it be subjected to scrutiny and debate," he said in a statement.
"As higher education goes through a period of expansion, it is important for Australia to have a national system of regulation to assure the quality of all providers."
Jeannie Rea, national president of the National Tertiary Education Union, said significant gains had been made in negotiations about the legislation and was particularly encouraged by the inclusion of provisions that would minimise red tape and ensure "the regulation of standards and quality are risk based and proportionate". In other words, private providers will be subject to more scrutiny than established universities.
Opposition higher education spokesman Brett Mason also supported the legislation, saying "at first blush [it] has much to commend it".
"Australia's higher education sector is simply too small and too inter-connected to sensibly have a multiplicity of [state and national] regulators."
Source: The Australian

Push for probe on foreign student 'rip-off'

Release date: 25 Feb 2011

AUSTRALIA'S elite crime fighting body has recommended an investigation into an alleged rip-off of foreign students at a private education provider in Melbourne, amid claims that regulation of the industry is failing.
The intervention of the Australian Crime Commission in the case raises fears that the thousands of international students in the booming education market are vulnerable to exploitation by bodgey operators.
In a confidential June report, an ACC officer warned also that illegal-sex-trade players could abuse student visas to bring people to Australia.
The June report outlined allegations that the International Business and Hospitality Institute (IBH) in Melbourne, set up by two Chinese businessmen in November 2005, may be exploiting overseas students and be involved in criminal conduct.
It is believed the report also raised concerns that measures to police the overseas-student trade appeared inadequate.
But eight months after the report recommended state and federal authorities investigate, IBH remains fully accredited.
Former IBH student Ivy Xu from China told The Age that, despite paying $6000 for a cookery course, she was told to take business studies. She said those classes ended prematurely last year and she was told to take a long holiday. Another former IBH student, Wendy Meng Ying, said she was told to take long holidays after being taught the same lessons repeatedly.
The ACC prepared the report after meeting a former senior IBH manager, Robert Palmer, who alleged that education and immigration authorities had not investigated concerns he had raised with them in June.
The Federal Government oversees the international education industry, but largely relies on states to police the sector.
Mr Palmer told The Age he contacted the ACC after the state regulator, the Victorian Office of Training and Tertiary Education (OTTE), appeared uninterested in claims that up to 30 Chinese students had been duped into handing over thousands of dollars for substandard training and classes.
As recently as a fortnight ago ? seven months after Mr Palmer made his first complaint ? IBH's Chinese students were being told to remain on holidays. The students also said they were refused fee refunds.
Mr Palmer, a veteran teacher who is taking legal action against IBH to reclaim allegedly unpaid debts, said the failure of education authorities to act quickly had left students open to exploitation.
"I am very, very disappointed with OTTE. It is the regulator, although when you go to it to complain, you don't even get acknowledgement.
"Only the crime commission took the time to hear my complaint. It thought there was substance to it and handed it on to the Australian Federal Police," Mr Palmer said.
An AFP spokesman last night confirmed it had received the ACC report. He said that in November, the AFP had assessed it and sent it to the immigration department.
The Victorian OTTE's director, Terry Stokes, said the regulator had conducted audits of the school last year and the school had agreed to an overhaul. He said an investigation into IBH continued and his office had recently met IBH's representatives to discuss concerns.
The chief executive of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training, Tim Smith, said he had heard of complaints about IBH only when he was contacted by OTTE a week ago.
Mr Smith said the council, which represents 11,000 education providers, took immediate action to help relocate the small number of students still enrolled at IBH.
"IBH had failed to meet the obligations to its students. We put the students first and are helping them move to other providers," he said.
Immigration consultant Bob Kinnaird said quality control of the $5 billion overseas-student education market was struggling. "It is growing like topsy but the enforcement levels are not keeping up to the pace of growth," he said.
The International Business and Hospitality Institute was set up by 22-year-old Huang "Michael" Fu and 47-year old Guanxi "Jeff" Lui.
Mr Fu claimed to have been backed by several major Chinese-based investors who wanted to set up a "world-class" education facility for overseas students that offered English, business and hospitality courses.
Mr Fu hired Mr Palmer to help the institute get the state accreditation needed to tap into the international student market.
But in May last year, three months after the business was registered and began charging students, Mr Palmer and several other teachers were dismissed and staff began to complain about the poor standard of teaching.
Mr Fu refused to be interviewed by The Age, citing his poor English and lack of current knowledge about his own business because he had been living in China.
But he denied his school had been involved in any criminal activity. In written responses to questions, he said the school had been run properly until late last year and if there were problems, they were caused by Mr Palmer's three months at the school in 2006.
But Mr Palmer complained to the state regulator and the immigration department shortly after he left the school and the audits critical of IBH were conducted months after his departure.
Mr Palmer said promises to provide proper teaching material, furniture and equipment were ignored by the institute and that questions surrounded the withdrawal of thousands of dollars from the student's trust fund.
Documents given to The Age appear to support Mr Palmer's claim that some contracts sent to students had forged signatures.
"Not only were the documents false that were given to prospective students, but the students had got visas on the basis of those documents only to find out the courses they had been offered did not match up (when they got to Australia)," said Mr Palmer."
The IBH allegations follow other scandals involving education providers and overseas students. Earlier this month, The Age revealed that Chinese nurses on training visas were being used illegally to cover shifts at nursing homes.
Top 10 nationalities

China 13,429
India 11,209
Malaysia 5768
Indonesia 3672
Hong Kong 3007
Singapore 2419
Sri Lanka 1575
Thailand 1469
Republic of Korea 866

Japan 706
Other 9681
TOTAL 53,801

Source: The Age

Student accommodation too costly

Release date: 24 Feb 2011

International students are mostly satisfied with studying in Australia, but a large minority say the costs of accommodation and living are too high, a survey has found.
The International Student Barometer, a survey for Universities Australia, the peak representative body for universities, received responses from more than 36,000 international students and was conducted at the height of tensions over visa changes and safety concerns, which resulted in international student numbers plummeting.
It found 86 per cent of students were satisfied with their education and 76 per cent would recommend their university. But 40 per cent of students were unhappy with the cost of accommodation, and 39 per cent said general living costs were too high.
Advertisement: Story continues below "Despite satisfaction with living overall, cost is an issue. The cost of accommodation, cost of living, difficulty finding employment [and] visa advice all emerge as concerns," the survey says.
Universities Australia chief executive Glenn Withers said the survey showed most international students had a good experience studying in Australia. But he said universities should not take the results for granted.
"We do not and must not see the world through rose-coloured glasses. The ISB survey also confirms there is no room for complacency and still room for improvement," Mr Withers said.
The survey found a significant increase in concern over accommodation costs in 2010, which was partially attributed to the global financial crisis.
Its authors warned that continued economic gloom could affect the choices of potential students in the future.
"The effects of the recession still linger, the Australian dollar is still high, and the accommodation market generally tight. Should this economic environment carry through into 2011 the sector will face a continuing challenge and this will affect demand from China," the survey said.
China is the top source country for international students coming to Australia, and universities successfully lobbied the federal government to amend visa processing for Chinese student applicants in December over concerns onerous financial requirements would cripple the market.
Source: The Age

Migrant tribunals under resource pressure

Release date: 21 Feb 2011

pplications to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) are up 26 per cent while applications to the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) are up 32 per cent.
"Our workload is increasing," tribunals head Denis O'Brien told a Senate estimates hearing.
More than 5900 applications were lodged with the MRT and 1646 with the RRT in the financial year to January 31.
Decisions in the RRT were up 31 per cent in the same period, with 75 per cent made within the recommended 90 day period. The average decision time was 95 days.
But decisions in the MRT were down 28 per cent in the same period, Mr O'Brien conceded.
"The decrease in MRT decision output - despite the increase in lodgements - is principally due to the substantial increase in our RRT work to which we must give priority," he said.
"Can I say that our resource difficulties have been exacerbated by the recent loss of a number of experienced RRT members."
Eight tribunal members had taken leave of absences for placements inside the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, he said.
As at January 31 there were 829 active cases before the RRT and 9731 before the MRT.
"We just can't afford to let that backlog continually increase without trying to address it," Mr O'Brien said.
Mr O'Brien said he hoped to have new staff in place by the middle of the year.
The increase in MRT applications was due in large part to a massive increase in student visa review applications sparked by recent law changes, Mr O'Brien said.
The MRT reviews departmental decisions made on general visas while the RRT reviews decisions made on protection visas.
Source: The Courier Mail

Updates: December, 2010

2010-12-17T01:28:00.000-08:00

Universities hit hard by slump in foreign students

Release date: 16 Dec 2010

The latest Federal Government figures show a 1.4 per cent decline in enrolments since this time last year for a sector that has grown almost 11 per cent a year for the past eight years.
International students make up about a quarter of all university enrolments in Australia, so any reduction in intake has a serious impact on the bottom line.
Monash University is Australia's largest university and has more international students than any other.
Vice-chancellor Professor Ed Byrne says enrolments in English language courses at Monash College are down 30 per cent.
With half of those students typically migrating to full-fee-paying university places, that is a substantial loss of income.
"For next year, we're about $40 million on the income side away from where we'd hoped to be," he said.
Monash has just approved 359 redundancies to improve its budget forecast for next year.
Jennie Lang is pro-vice-chancellor international at the University of New South Wales. She says the decline in student numbers is worrying.
"In some instances, the downturn will initially be small and will be handled on the margins. In other universities it will be catastrophic," she said.
China is Australia's biggest market for international students, with India a close second.
Government data shows Indian student enrolments are down 17 per cent on this time last year.
The high Australian dollar has increased competition from the US and UK, but Ms Lang says recent changes to immigration rules are also to blame.
"There's been really significant problems about the messages we used in the election campaign to do with migration and whether or not Australia wants to grow its population," she said.
"That's been interpreted in our major source countries in Asia as Australia now sort of moving away from having international students and migrants."
'Perceived racism'
Ms Lang says there is also a perception that Australia is not as welcoming as it could be to international students.
"We've been picking that up in a number of countries that we've been visiting this year," she said.
Spokesman for the Federation of Indian Students of Australia, Gautam Gupta, agrees with the assessment.
"I think everything plays a role. High Australian dollar obviously contributes, as for migration laws again, definitely a reason," he said.
"The biggest problem is the lack of confidence in the Australian Government and the lack of ability to stem the increasing violence."
Professor Byrne agrees perceived racism against Indian students has had an impact.
"We have a really good idea of this because of interviews with students and with our many agents throughout Asia," he said.
"So in South Asia, initially there were cultural safety factors as perceived in India. Now they've been addressed very vigorously by the Federal Government and by the university sector.
"I think cultural safety and a mutual understanding is being built up. It will take a few years to completely get over that hiccup but we'll get there.
"The Indian market was also very migration-focused and the new migration criteria I think have affected that market also."
But Professor Byrne is hopeful the downturn is not indicative of a long-term trend and that enrolment numbers from all overseas markets will have improved by 2013.
"I don't think there is going to be a decline in the long run," he said.
"Remember that the number of people who live in families that can afford university education privately in Asia is predicted to grow from something like 300 million today to over 1.4 billion in 10 years' time.
"The current international student market from Asia, especially China, is growing at more than 30 per cent a year and I think that's predicted to continue into the future.
"So this market is going to grow internationally for many, many years."
Source: ABC News

Entry requirements lowered

Release date: 17 Dec 2010

The decision is in response to collapsing demand in the international education market.
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen and Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans yesterday announced the changes for students applying to Australian universities, including from the multi-billion-dollar Indian and Chinese markets.
At present, university applicants from both countries must prove they or a close relative can provide three years' worth of money to support their study in Australia. Under the changes, students would only require two years' worth.
The change is designed to deal with a drop in applications across the $18 billion international education business, following tougher immigration restrictions imposed to stop students with poor English using low-skill vocational courses as a fast track to permanent residence.
Since the system was tightened in February, private sector training colleges catering for the international market have collapsed. But universities dependent on foreign income also warn demand is drying up.
Central Queensland University, where international students account for almost half of total enrolments, is expecting a 25 per cent drop in commencing overseas students both next year and in 2012.
Earlier this week, Monash University, Australia's largest international education provider, announced 350 redundancies in response to a 30 per cent drop in demand in its university preparation college, which relies on foreign students.
Senator Evans said the drop in demand was due to the high Australian dollar and increased competition from the US, Canada and New Zealand.
Both the training and university sectors say the fall-off is largely due to long application processing periods and strict visa restrictions that require potential students to prove they have about $100,000 to meet tuition fees and living expenses.
In contrast, competing English-speaking countries generally require a quarter of that amount.
According to Jennie Lang, pro vice-chancellor international at the University of NSW and spokeswoman for peak lobby group Universities Australia, the Gillard government's concession is "a very positive measure".
The government has also established a review chaired by former NSW Labor minister Michael Knight to review student visas, which Ms Lang said should recommend a new program to allow foreign graduates of local universities to stay in Australia for several years. This would improve their employment chances when they returned home, she said.
Source: The Australian

New federal review of student visa program

Release date: 17 Dec 2010

The move is being welcomed by the education and business sectors.
Earlier this year, a review of Australia's international education sector found there had been an emphasis on revenue rather than quality in some institutions.
The review's chairman, former Liberal MP Bruce Baird, labelled them "permanent residency factories".
Mr Baird's findings led the Federal Government to tighten up student visa requirements.
That crackdown, along with adverse publicity about attacks on students, the strong dollar, and global economic conditions has seen a sharp drop in the number of students coming to Australia to study.
Now under pressure from educators and business, the Federal Government has announced another review, specifically of the student visa program.
Universities Australia says it is a breakthrough for the troubled industry.
"We think it is important now to look at student visas more strategically and to also ensure that the policy settings actually support the students that we are hoping to attract particularly to our universities," said spokeswoman Jennie Lang from the University of New South Wales-International.
"We would like to see the financial impost that is placed on a number of students applying to study in Australia significantly reduced so that what we require is in line with what the US or the UK require.
"We would also like to see the Australian Government start to look at some interesting packages.
"We understand that it was important to break education from migration but at the same time we would really like to see students who are the best students come to Australia and if they so wish, remain in our country for two or three years to work in a professional area and then return home or abroad with a first rate degree."
The drop in overseas student enrolments has also worried the Business Council of Australia, which has welcomed news of the review.
"With the existing visa program, there seems to be some inconsistency with the way it applies to foreign students from different countries," policy director Patrick Coleman said.
"We understand that there are issues that need to be examined in relation to how Australia's visa system compares to countries like the United Kingdom and like America, we need to make sure that we are competitive with those countries.
"Also, the amount of money that students have to demonstrate that they have available and the amount of evidence that they need to provide to support their claims for a visa are all issues that need to be considered."
Mr Coleman says it is essential to strike a balance between a strong, profitable sector and one that is not simply used as a means to permanent residency.
"It is important to also have integrity with the visa system and so it is a careful balancing act," he said.
"We think that if we focus on student visa changes that are linked to high-quality educational institutions and high-quality courses then that may provide the correct balance."
Former NSW Labor MP Michael Knight will chair the review of the student visa program.
The Federal Government is expecting his report by mid next year.

Source: ABC News

Sector pins hopes on TEQSA legislation

Release date: 17 Dec 2010

This follows a "constructive" confidential meeting in Canberra on Monday.
"The commonwealth has sought to respond constructively to each of the issues we raised," Universities Australia chairman and Queensland University of Technology vice-chancellor Peter Coaldrake said.
"We are hopeful and encouraging the government to release a draft at an appropriate point in January," he said. Such a release would help build confidence and trust in the process.
Meanwhile, interim Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency chairwoman Denise Bradley has unveiled details of what to expect as TEQSA gears up to start work as a quality assurance agency from July 1 and as a full-blown regulator from January 1, 2012.
Professor Bradley said several projects would be under way by the new year to clarify how TEQSA would "operate with a risk-based, proportionate approach using threshold standards". "All [these projects] will produce papers for widespread discussion in the higher education sector," she said.
"One of the principles enunciated in all discussions with the peak bodies is that the standards will be developed in partnership with the sector."
One discussion paper on teaching and learning standards would draw on expert advice, a review of international practice and on work funded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council.
Another paper would deal with regulation of dual-sector institutions, while three projects to do with research standards had begun already. Development of the My University website had begun.
An early priority would be appointment of TEQSA's commissioners, once legislation for the new agency had passed through parliament in autumn.
The closed-door and confidential nature of talks on TEQSA's draft legislation has irritated the sector. After a two-day, budget lock-up-style meeting in November, the government was forced to delay finalising the legislation.
Sector representatives had expressed concerns about the punitive powers of the regulator and threats to university autonomy.
But this week's meeting appears to have eased many concerns.
Professor Coaldrake said talks had been productive and he was hopeful of a decent outcome.
Ahead of the meeting, a spokesman for Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans said much of the feedback from the sector had been "directed at ensuring the government's objective, that TEQSA's regulatory approach should be both risk-based and proportionate, is brought to life in its establishing legislation.
"This is an area in which the government acknowledges that there are some complex issues, thus the need for an extended period of consultation with the sector before the legislation is made public."
Other vice-chancellors at Monday's meeting were the Australian Catholic University's Greg Craven and Deakin's Jane den Hollander. There were also deputy vice-chancellors from several other universities, including Group of Eight universities such as the universities of Melbourne, Queensland and NSW.
Source: The Australian

Updates: November, 2010

2010-11-24T22:11:00.000-08:00

Australia Releases International Students Strategy

Release date: 03 Nov 2010

The Strategy outlines 12 initiatives to address four key areas of concern including: international student wellbeing, consumer protection, the quality of international education and the availability of better information for international students.
In April this year, COAG committed to a range of practical initiatives to better support international students, as part of the Strategy. These include:

A national community engagement strategy that will facilitate connections between international students and the broader community, including increased understanding of rights and support services;

The development of an International Student Consultative Committee in the first half of 2011;

The Study in Australia information portal, which has been providing authoritative, comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date information for current and prospective students on studying and living in Australia. The portal has been active since 1 July 2010, with information in 12 languages.

Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC), which is now compulsory for international students for the proposed duration of their student visit, not just their first year.

Other measures outlined in the Strategy include international student surveys, the requirement for providers to develop student safety plans, the establishment of provider closure taskforces, and a strengthened Australian Quality Training Framework and Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act.
Senator Evans said the Strategy will help promote a broader understanding of the benefits brought by international education to Australia and the countries from which international students come.
“It will also place Australia’s international education on a more sustainable basis,” he said.
“This approach complements the Government’s response to the Baird Review and builds on initiatives undertaken at all levels of government to improve international students’ experiences in Australia.”
The Strategy is available on the Council of Australian Governments’ website at www.coag.gov.au.
Source: The GovMonitor

Overseas student strategy criticised

Release date: 04 Nov 2010

AUSTRALIA'S human rights watchdog has attacked the federal government's international student strategy for failing to tackle significant problems.
Released last week, the government's plan is designed to address problems in the sector hit with a significant drop in enrolments and visa applications over the past two years.
The Australian Human Rights Commission's race discrimination commissioner, Graeme Innes, said the strategy overlooked crucial problems. He named transport concessions and safe and affordable housing and safety policies.
Advertisement: Story continues below The strategy, developed by the Council of Australian Governments, includes a community engagement strategy to tackle isolation and social problems.
Mr Innes said the strategy needed more detail.
"I'd like clarity around … how it will be resourced,'' he said.
International students are denied transport concessions in Victoria and New South Wales.
Mr Innes said he was disappointed this had not been canvassed in the strategy.
He also called for police with specialised knowledge around international student safety, specific strategies for female international students to tackle sexual violence and sexual harassment.
Meanwhile, Higher Education Minister Chris Evans, who is in China, said there were ''early signs now that demand from China is dropping off'''.
But he said universities should not expect a government bailout if the drop affected their budget bottom line. ''It's not a question of the government picking up the tab for that loss of revenue, they'll have to adjust their businesses.''
Chinese students represent about 25 per cent of the market, but universities say competition from the United States and Britain is putting pressure on enrolments.
Monash University has projected a 10 per cent drop in international students next year.
Source: The Age

High dollar hurting student numbers

Release date: 05 Nov 2010

The Australian dollar was sustained above parity yesterday and Victorian Premier John Brumby warned that the visa crackdown had gone too far.
International education is Victoria's largest export industry at $5.8bn. But the state's once-booming private college sector, which was driven by students seeking permanent residency, is braced for collapses and job losses in the wake of tighter immigration rules and the soaring dollar.
Some desperate private colleges have cut the price of a one-year diploma of business from $8500 to just $3500 in a bid to poach students, The Australian has been told.
The visa crackdown was aimed at stopping immigration rorts and student exploitation at some colleges. But Mr Brumby, who faces an election on November 27, said while a tightening had been needed, the visa changes had gone too far.

"I think some of these things can be addressed by some fine-tuning to the visa requirements," Mr Brumby told Sky News.
In China, promoting Australia to our largest student market, federal Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans said the rising dollar was hurting the industry, increasing the price of Australian qualifications by 50 per cent since the start of last year.
But Monash University vice-chancellor Ed Byrne said the key problem was that visa conditions required students to hold money in deposits to cover course fees and living expenses, the cost of which is being hiked by the dollar.
"We can't do much about a high dollar but it would be fairly straightforward to look at the appropriate financial conditions attached to a visa," he said.
Central Queensland University vice-chancellor Scott Bowman has budgeted for a 20-25 per cent drop in new international students next year. He said the government should consider more quickly phasing in improved funding for the sector.
An internal comparison of student visa regimes, compiled by a university and obtained by The Australian on the condition it was not named, shows that a Chinese student wanting to study a business degree in Australia faces having to hold almost $140,000 in the bank for six months to meet visa requirements.
That compares with Britain, where a student wanting to study at a comparable university would need only $28,000 held in the bank for 28 days.
Source: The Australian

Govt told to ease up on foreign students

Release date: 22 Nov 2010

Australia is predicted to lose $3.8 billion by 2012 because the Government is making it too hard for international students to study here, educators say.
The acting chief executive of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training, Claire Field, says the nation has experienced a 31per cent downturn in international student visas granted over the past 18 months.
Negative publicity over dodgy education providers and violent attacks on Indian students had initially contributed to the downfall.
But the Government had overcome those issues and much larger barriers were now in play.
Ms Field said the Government was making it almost impossible for students to get into the country, with many forced to save up to $100,000 before being allowed to apply.
''For a student wanting to come and study in Australia, to do a three-year course, they have to put aside $18,000 a year for living expenses, plus all their course fees for three whole years,'' she said.
''Plus, they have to have that money in the bank for six full months before they can apply for a visa.''
Ms Field said this process was abominable considering those wanting to study in Britain only had to save enough to cover their living expenses and course costs for the first nine to 12 months.
To add to the drama, an Australian student visa took up to six months to process compared with four to six weeks in the United States, Canada or Britain.
''People are making the rational decision not to wait in queues for their application to be processed. They're taking their money and the dreams elsewhere,'' she said.
The decline was also having a drastic effect on the education sector, with a number of institutions forced to lay off staff and others considering closing their doors.
Source: The Canberra Times

Cry for help over fall in enrolments

Release date: 23 Nov 2010

EDUCATION groups who had discussions with senior ministers said they were optimistic the Gillard government would shore up Australia's ailing international education industry.
Members of education, business and tourism organisations travelled to Canberra yesterday to meet the Immigration Minister, Chris Bowen, the Trade Minister, Craig Emerson and the Coalition's universities spokesman, Brett Mason, to press for changes to support the sector.
The industry, which is the nation's most valuable service export and was worth $18.6 billion last year, is reeling from a drop in international enrolments due to factors including the strength of the dollar, changes to visa and migration rules and the damage done to its reputation by attacks on Indian students.
Offshore student visa grants have fallen more than 30 per cent in the past year and universities are cutting staff and budgets to make up for a shortfall in revenue from international students.
Education groups want the visa rules that require prospective students to have more than $100,000 in the bank to be relaxed. They also want swifter and more transparent processing of applications and greater efforts to promote Australia as a study destination.
Claire Field, the acting chief executive of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training, said she was pleased the ministers understood the difficulties the sector faced.e
''They understand that Australia is out of step with competitor countries and they understand the consequences of no further change. We are looking forward to and hopeful of both short-term and long-term changes.''
Mr Emerson said he was keen to work with his ministerial colleagues and the industry to address their concerns.
''Our meeting today was focused and productive - focused on the various pressures bearing upon education exports and productive in agreeing to a results-oriented engagement with Austrade in promoting our education services,'' he said.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Watchdog plan for student rights

Release date: 23 Nov 2010

AN INDEPENDENT watchdog with the power to investigate every aspect of the international student market, from shonky colleges to poor-quality housing, would be appointed by a Coalition government.
Opposition tertiary education spokesman Peter Hall will today pledge to reform the international education industry in Victoria, following a dramatic decline in enrolments and reports of colleges treating students as cash cows and providing substandard qualifications.
A Baillieu government would appoint an ombudsman with the power to oversee both public and private colleges and the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority, which is responsible for monitoring the performance of Victoria's almost 1200 vocational education providers.
Advertisement: Story continues below Mr Hall said the authority, which was criticised by the Auditor-General this year for failing to ensure colleges were up to scratch, was currently required to investigate complaints against its own processes. ''The industry needs an ombudsman with the powers to … report on the tertiary education sector without fear or favour,'' he said.
He said strict regulation and strong oversight was required to better deal with unscrupulous operators.
The Coalition would also establish a My School-style website for all training colleges in Victoria, which would include information on courses offered, fees, whether the institution was public or private, the history of the provider, staff qualifications, facilities and student services.
International education is Victoria's biggest export industry, bringing in $4.5 billion a year to the state.
However, federal government migration changes, in particular the lengthy process to get a visa and the requirement to have a significant amount of money in bank accounts, the global financial crisis and concerns about security after attacks on Indian students have caused enrolments to plummet.
International student visas dropped by more than 16 per cent last financial year and at least 11 private trades colleges catering for international students have collapsed in the past couple of years.
Representatives of education, business and tourism organisations yesterday met Immigration Minister Chris Bowen, Trade Minister Craig Emerson and the Coalition's universities spokesman, Brett Mason, in Canberra to press for changes to support the sector. They said after the meeting they were optimistic the government would act to shore up the industry.
Monash University, which expects a loss of 10 per cent or more of its overseas student enrolments next year, has slashed 300 staff and shaved $45 million from its budget.
Mr Hall said the Coalition would also train police to be more aware of crimes against international students and expand the International Student Care Service, which provides overseas students with accommodation, counselling, legal, emergency and welfare assistance.
The Council for Private Education and Training supported the Coalition's policies but said it would like to see a national regulator of vocational education.
Source: The Age

Tertiary agency talks to resume

Release date: 24 Nov 2010

This comes as the government seeks to forge agreement on contentious legislation to create a new national tertiary education regulator.
"I'm hopeful there will be further opportunities for discussions between now and Christmas," Universities Australia chairman and Queensland University of Technology vice-chancellor Peter Coaldrake told the HES.
He was speaking after addressing a UA plenary meeting in Sydney yesterday, also attended by the Education Department's group manager for higher education David Hazlehurst.
Earlier this month the government was unable to finalise the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency legislation in time for the present parliamentary session after university representatives attending a budget-style lock-up in Canberra raised concerns over the draft documentation.
In an interview with Times Higher Education, interim TEQSA chairwoman Denise Bradley said she understood apprehension that a new regulator would bring "more regulation and red tape and not enough attention being paid to quality".
"Our aim would be to bring in a set of regulatory arrangements that have an emphasis on getting a good outcome as economically as you can," she said.
"As a former vice-chancellor, I am very aware of how much time this kind of stuff can take for very little reward. My view would be that the new authority will be all over institutions that appear to be a risk. I think they can expect a great deal more attention than they're getting in the current arrangements."
Professor Coaldrake said the government had been "very receptive" to the sector's concerns on the legislation to create TEQSA. "I'm very confident that there has been a shared understanding across our sector and with government on the issues of concern and that there will be further opportunities to discuss those matters," he said.
Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans has promised further consultations similar to the invitation-only lock-up. But that approach has caused some unease with the Group of Eight universities advocating for a more open process.
After having briefed fellow vice-chancellors at the plenary on the status of consultations, Professor Coaldrake said the sector had three key areas of concern that needed to be addressed more clearly in the legislation.
These were the need to preserve university autonomy, making more explicit the provisions ensuring a risk-based approach to regulation and ensuring a proportionate response to compliance breaches.
"The government has said it wants a risk-based and proportionate approach to TEQSA, and we wanted to see that adopted fairly explicitly," Professor Coaldrake said. He said that while the same standards needed to be applied to all providers, "the nature and track records" of different institutions needed to be taken into account.
"You need to be careful you protect the cachet of the system, and if you are being proportionate and risk-based you are going to be careful of new providers."
He said the legislation needed to be "tailored to the nature of the sector; that is, for education as opposed to any different activity".
Professor Coaldrake said the extra time taken to finalise the legislation would not delay the schedule for TEQSA.
The regulator is targeted to be fully operational by January 2012.
The government is aiming to finalise the legislation in time to submit it to parliament early in the autumn session next year.
"Universities Australia has always, and continues, to support the idea of TEQSA as a national regulator and we support having a regulator with teeth," Professor Coaldrake said.
He said the discussions were not about weakening TEQSA but about ensuring TEQSA did the job government wanted it to.
In the Times Higher Education interview, Professor Bradley said whoever became the first chair of TEQSA would be akin to "deputy vice-chancellor of Australia".
In other comments, she appeared to criticise the University of Melbourne and others for using titles in ways at odds with the Australian Qualifications Framework. "Universities are concerned about [the new AQF] because they've now seen that if it becomes a legislative instrument of the regulator, this framework, which apparently some of them have not been taking very seriously, will have legal force in a way it doesn't at the moment," she said.
Source: The Australian

Industry airs visa concerns

Release date: 25 Nov 2010

At a meeting with government representatives in Canberra this week, industry peak bodies pushed for greater transparency in visa processing.
It was one of a range of recommended policy changes aimed at ensuring that tighter immigration rules didn't undermine Australia's $18 billion international student industry.
The industry is concerned that immigration officials in different countries are applying policies on visa processing inconsistently, with some countries applying greater scrutiny than officially required by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's risk rating system.
Education agents and colleges have reported that up to 80 per cent of visa applicants from the Czech Republic are being subjected to interviews, according to peak body English Australia. That is despite the country's official low-risk rating, which means interviews aren't normally required.
English Australia chief executive Sue Blundell said transparency and consistency were required to avoid perceptions that policies were being applied unfairly.
"It is undermining people's confidence in the system," Ms Blundell said.
Claire Field, acting chief executive of the Australian Council of Private Education and Training, said: "There are concerns around processes that appear to not be as equitable or as consistently applied as they ought to be." .
A spokesman for the Immigration Department said that under the Migration Act the department can request further relevant information from applicants, including interviews.
The peak bodies yesterday said they had been encouraged by the government's acknowledgment of the issues at Monday's meetings, which had been attended by Immigration Minister Chris Bowen and Trade Minister Craig Emerson. Mr Bowen has already signalled that he and Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans plan to make an announcement on education and immigration policies soon.
The education industry is also lobbying the government to reduce the amount of money visa applicants must prove they have available to pay for tuition and living costs, not to disadvantage students already enrolled in courses that are on the list at present, and have requested the department to suspend for 12 months any plans to increase the risk ratings on source countries to allow time to judge whether tighter visa policies have improved compliance. Separately in Victoria, the Liberal-National opposition has promised to create an independent tertiary education and training ombudsman to scrutinise not just providers but also the state's regulator.
Earlier this year the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority was criticised by the state's auditor-general for not adequately assuring the quality of its activities.
The authority also faces claims from private providers that its audit practices have been inconsistent and unfair.
Opposition tertiary education spokesman Peter Hall said he would appoint a private sector representative to the VRQA board.
"The industry needs an ombudsman with the powers to independently investigate every aspect of operations and report the tertiary education sector without fear or favour," Mr Hall said.
The opposition is also proposing to create a public register of all training providers to better inform potential students.
The Victorian state election will take place next Saturday.
Source: The Australian

One-stop Ombudsman shop

Release date: 25 Nov 2010

On Monday, the Senate education committee endorsed the Education Services for Overseas Students Legislation Amendment Bill 2010.
The bill picks up recommendations from March's Baird report, including a tougher registration test that requires a judgment about the financial means and business model of a would-be provider.
English Australia, which represents English-language colleges, backed this vetting in the light of recent business failures but questioned whether regulators would have the expertise necessary.
The bill also would extend the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman on the basis that overseas students at private colleges lacked access to an external, independent complaints body.
The Senate committee noted that if two students, one domestic and one overseas, at the same private college had the same complaint, the domestic student would have no access to the Ombudsman.
In response, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations stressed "the particular vulnerabilities" of overseas students.
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the Ombudsman should become "a one-stop national authority" for student complaints, for public as well as private providers and domestic as well as overseas students.
Source: The Australian

Updates: October, 2010

2010-10-31T07:54:00.000-07:00

Immigration policies 'hit student numbers'

Release date: 28 Oct 2010

Senator Evans will fly to Beijing with university administrators next week to address the escalating students issue in the $18 billion export sector.
Heavy cuts to Australia's Skilled Occupation List for migration, along with months-long visa delays and mounting costs brought about by university fee hikes and the strong Australian dollar, have seen students choose friendlier study regimes in the US, Britain and Canada.
"It is clear that Australia is facing a downturn in international student enrolments, and that this trend can be expected to continue throughout 2011," Senator Evans said in a speech at Canberra University yesterday.
He admitted that enrolments in English courses -- a lead indicator of demand for tertiary courses -- were down and could signal a longer-term problem.
China is Australia's largest source of foreign students, accounting for 27 per cent of enrolments and a much higher proportion of university students.
Forward enrolments for next February have fallen as much as 40 per cent for some institutions and more broadly by 10-20 per cent across the industry, according to education sources in Beijing.
Senator Evans said attacks on students, an appreciating dollar, the steady increase in competition from other nations, the global financial crisis, and strengthened visa integrity arrangements "have brought these issues to a head".
"While it is essential that the rules we apply for international students uphold the integrity of our immigration program, I am committed to working with international education providers to examine how we can make Australian education offerings more competitive when weighed against the offerings of other countries," he said.
Source: The Australian

TERTIARY Education Minister Chris Evans yesterday set an October 2011 reporting date for the crucial review of base university funding

Release date: 27 Oct 2010

This comes amid fresh controversy over whether student HECS fees will have to rise.
The review, which will be led by former South Australian state Labor education minister Jane Lomax-Smith, will look at teaching funding rates against international benchmarks and assess the appropriate sharing of costs between the government and students. It will also examine the cost relativities of different disciplines.
The funding review has taken on greater importance because of fears of a steep fall in international markets that universities depend on to cross-subsidise domestic teaching. The HES understands Mr Evans will visit China, Australia's largest international student market, next week with a group of vice-chancellors in what the sector will see as a key visit to shore up demand amid increasing competition from North America and Britain.
The funding review comes as the Group of Eight sandstone universities this week ramped up its lobbying for increased government funding and partial deregulation of student HECS fees to allow universities to increase fees by up to 50 per cent to drive differentiation. It warned that the government's plan to uncap the supply of places from 2012 will attract significantly more students than expected and will put at risk the quality of the system in the absence of government and private funding injections.
But Universities Australia chairman and QUT vice-chancellor Peter Coaldrake said he was wary of raising the student contribution, noting that by international standards student contributions were already high.
And he warned that "past experience has been that increased student contribution has tended to come at the expense of public funding".
In the terms of reference, the government said the funding review "should be consistent with the government's agenda to ensure that fees shouldn't be a barrier to participation".
Both the National Union of Students and the National Tertiary Education Union said the government needed to ensure the system was properly funded, rather than shifting the burden more on to students.
Australian Catholic University vice-chancellor Greg Craven, who has moved aggressively to expand enrolments, hit out at the Go8, claiming it is "grossly overstating" the threat to quality from the expansion agenda. He warned the group's financing proposals risked creating a binary system of well-off universities and underfunded universities.
"One likely result is that you get a group of universities that could trade a hundred years of public investment given to them by the state to charge premium rents, which would then be afforded by students with premium incomes."
Professor Craven said the sector needed the 10 per cent uplift in base funding recommended by the Bradley review, but beyond that he said the key requirement for universities was infrastructure money for more teaching spaces.
But Ed Byrne, vice-chancellor of Go8 member Monash University, said flexibility in prices was desirable to provide students with the option of more expensive teaching practices.
"If there were a broad range of permissible HECS, clearly linked to performance in education and to intensity of tuition capacity, and if there were ways of monitoring that, then you could quite easily get some diversity in HECS charges," he said.
Australian National University economist Bruce Chapman, architect of the HECS system of income-contingent loans, said an increase in student fees was unlikely to dampen demand but that it was questionable whether an increase was fair. "I don't think there is any strong case for going beyond where we are," he said.
Professor Chapman also warned that under any partial deregulation of fees all universities would tend to increase fees by similar amounts, because income-contingent HECS loans made students less price sensitive.
The Go8 aims to counter that by setting the maximum increase comparatively high at 50 per cent while encouraging price competition by offering government-supported places to TAFEs and encouraging private providers.
Source: The Australian

Vice-chancellors call for student visas

Release date: 26 Oct 2010

This would quarantine education from the overheated politics of population, according to University of NSW chief Fred Hilmer.
The visa would allow a student to stay for a qualification plus two to three years' work experience in a related field.
Any request to migrate would be dealt with separately in the immigration system.
"But you don't count those [students] as immigrants, they're not entitled to be immigrants. It will dissociate study from immigration, it will depoliticise it," he said.
Students visas bring no entitlement to migrate but, beginning in 2001, policy helped create an industry based on qualifications that led to skilled migration.
Professor Hilmer was commenting on Monash University's emergence as the first Group of Eight institution to announce budget cuts to make up for sharp declines in overseas student income.
Monash vice-chancellor Ed Byrne said Monash College, the source of half the overseas students who end up in the business faculty, had suffered a 30 per cent fall in numbers.
The export education industry has been affected by bad publicity from attacks on Indian students, a move by policy-makers to weaken the link between education and migration, the high Australian dollar and fresh competition from cash-strapped institutions in the US and Britain.
Professor Hilmer, in the same way as Professor Byrne, identified onerous visa conditions, especially the requirement to show a hefty bank balance against course fees and living costs, as a big disadvantage in a competitive market.
The University of Melbourne's chief Glyn Davis also has urged the creation of a new student visa.
"We don't have in this country a separate student visa, as many countries do," he said.
He hoped the misfortune of Monash would prompt a reconsideration of visa policy.
Victorian dual-sector universities all said they were keeping a close eye on the situation. They expected demand to be soft, but none anticipated a similar impact to Monash.
Source: The Australian

Updates: September, 2010

2010-09-09T08:40:00.000-07:00

Decline in overseas students to cost dearly, warn university chiefs

Release date: 07 Sep 2010

The comments came as the vice-chancellors of Australia's top research universities wrote to Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott to seek assurances that whoever forms government will act swiftly to fix problems in the international education sector.
Professor Byrne told The Age current policies were in danger of ''doing very, very serious harm to one of the most important industries this country has''.
He said Victoria - where international education is the biggest export industry, worth about $4.5 billion a year - had the most to lose. ''Whichever government is returned, they need to give a very high priority to sorting this out,'' he said.
Professor Byrne said that while universities had not yet been as badly affected by the drop in overseas student numbers as private colleges and English language schools the worst was yet to come. Australia's universities have feeder colleges that prepare prospective international students for study at the main institutions.
Monash College is the ''pipeline'' for many of Monash University's overseas students. Professor Byrne said the pipeline was beginning to dry up, signalling serious problems.
''For the first time, we're noticing significant downturns [in the pipelines].
''It is the early warning sign for the market at large and when we lose that market share, which it has taken a generation to build up, it will be very hard to get it back.''
The Group of Eight universities - Melbourne, Monash, Sydney, Queensland and Adelaide Universities as well as the Australian National University, and the Universities of New South Wales and Western Australia - have called on Ms Gillard and Mr Abbott to commit to actions to shore up the international education sector.
The actions include:
¦ Removal of student visa entrants from the government's net immigration goals.
¦ Reviewing policy settings for student visas.
¦ A combined approach by government departments and administrative agencies.
Professor Byrne said government had to act quickly to shore up the sector. ''Outside natural resources, the most important industry that Australia has at the moment is higher education.
''The direct cash value is about $7 billion … and to the whole economy it's about $14 billion a year. For a country that aspires to be a clever country this is a really important industry to us.''
A spokesman for Education Minister Simon Crean said the government made no apologies for measures ''introduced to safeguard the quality of the Australian education brand''.
But, he said, if returned a Labor government would ''continue to monitor the impact of these changes on international students [and] work with all stakeholders to ensure that Australia continues to be a quality provider of international education.''
Mr Abbott's office would not comment because it had not yet received the letter from the eight universities.
Source: The Age

Australia leads on foreign students

Release date: 08 Sep 2010

The OECD's Education at a Glance report, released last night, found one in five students in tertiary education in Australia in 2008 was from overseas. Australia was ahead of Austria, which had 15.5 per cent foreign students, Belgium (8.6 per cent) and Canada (6.5 per cent) and well ahead of the OECD average of 6.7 per cent.
It was also more reliant on students to pick up the bill for tertiary education than most other developed countries.
Less than half of funding for tertiary institutions in Australia came from the public purse, with 55.7 per cent from private sources such as fees paid by international students.
On average in OECD countries, 69.1 per cent of tertiary education is paid for publicly, with the figure rising as high as 97 per cent in Norway and 96.5 per cent in Denmark.
The international education market is worth $18 billion to the Australian economy and universities depend on fees from foreign students.
International students are a sensitive topic in Australia. Visa numbers plummeted 16 per cent last financial year following restrictions on access to permanent residency after completing courses such as cookery and hairdressing, a crackdown on disreputable colleges and attacks on Indian students.
Ben Jensen, a former OECD analyst, said that while the report did not reflect the drop in international student visas after the immigration crackdown, it did reflect how reliant Australia was on foreign students to prop up university funding.
He said most other countries had been investing heavily in tertiary education while in Australia investment dropped from 1.6 per cent of gross domestic product in 1995 to 1.5 per cent in 2007.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

International dimension underrated

Release date: 08 Sep 2010

A Nielsen survey of 1548 people in July found that close to half the respondents rated the sector's activities in international education as not very important or not important at all.
It follows a March survey of 1378 people by British-based TNS that found close to half believed that international students took places from domestic students. That is despite international student fees being a key source of funding for universities to cross-subsidise underfunded domestic places. International fees account for about 16 per cent of sector revenues.
Universities Australia, which commissioned the Nielsen survey, said the results highlighted a need to better promote the importance of international students.
"The job of getting widespread public support for the international education activities of universities is still in front of us for a significant share of the population," UA chief executive Glenn Withers said.
The survey asked a series of questions on public attitudes to universities and their activities. Asked for their views on the importance of universities pursuing international education, 33 per cent of respondents said it wasn't very important and a further 13 per cent said it wasn't important at all, a total of 46 per cent. Only 10 per cent rated it as very important and 38 per cent as important, a total of 48 per cent. About 6 per cent didn't know.
"One of the things we want to go back to government on is a positive campaign as to why this is a great thing for Australia to have and support," Dr Withers said.
Source: The Australian

Australian Unis on a downward slide?

Release date: 09 Sep 2010

Among rural independent, Rob Oakeshott's gripes was the "crisis in regional education". It was a reference to cuts the Coalition had threatened.
A new report this week shows that Australian unis have lost ground in international rankings. And Universities Australia has warned the incoming government needs to make sure they don't slip any further.
Another study shows that Australia has the highest proportion of international students enrolled in tertiary education of anywhere in the world.
That's a worry for universities so heavily reliant on fee revenue from international students. Overseas student enrolments are expected to halve from next year in response to tighter migration laws. That means many universities and other tertiary institutions will struggle to survive - let alone raise standards.
The government only provides 46 per cent of university funding. Universities, who say they have been underfunded for 20 years, have to survive on private revenue. They are battling with high student/staff ratios. In her review of higher education, Denise Bradley said the ratios were "unacceptably high".
Meanwhile, the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation reports that Australia invests more public funding for education into private schools than most other countries in the world. Australia is ranked fourth highest behind Belgium, Chile and Korea in terms of the percentage of public expenditure it transfers to independent schools (16.9%). Australia ranks third lowest, ahead of Chile and Belgium, in terms of its investment in public schools (71.9%). Close to 66 per cent of students are in public schools with the remaining third enrolled in independent schools.
According to the former OECD analyst, Ben Jensen, most other countries are investing more than Australia in higher education. Australia’s investment has fallen from 1.6% of GDP in 1995 to 1.5% in 2007.
Jensen says the fall in public spending makes universities vulnerable to any big changes in foreign student enrolments.
It's no secret that education is a big revenue spinner for the Australian economy. And it's hard to see how the country can afford to lose any more of its competitive edge internationally. Universities are now relying on the independent MPs to put more heat on the government.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Principles allow global assessment of postgrad degrees

Release date: 22 Sep 2010

Employment skills, research supervision structures, student experience, research impact and communication, and interdisciplinary and global research experiences underpin the new global framework, or Brisbane principles.
"As more universities around the world adopt these principles, we'll be more comfortable in having collaborative research degree programs with them," said Max King, Monash University's pro vice-chancellor (research and research training).
The principles were created and struck by the deans of graduate studies at universities including the University of California, Davis; China's Tsinghua and Shanghai Jiao Tong universities; Imperial College London; South Korea's Yonsei; the University of Hong Kong; the Australian National University; and the University Pierre and Marie Curie in France. They were all participants in a three-day summit on graduate education, run by the US-based Council of Graduate Schools and the Group of Eight.
Professor King said while there was widespread interest in measuring the quality and outcomes of undergraduate education, including in Australia, there had been very little focus on postgraduate degrees.
He said he hoped within five years, the Brisbane principles - the first attempt at a gold standard for postgraduate research quality - would underpin the Australian university audit processes.
"If they are any good, TEQSA [the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency] would know about them.
"It's then over to them about how they are brought to the attention of the universities they audit," Professor King said.
Interim TEQSA chairwoman Denise Bradley commended the group for developing the principles. "Without doubt they will, together with any further work from this group, contribute to TEQSA's deliberations about standards," she said.
The Brisbane principles were also supported by the Council of Deans and Directors of Graduate Studies in Australia. James Cook University dean of postgraduate studies and DDOGS convener Helene Marsh said she strongly backed the possibility of TEQSA adopting the principles.
Professor Marsh - who attended the summit - said 50 per cent of examiners of Australian higher degree theses were international; however, external examiners looked at only one aspect of the degree, the thesis, not the quality of the graduate.
The Australian Universities Quality Agency - whose functions are to be absorbed by TEQSA - also welcomed the principles as "a clear statement of good practices" in postgraduate quality assurance in an international context.
However, AUQA acting executive director Jeanette Baird said quality assessments were about making judgments and any future framework should not be "restricted to metrics or quantitative measures".
Source: The Australian

Tertiary regulator TEQSA stands alone

Release date: 22 Sep 2010

Some have seen this project, run by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, as a precursor to a TEQSA system for monitoring learning outcomes.
"It was funded as a way of getting the sector to start thinking about outcome standards, which was a good thing to do, but it is not necessarily the answer to standards in higher education," Professor Bradley said.
She was asked about the issue on Monday after she had briefed a plenary meeting in Melbourne of Universities Australia, where the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, the ALTC and standards were among issues discussed.
Professor Bradley also said UA now was comfortable with the standards body sitting inside TEQSA, rather than outside.
She attributed this to the likely adoption of a commission model for TEQSA, as opposed to a model in which the chief executive acting alone could deregister an educational provider.
And she expressed sympathy with "powerful concerns" in the sector about premature and contentious changes to the Australian Qualifications Framework.
UA chair Peter Coaldrake agreed with her view that the conflict was ultimately a matter for political resolution by state and federal ministers.
Professor Bradley said plans for TEQSA's establishment were progressing well. Depending on the passage of the agency's legislation, it could start next year, "probably not on January 1 but either April 1 or July 1".
She and interim chief executive Ian Hawke were preparing "a clear statement about the things that need to be done" for the incoming minister Chris Evans.
The HES understands a good deal of the apprehension about the new regulator has eased because Mr Hawke, Professor Bradley, the sector and education department have made good progress. That spirit was present during the UA plenary meeting.
"The discussion that we had was sensitive to the fact that we are dealing with an incoming minister who needs to be properly briefed so everyone is going forward together," Professor Coaldrake said yesterday.
Among others at the meeting were Kaye Schofield, interim chairwoman of the national regulator for vocational education and training; David Hazlehurst, head of the higher education group within the department; and Carol Nicoll, chief executive of the ALTC.
According to its website, the ALTC is working with the various disciplines to define academic standards "as the higher education sector prepares for a new regulatory environment and the creation of TEQSA".
Although the project has been praised for its recognition of academic autonomy, there has been uncertainty about what it would produce and how it would be used.
Professor Bradley said she wanted to have more talks with Dr Nicoll about the project.
"It's not what TEQSA will necessarily do about standards, that's something we still have to decide," Professor Bradley said.
Higher education commentator Richard James, who has been appointed pro vice-chancellor (participation and engagement) at the University of Melbourne, said the ALTC project appeared to be broadly in the right direction, with "academic standards located primarily in graduate attainment and grounded in the knowledge of disciplinary communities.
"[But] the potential separation of standards definition from standards monitoring, which is the situation the present ALTC and TEQSA arrangement creates, is difficult to sustain."
Professor Bradley said that following Monday's meeting it seemed clear the standards body would indeed be within TEQSA but with a separate line of reporting to the minister.
"Now that there's to be a [TEQSA] commission, people [in the sector] are much more comfortable with the standards body being inside [TEQSA]," she said.
"They also think - and I feel quite strongly about [this] - [that] there's much less opportunity . . . for political interference in the future with it being inside."
She said that under the CEO-alone model, "the CEO would have been able to move to deregister a provider. People were very nervous about one person, whatever the process, [having that power]." With the commission model, "for really major issues [such as deregistration] you'd have to have more than one person making a decision".
She said five may be an appropriate number of commissioners, with the CEO as commissioner in chief, although these details had not been decided.
She stressed the TEQSA legislation was still being drafted and as yet there was no ministerial approval for the commission model.
"Bluntly, this is a technicality. Everybody believes that we're going to a commission model."
Source: The Australian

Worry over Melbourne student numbers

Release date: 24 Sep 2010

Dr Simon Marginson, professor of higher education at Melbourne University, said Victoria’s $5.8 billion international student industry attracted 180,000 students and provided 40,000 jobs.
But experts predict foreign student numbers will fall between 20 and 60 per cent in coming years because of various factors, including cuts to migration and recent assaults on overseas students.
“All these changes have sent out a message that international students are less welcome in Australia,” Dr Marginson said.
Melbourne University experienced a slight fall in international student numbers this year, down from 9819 students in 2009 to 9743.
University spokeswoman Diane Squires said the university earned $247.3 million, 15.6 per cent of its total budget, from international students in 2009.
At RMIT, international student numbers slightly increased on last year from 7714 to 8592.
Deputy vice-chancellor Stephen Connelly said RMIT and Melbourne University would initially be insulated from any international student crash because both had strong reputations.
“But if no remedial action is taken, it’s going to affect everyone in higher education at some stage. The impact could be less students taking up accommodation, less students spending money in the community,” he said.
Both universities have called on the Federal Government for greater support.
Source: Leader News

Updates: July, 2010

2010-07-12T00:25:00.000-07:00

Think Before- A Student Safety Initiative

A new initiative has been developed to promote situational awareness to international students. This initiative is authored an promoted by police across Australia to help improves the safety of international students. Stakeholders from a wide variety of agencies including Victoria Police, ISANA, Australia Network, government, education and industry have contributed both funds and in-kind services to support it.

The Think Before tagline reinforces the message that international students need to be aware of their surroundings, particularly late at night on public transport, and to plan their travel.

Please meet George, the face of this campaign. He stars in his very own animation and can speak 14 languages. George also has a website http://www.thinkbefore.com , mobile site http://m.thinkbefore.com, free Apple and Android applications and he can be found on your social media site and public video channels such as YouTube. Stay connected with George by joining his facebook page or twitter at http://twitter.com/ThinkBeforeCom.

Visit George and spread the word, lets make him go viral all around the world.

Stay safe and Think Before you travel.

Student visa cuts to cost jobs, say universities

Release date: 26 Jul 2010

They have warned that such a move could cripple the nation's fourth largest export market and lead to massive job losses.

And business has condemned the Opposition Leader's planned cuts to immigration levels, saying he is "pitching to short-term self-interest".

Labor accused Mr Abbott of "a sneaky political trick", claiming he had added up the projected cuts in net overseas immigration arising from existing government policy, and claimed them as his own.

The announcement of the Coalition's plan to cut international student visa numbers comes as a senior delegation from Universities Australia led by Peter Coaldrake, Vice-Chancellor of Queensland University of Technology, is due to meet Department of Immigration officials in Canberra today. The delegation will ask for a change in policy to allow overseas students who come to do a degree to be given the chance to work here for two to three years and then return home.

Mr Abbott announced yesterday that a Coalition government would cut the nation's annual rate of net overseas immigration to no more than 170,000 people a year by the end of the next parliamentary term.

The Coalition policy would reduce Australia's annual rate of population growth from more than 2 per cent to the historical long-run average of 1.4 per cent within its first term.

Given that employer-nominated skills migration and 457 temporary business visa numbers would be quarantined from the policy, the most likely cuts would be to overseas student numbers, which Mr Abbott said represented "the largest contributor to net overseas migration".

"What we are planning to do is to get our immigration levels to those which we believe are economically, environmentally and politically, if you like, sustainable," Mr Abbott said.

Universities Australia chief executive Glenn Withers has called on both sides of politics to stop trying to destroy the international student industry, which generates about $18 billion a year in export earnings.

"International student numbers are already falling substantially, including from the quality students who enhance university education here," Dr Withers said yesterday.

"Universities Australia asks all political parties to step back from causing additional damage to this area.

"A severe drop in international student numbers would cost many Australians their jobs.

"For example, according to Access Economics estimates, a 50 per cent drop in international student numbers represents 62,000 jobs gone -- and this process is already happening.

"Many of these jobs are in marginal and regional seats where universities and colleges are a major community presence".

Dr Withers said international education revenue contributed to the facilities and staff for domestic students too.

"Universities rely crucially upon that help," he said.

"Cutting overseas student numbers is equivalent to a tax or tariff on tertiary education. And it will make it even harder, not easier, to increase domestic skill provision.

"Universities Australia calls on the parties to be clear in the period ahead on how their tertiary education budget commitments will increase to offset the effects of any such cuts in international student numbers, how jobs for employees displaced will be created, and how our reputation abroad for Australian education as a welcoming destination will be maintained."

Jennie Lang, international pro vice-chancellor at the University of NSW, said cuts would be crippling to the sector.

"It's important to realise the international students have offset significant funding for universities," Ms Lang said.

"The presence of international students has been important for the continual internationalisation of our campuses."

She said universities were able to offer a diversity of courses because of strong international student numbers.

"It would be crippling and would mean a loss of staff and there would be a question mark put over programs," Ms Lang said.

Mr Abbott yesterday challenged Julia Gillard to name a migration number after she placed population at the forefront of the campaign last week when she questioned whether it was time to declare that areas such as western Sydney and southeast Queensland had reached the limit of their capacity for growth.

"You cannot have a population discussion without also having an immigration discussion," the Opposition Leader said.

Labor seized on a report to be released today by economic forecaster BIS Shrapnel that predicts population growth will slow considerably in 2010-11 and 2011-12 as net overseas immigration declines.

BIS Shrapnel forecast a "sustained decrease" in net overseas immigration over the next two years, with the net figure falling to 175,000 in 2010-11 and 145,000 in 2011-12.

Sustainable Population Minister Tony Burke said Mr Abbott's immigration announcement "is nothing more than a sneaky political trick".

"All Mr Abbott has done is add up the current projected cuts in net overseas migration arising from existing government policy and call it his policy," Mr Burke said yesterday.

Business Council of Australia chief executive Katie Lahey expressed disappointment at the Coalition announcement.

"There is a temptation around election time to offer simple solutions, and to pitch to perceived short-term self-interest rather than long-term national interest," Ms Lahey said.

"Migration trend figures suggest the Coalition's approach would have little net effect on the program, but it is nonetheless disappointing to see our political leaders engage in such populist rhetoric."

Growth would offset the cost effects of Australia's ageing population, Ms Lahey said.

Source: The Australian

Immigration is already falling

Release date: 26 Jul 2010

The Opposition Leader announced yesterday that a Coalition government would cut the annual net overseas migration from 300,000 to 170,000 places within three years, with foreign student numbers expected to be slashed.

But experts said the immigration level for this year had already fallen to 230,000 and was on track to drop to 170,000 by June next year, adding that the move would result in tens of thousands of job cuts.

Sustainable Population Minister Tony Burke said Mr Abbott's announcement was nothing more than a sneaky political trick.

All Mr Abbott had done was add up the current projected cuts in net overseas migration - arising from existing policy - and called it his policy, he said.

The education export sector is Australia's third largest earner, after coal and iron ore exports, at nearly $19 billion a year.

Australian National University demography expert Peter McDonald said it was not a good idea to shoot yourself in the foot by saying you're not going to bring in overseas students.

Prof McDonald said Mr Abbott's 300,000 migrant statistic was outdated, and that it was hard to predict migrant intakes from year to year.

"All we can see over the next five or 10 years is very strong demand for labour," the director of the ANU's Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute said.

Most employment growth in the next decade would come from migration.

Mr Abbott said a Coalition government would reduce the population growth rate to 1.4 per cent within its first term.

"What we are planning to do is to get our immigration levels to those which we believe are economically, environmentally and politically sustainable," he said.

However, economic forecaster BIS Shrapnel said in May that net migration was expected to drop to 175,000 people in 2010-11 - a 1.5 per cent growth rate - and to 145,000 people in 2011-12 - a 1.3 per cent growth rate.

Prof McDonald said he didn't believe migration would fall that dramatically.

"I doubt net overseas migration figures will fall that much," he said.

The Business Council of Australia said Mr Abbott's plan was disappointing.

"We would be concerned to see policies that reduce the attractiveness of Australia to foreign students who are undertaking genuine secondary or tertiary studies, given the importance of this industry to our overall economic wellbeing," chief executive Katie Lahey said.

Universities Australia said dramatic cuts to student visas could cost tens of thousands of jobs, and likened any moves to reduce overseas students to a tax on tertiary education.

A severe drop in international student numbers would cost many Australians their jobs, chief executive Dr Glenn Withers said.

Greens leader Bob Brown said the Coalition's plan to cut migration would unfairly target people wanting to reunite with their family.

"I suspect it's going to hit the humanitarian intake, family programs," he said. "If so, it's not part of the social contract we want to see in Australia."

The Federal Government has already acted to crack down on foreigners taking up "low-value" education courses, such as hairdressing, to seek permanent residency.

Source: Herald Sun

Students far from home in crowded rental market

Release date: 20 Jul 2010

Last year the Victorian Tenants Union received a call from a student living in a house in Melbourne's western suburbs where 10 people shared a room with five beds.

''They were all students and they did shiftwork. So they'd take it in turns to sleep. It was one of the more shocking things that we heard about,'' Tenants Union spokesman Toby Archer said.

The rent for a shared bed in the Sunshine home was about $100 a week and, despite calling the union's advice line, the student didn't want to make an official complaint.

''They're just worried that telling us will somehow threaten their home. So it goes nowhere,'' Mr Archer said.

According to Melbourne University professor of higher education Simon Marginson, poor-quality housing is affecting international students' grades and compromising their safety. ''Many students live in multiple-student households in houses which are family-sized residences with three, four or five bedrooms and they're living often in numbers like 10, 15 or even 20,'' said Professor Marginson, who recently co-authored a book, International Student Security, based on 200 interviews with students from 35 countries at 11 Australian universities.

Suyong Mahindroo arrived in Melbourne in February. He applied too late for on-campus housing at Monash University, where he is completing a master's degree, and has struggled to find suitable accommodation.

''I had a look at a place and it had nowhere to eat. If you cook, you eat on the bed. It was really, really tiny,'' he said.

When the 27-year-old reluctantly leased a flat, he says it took the agents over a month to fix the stove, which was broken when he moved in.

''The whole experience of coming here as an international student and looking for a place to live, that takes months, and it affects everything,'' Mr Mahindroo said.

He said he heard stories all the time of students living in bad conditions. ''My roommate's girlfriend knew of someone who was staying with 12 other people in a two-bedroom, one-bathroom place. Thirteen people in one apartment. That is insane.''

Australian government statistics show that as of May 2010 there were 462,266 full-fee international students enrolled at universities, schools, TAFEs and colleges.

Universities offer international students access to on-campus housing, but the spaces fill up quickly.

Professor Marginson said that about one third of international students were from poor backgrounds and often worked above the 20-hour-a-week limit set by their student visas.

Danielle Hartridge, from Victoria University's International Student Support office, said that despite a massive increase in student housing built by private companies over the past 15 years, much of that housing was not affordable.

''That pushes them back out into the rental market and forces them to share with a number of people to keep those costs down,'' she said.

Source: The Age

New peak body for all international tertiary students

Release date: 12 Jul 2010

International students from all post-school educational sectors now have unified a representative voice, following elections to the new Council of International Students Australia (CISA) in Hobart last week. The peak body boasts 52 founding organisations from all states and from the four post-school sectors of postgraduate, undergraduate, VET and "pre-university" - a term which covers English language schools as well as university colleges. The meeting elected an executive committee of 14, also comprised from all the sectors.

This article can be viewed in full Campus Review

Australia's appeal is waning, say overseas agents

Release date: 08 Jul 2010

John Findley said Australia was becoming less popular because of the exchange rate, high tuition fees, less attractive commissions for agents and the greater ease of securing visas to the US and UK. He told The Australian newspaper: "All agents (in China) are fed up with our current government's attitude to migration."

The comments demonstrate the extent to which perceptions of government visa policy among students and agents can affect universities' attractiveness.

Despite Mr Findley's suggestion that the UK is among the nations taking Australia's place in the overseas market, many in Britain are worried that changes to the Tier 4 visa system may put off students.

Mr Findley, whom The Australian described as an education and migration expert who represents a "range of providers", said the US F-1 and British Tier 4 student visas were regarded as easier to obtain than Australia's 573 student visa.

"Australia is seen as second rate in the global education stakes. It gets the student business because the students see a pathway to migration," he said.

He added that all the agency sales staff he had met at the recent Beijing International Expo were trying to get into their company's US department.

"The best recruiters are deserting Australia. All agencies, including (Australia's biggest education broker) IDP, promote the US on their websites. These days, most make the US their headline offering; many are relegating Australia to third, or fourth behind New Zealand. Australia (used to be) the headline," he said.

However, an IDP spokesman denied that the broker promoted the US ahead of Australia. "Australia is the main part of our business and will remain so. By offering the US as a destination, as well as Australia, we reach a far larger pool of students interested in international education," the spokesman said.

Source: Time Higher Education

Australian High Commission Moves to Quash Student Visa Fears

Release date: 08 Jul 2010

As a large proportion of overseas students studying in Australia come from India, the tough talking by Australia’s first female Prime Minister has provoked concern there that Australia was about to make it even harder for Indian students to study in Australia.

The Australian High Commission therefore, have had to clarify issues to do with Australian immigration policy to quell the rumours. They issued a statement which read: “In response to recent media reports on changes to Australia’s skilled migration program, the High Commission would like to clarify the following points. First we are making changes to Australia’s skilled migration program, not our student visa program.”

Some GSM visas have now been capped by the DIAC, but none of these have been student visas, the visas affected by the capping and ceasing policy are:

Subclass 134 – Skill Matching
Subclass 136 – Skilled Independent
Subclass 137 – Skilled State/Territory-Nominated Independent
Subclass 138 – Skilled Australian Sponsored
Subclass 139 – Skilled Designated Area Sponsored.

None of these apply to the many students studying in Australia and contrary to rumour, no student is now going to be sent home. All can continue to study in their chosen courses, at the end of which, they still have the right to apply for an additional 18 month stay in Australia.

The High Commission also disputed that the changes were aimed at India; “the changes we are making to our skilled migration program are global changes. They are not targeted at India or any other country. They were not triggered by the problems of the last year over attacks on Indian students.”

On visa capping the High Commission stated that the Capping Bill is currently before the Australian Parliament and that it is designed to “meet the labour market needs of the Australian economy as flexibly as possible.” But confirmed that the DIAC had no plans to extend that capping to student visas.

Overseas students in Australia are worth millions for the Australian economy and as the majority of those students are from India, it was vital for the Australian Commission to respond to the concerns of the student community and deny reports that they were actively discouraging students from India. It is now hoped that Australia can continue to be seen as a welcoming country for overseas students.

Source: www.pieronline.com

Skilled occupations list for migrants updated

1 July 2010

A major reform to the skilled migration program which comes into effect today will help
deliver workers needed to meet skills shortages in the Australian economy, Minister for
Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans said.

The new skilled occupations list (SOL) will apply from 1 July and provide employers with
access to skilled workers from 181 highly valued occupations, including managerial,
professional, technical and trade occupations.

“The Government’s reforms to the skilled migration program are delivering the workers our
economy need to the regions where there is real demand,” Senator Evans said.

“We have already seen the rate of employer and state-sponsored skilled migrants increase from 29 per cent in 2007-08 to 55 per cent this current year. And the latest figures illustrate businesses are already using the new system to recruit the skilled workers they need to meet demands in Western Australian and Queensland.”

Both Western Australia and Queensland have seen increases to the share of skilled
migrants coming to their respective states.

In 2004-05, 12 per cent of all permanent migrants settled in Western Australia. This figure
had increased to 16 per cent in 2008/09. Western Australia is also attracting more workers
under the employer sponsored program. The state accounted for 16 per cent of the program
in 2007/08 and this grew to 24 per cent in 2008/09.

The total permanent migration figures in Queensland have also increased from 17 per cent
in 2004-05 to 20 per cent in 2008/09.

The new SOL was formulated on the advice of the independent body Skills Australia.

The Government recognises the changes may affect some overseas students currently in
Australia who had been intending to apply for permanent residence. The introduction of the
new SOL provides generous transitional arrangements for people who were former and
current international students at the time the changes were announced on 8 February 2010.

International students who have the skills Australia needs will still be able to apply for
independent permanent migration or be nominated by employers.

The new SOL is available from the Department of Immigration of Citizenships (DIAC)
website at: www.immi.gov.au/skilled/sol.

Source: http://www.investinaustralia.com

Updates: June, 2010

2010-07-03T03:41:00.000-07:00

Private college numbers on the rise

Release date: 30 Jun 2010

As the private education sector called for an emergency taskforce to manage the fallout from last year's attacks on students and a regulatory crackdown, Senate estimates heard the embattled private sector now hosted almost 140,000 enrolments.

While the growth is modest by historic standards, it was 4 per cent up on 131,113 enrolments last April, federal education department group manager Colin Walters told the recent Senate education hearings.

The surprising resilience of the sector was reinforced with the revelation the states had recommended that another 59 providers be registered this year, on top of the 100 new providers registered last year.

The surge in new providers was accompanied by the closure of 16 providers last year, 15 this year and another closure displacing 400 students from a Gold Coast college just last week.

Mr Walters' colleague Tulip Chaudhury said the number of high-risk providers had been estimated by the department at between 200 and 300 colleges.

Some 1241 overseas student-accredited colleges of a total 1290 similarly accredited institutions had so far applied for re-registration under the government crackdown on dodgy colleges.

This meant some 49 such colleges - their risk status unknown - had so far failed to apply for re-registration before the end-of-year deadline for all providers.

Meanwhile, Immigration Minister Chris Evans revealed in Senate estimates that a historically large spike in onshore student visa applications had driven a pipeline of 147,000 skilled migration applications.

In the Senate legal and constitutional committee, Senator Evans defended his overhaul of skills lists and integrity measures as necessary to avoid processing 10,000 cooks in the queue ahead of one doctor.

"That is the current system and it has been the system up until now," he said.

"We are trying to get a more sophisticated model rather than just accepting who is in the queue."

Responding to criticism of lengthened visa-processing times, Senator Evans said he would make no apologies as "high rates of fraud and inadequate applications" had been found.

"We will continue to take longer to get it right, rather than get it wrong quickly," he said.

Senator Evans also defended a $13m jump in student visa application revenue to $170m this year.

The increased revenue resulted from a large number of onshore students extending their visas or changing courses, acting first assistant secretary Kruno Kukoc said.

"We are predicting and projecting a significant drop in student visa applications offshore, but the onshore are transferred to another visa and maintain the pace," Mr Kukoc told estimates.

Overall, there had been "a small drop" in the grant rate (from more than 90 per cent to about 85 per cent) of student visa applications from offshore, Mr Kukoc said.

However, there had been a large drop in applications from India, and especially Nepal, "where people effectively were selling taxi driver visas under the guise of trade qualifications in Australia", Senator Evans said.

"That is not to disparage all Nepalese students who came in under the scheme, but Nepal was one of those countries where that racket took hold."

The increased integrity measures had resulted in "high numbers" of refusals and withdrawals of applications, especially from India, Nepal, Zimbabwe and Mauritius, he said.

Source: The Australian

Simon Crean told to use trade nous in education job

Release date: 29 Jun 2010

Julia Gillard yesterday appointed Mr Crean to head up her former portfolio of Education, Workplace Relations and Social Inclusion, reprising the role he played in the Keating government between 1993 and 1996.

The international education sector is hoping Mr Crean's experience as trade minister in the Rudd government will help to convince the government it needs to do more to address a downturn in student numbers, which is already hitting the English language and vocational sectors.

More than 15 per cent of university sector revenue comes from international students.

The International Education Association of Australia said it was seeking "an early discussion with the minister to mount an urgent strategic communications campaign directed at parents, students, overseas governments and education agents during this period of potential crisis."

The government has cracked down on "dodgy" colleges operating as "visa factories" for foreign students seeking permanent residency. The sector complains the changes have been too fast and are discouraging legitimate students.

"The levers have been applied almost blindly and too quickly," IEAA chief executive Dennis Murray told The Australian.

The National Tertiary Education Union said a priority for Mr Crean must be to clarify the responsibilities of the planned new tertiary education regulator.

Peter Coaldrake, chairman of Universities Australia and vice-chancellor of the Queensland University of Technology, said: "Mr Crean is obviously a senior and experienced minister and he has had experience in this portfolio before, and the sector looks forward to working with him".

Source: The Australian

ITB Asked to Open a Campus in Malaysia

Release date: 29 Jun 2010

“The scheme could be a joint venture with Malaysian private university or owned by the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB),” said the Vice President’s spokesperson Yopie Hidayat after the meeting with Vice President Boediono and the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Dato Haji Muhyidin Mohd Yassin at the Vice President’s Office, on Monday (28/6).

This offer, said Yopie, was conveyed by the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister in a breakfast with a team from ITB.

According to Yopie, this is an effort to improve human resources quality.

“They want to connect with reputed universities and they appreciate ITB as one that has the best graduates,” he said.

The plan would be discussed by the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister with Education Minister Muhammad Nuh this afternoon.

“The Deputy Prime Minister wants to offer something reasonable. For the technical details, we wait for the negotiating team,” he said.

Source: Tempo Interactif

Updates: May, 2010

2010-05-20T21:55:00.000-07:00

Chris Evans OK tests language examiners

Release date: 19 May 2010

Immigration and Citizenship Minister Chris Evans has given in-principle approval for rival tests to be officially recognised for checks of English proficiency when overseas students or workers seek visas.

"We're very hopeful. There's really no objective reason why TOEFL [the US-based Test of English as a Foreign Language] could not be confidently used in the Australian [immigration] context," said Eileen Tyson, a TOEFL representative in Australia this month for talks.

TOEFL, which dates back to 1964, and a new test from global publisher Pearson are known to have applied to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship for official status.

IELTS, the International English Language Testing System, which emerged from British and Australian collaboration, has had a monopoly since 2001 when the department mandated its test for student visas. It has also enjoyed a near monopoly for skilled migration. IELTS has struggled at times to keep up with the demand for its tests, leading to complaints about waiting times.

Helen Cook, who works with TOEFL in Australia, said insistence on IELTS by the department could be a disincentive for potential overseas students who had a TOEFL result for admission to an Australian university.

Reporting his 2009 study of overseas students who did not take up an offer, researcher Alan Olsen said: "Australia might need to look at why it does not accept TOEFL results for higher degree by research students from countries such as China, India and Iran."

In April 2008, education broker IDP Australia Pty Ltd paid $28.7 million to become sole owner of IELTS Australia Pty Ltd.

Four months later, the Immigration Department began a review of the IELTS monopoly by inviting other test providers to put their case for recognition. One estimate puts the worth of the Australian test market at about $30m, although this may be reduced by the government's decoupling of education and immigration.

Last month, Senator Evans wrote to TOEFL and other test providers to tell them of "his in-principle support for the acceptance of more than one English language test under the migration regulations", a department spokesman said.

There was some more work to be done on the security of tests, and on the equivalence of scores between different tests, before a final decision, the spokesman said.

Source: The Australian

Australia's international education sector under strain

Release date: 18 May 2010

A new list has been released of occupations required for migrants seeking to come to the country without business support. It stops people coming to Australia for lower skill, short courses and then gaining permanent residency based on that training. But education providers say international students are now switching to other countries for their education.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: Up till now a quick course in something such as hairdressing or cooking could lead to a foreign student gaining permanent residency in Australia.

But that has all changed. The Government is now set to halve the number of occupations and professions listed in its skilled migration program. The Immigration Minister Chris Evans says the new system will better cater to the country's economic needs.

CHRIS EVANS: Well it's very much tightening up on the skills list. There's more than 200 less classifications here, but critically a range of low-skill occupations such as cooking and hairdressing, where we've seen a growth in vocational education training.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: Senator Evans says the education system has driven the migration intake for far too long.

CHRIS EVANS: We've had the education system driving our migration outcomes rather than having our skills needs driving them. This is about making sure that the people who come in on the migration program have the skills we need, have the English levels we need and can get a job in that skilled area.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: As well as the economic imperative there have been other factors behind the Government's changes.

A series of attacks on Indians and the collapse of a number of educational institutions have hurt Australia's reputation as an international education destination. The Government has been under intense pressure to fix the situation.

Already, 20,000 prospective migrants have had their applications for permanent residency rejected. And the changes are expected to affect between 30,000 to 40,000 international students presently studying in Australia.

Andrew Smith is chief executive officer of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training, the peak body for private-sector education courses. He says these students should be allowed to stay under the previous permanent residency arrangements.

ANDREW SMITH: We've got students and your businesses in Australia who've invested very heavily on the basis of the Government's previous policies. And we believe that those students in particular should be able to continue their studies and seek the outcome that was promised to them under previous policies.

We understand the need for change in the immigration policies. We support those changes, but we think that we have a responsibility to honour the commitments we made to existing students.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: Andrew Smith says other western countries such as Canada are already taking advantage of the situation and poaching students.

ANDREW SMITH: Well I can tell you that one of the key things that is hurting reputation overseas at the moment and causing students to look to other countries for their education is the uncertainty and the continual change in immigration policy, where we're not meeting the promises we made.

That means that we have, are seen as having an unstable policy environment and it means that investment is being made elsewhere. Our third largest export industry is under increasing pressure as a result of this uncertainty and the continual change in policy settings.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: Support for existing students is also coming from within Australia's Indian community. But Dr Yadu Singh an Indian community leader based in Sydney says he supports the overall changes to the system.

YADU SINGH: Indians from India can come to Australia but they have to you know fit in with the requirements which Australia has. We can't just be you know guiding our immigration programs based on some sort of specific trades like you know cookery or hairdressing.

So of course Indians would be welcome but I'm Indian as well. I came as a doctor so you know we want people from all over the world Australia being the multicultural country but we want the right people for the right trade, the right qualifications and we can't allow our immigration program to be controlled or guided only by international education.

MICHAEL EDWARDS: Education agents in India say demand for Australian courses has fallen since news of the changes to the permanent residency regulations were announced.

Source: ABC Radio

New Skilled Occupation List to meet Australia’s economic needs

Release date: 17 May 2010

Senator Evans said the list, developed by the independent body Skills Australia and containing 181 highly valued occupations, would ensure Australia’s skilled migration program is demand-driven rather than supply-driven.

"We intend to fundamentally change the way we target skilled migrants to restore integrity to the skilled migration program," Senator Evans said.

"Through a targeted migration program, the Rudd Government will attract skilled migrants of the highest calibre and deliver people with real skills to meet real need in our economy."

The new SOL is a critical reform in the Government’s overhaul of the skilled migration program and closes the door on those seeking to manipulate the migration system.

Only people with relevant qualifications in occupations listed on the SOL will be eligible for independent general skilled migration.

"Australia's migration program cannot be determined by the courses studied by international students," Senator Evans said.

"This SOL represents a new direction which aims to ensure we choose migrants who have the skills to meet our nation’s economic needs.

"The Rudd Government continues to value the very important contribution made by the international education sector and education providers that deliver high-quality courses to both Australian and overseas students will continue to prosper.

"International students who have the skills our economy needs will still be able to apply for permanent migration or be nominated by employers but we will no longer accept the thousands of cooks and hairdressers who applied under the guidelines established by the Howard government."

Under the Howard government people who completed short courses in vocations such as cooking and hairdressing and had low English skills were almost assured of gaining permanent residence as a skilled migrant.

In 2007-08, of the 41 000 general skilled visas granted, more than 5 000 went to cooks and hairdressers; three quarters of them had formerly studied in Australia. These two occupations have been removed from the new SOL.

The Minister said he would recommend to the Governor-General in-Council amendments to the Migrations Regulations 1994 to give effect to this new framework.

The new SOL is proposed to come into effect on 1 July 2010 to replace the old list which contained more than 400 occupations. It will be updated annually.

Senator Evans said Skills Australia received advice from industry skills councils, industry peak bodies and Professions Australia to ensure the SOL contained occupations Australia needs in the medium to long term.

"The initiative builds on the reforms announced in February," Senator Evans said.

"The Government has increased English language requirements for trade applicants and introduced a new job ready program for onshore trade applicants.

"There is now increased priority for employer sponsored migrants and this will ensure industry is able to quickly access the skilled workers it needs."

During the past 18 months, the Government has driven a reform agenda, aimed at shifting the supply-driven skilled migration system we inherited to a demand-driven one.

"First and foremost, young Australians should be trained and given the opportunity to fill existing job vacancies. The Government has a national plan to ensure young people are skilled in the occupations where there is the greatest need," Senator Evans said.

"But there are some occupations where there will continue to be a high demand for skills and we welcome highly trained people to Australia to fill these vacancies.

"Hospitals can’t go without nurses, country towns can’t do without a local GP and the resources sector increasingly needs skills."

Chairman of the Government's National Resources Sector Employment Taskforce, Parliamentary Secretary for Western and Northern Australia Gary Gray, welcomed the new SOL and said it would address the needs of the resources sector.

"The taskforce has met with resource sector employers across the country and the clear message is that we need a targeted approach to migration," Mr Gray said.

The government recognises the proposed changes would affect some overseas students currently in Australia intending to apply for permanent residence. The introduction of the new SOL does not change the concessions announced in February which provide generous transition arrangements for former and current international students seeking a visa under the General Skilled Migration (GSM) program.

People who have already applied for a GSM visa would not be affected by the implementation of the new SOL.

The changes would in no way affect international students coming to Australia to gain a qualification and then return home.

Skills Australia will publish on its website www.skillsaustralia.gov.au the evidence and analysis for each listed occupation in coming weeks.

Source: Media release, Minister for Immigration and Citizenship

Hairdressers chopped in visa crackdown

Release date: 17 May 2010

The Government will today reveal it will crack down on people manipulating our immigration system by taking up "low-value" education courses as a means of seeking permanent residency.

Those wanting to qualify for a general skilled visa will now have to make sure their job is listed on the new "skilled occupation list", which has been whittled down from more than 400 occupations to 181.

Highly-skilled migrants - for example doctors, nurses, engineers, scientists, teachers, vets, locksmiths, dentists, midwives, mechanics, bricklayers, carpenters, tilers, electricians and plumbers - are still very much in demand.

But foreigners with low English skills who completed short courses in vocations such as cooking and hairdressing - who were previously almost assured of gaining permanent residency as a skilled migrant - will now have to expand their skills if they want to live in Australia.

There are more than 200 other occupations that have also been dumped from the new skilled jobs list, including mathematicians, counsellors, historians, fashion designers, translators, park rangers, hotel managers, parole officers, interior decorators, piano tuners, buttermakers, massage therapists, tree surgeons and glass blowers.

Immigration and Citizenship Minister Chris Evans yesterday said that refining the list to "highly valued" occupations would restore integrity to the skilled migration program and close the door on those seeking to manipulate the migration system.

"Through a targeted migration program, the Rudd Government will attract skilled migrants of the highest calibre and deliver people with real skills to meet real need in our economy," Senator Evans said.

"Australia's migration program cannot be determined by the courses studied by international students.

"International students who have the skills our economy needs will still be able to apply for permanent migration or be nominated by [their] employers.

"But we will no longer accept the thousands of cooks and hairdressers who applied under the guidelines [that were] established by the Howard government."

The new skilled occupation list is due to come online on July 1.

Senator Evans said people who have already applied for a general skilled migration visa would not be affected by the implementation of the new skilled occupation list.

And the changes won't affect international students coming to Australia to gain a qualification and then return home.

In the coming weeks, Skills Australia will publish the evidence and analysis for each listed occupation on its website (skillsaustralia.gov.au).

Source: Herald Sun

Updates: April, 2010

2010-04-29T22:37:00.000-07:00

More changes to Australia's student visa program

Australian Federal Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, has announced measures to strengthen the integrity of the current student visa program, which will make the visa application process easier for genuine full-time students, he said.

Please click the source link for detailed info.

Source from:
http://www.investinaustralia.com/news/more-changes-australias-student-visa-program

Australian universities set to establish campuses in India

The Federal Education Department has welcomed an Indian Government plan to allow foreign universities to set up campuses in India. India’s national cabinet has approved a bill to allow foreign education providers to enter the market amid booming demand for tertiary education. Approximately half of India's 1.15 billion people are under 25 years of age and Kapil Sibal, India's Minister for Human Resource Development, says an estimated 40 million young people will be going to university over the next 10 years in India. ''This is a milestone which will enhance choices, increase competition and benchmark quality,'' he said of the bill. ''A larger revolution than even in the telecom sector awaits us.''

A spokesman for the Federal Department of education said that the changes would be a boon for Australian education providers. “No doubt many would seek to set up campuses should the Indian government invite them and that would be a real benefit to both our countries”, he said.

Source:
http://www.investinaustralia.com/news/australian-universities-set-establish-campuses-india

Australian research collaboration with China and India on the rise

Research collaboration between Australia and China has almost doubled in the past decade, while partnerships with other Asia Pacific nations including New Zealand, India and Singapore are on the rise. According to a new study released by Thomson Reuters, the biggest institutional partner for Australia from 2004-2008 was the Chinese Academy of Scientists, which co-authored 1269 publications with Australian researchers.

“Researchers in Australia and New Zealand have been increasing their share of publications co-authored with international colleagues”, said Jonathan Adams, director of research evaluation at Thomsen Reuters. “We’ve seen a shift in geographic focus of these collaborations. While such countries as Russia and South Africa decrease in importance, there are increases in collaboration with Spain and Switzerland and more importantly, with India and China”.

The study also suggests that Australia’s policy of setting national research priorities has been beneficial and shows steady increases in the volume of Australian research publications. "Computer science, materials science, environment/ecology, and clinical medicine are subject areas where Australia has increased its outputs, consistent with its national research priorities”, said the report. “The volume of Australian publications has risen annually by an average of 5 per cent – a growth rate higher than that of world publication averages”.

Source:
http://www.investinaustralia.com/news/australian-research-collaboration-china-and-india-rise

Updates: March, 2010

2010-03-18T22:27:00.000-07:00

14 March 2010

Australian Immigration Baird Report supports changes

Immigration Minister Chris Evans has welcomed the final report of the Baird Review on the legislation governing international education. The Baird Report by Bruce Baird was commissioned by the Australian Department for Education to report on the legislation that governs international education in Australia.

Mr Evans says that he is pleased with the support in the Baird Report for the Australian immigration changes announced on 8 February 2010. He goes on to say that the immigration changes mean the removal of incentives for students to apply for course in the hope of later gaining Australian permanent residence. However, the report also said that there should be tougher national accreditation and that there should be greater protection for foreign students.

The Immigration Minister went on to refer again to the changes such as the ending of the Migration occupations in demand list which is to be replaced mid-year by a new targeted skilled occupation list to be developed by an independent body Skills Australia. He went on to say that the new skilled occupations list will be focused on "high value skills" such as the professions and trades in areas such as healthcare, engineering and mining which it is hoped will deal with Australia's future skills needs. Forecasting future skills needs is not easily done. It remains to be seen how accurate the forecasts will be.

In a number of cases sponsorship may be the way forward. Students currently on a course not on the new skilled occupation list will have until the end of 2012 to apply for a temporary skilled graduate visa for up to 18 months to gain Australian work experience and find an Australian employer to sponsor them. It may also be possible to come under an Australian State sponsorship scheme.

International students in Australia on a vocational, higher education or postgraduate student visa will still be able to apply for permanent residence if their occupation is on the new skilled occupations list.

The Immigration Minister then stresses that the student visa is to study in Australia. It does not give someone the right to permanent residence. He also said that Australia still welcomes international students who would then have an opportunity to find an Australian employer to sponsor them. Therefore, in practice studying in Australia may lead to greater immigration opportunities in Australia.

The Baird Report by Bruce Baird a former Australian Member of Parliament raised concerns about the treatment of overseas students in Australia. It was felt that some schools were taking advantage of international students. Mr Baird also had the following comments to make about attacks on Indian students in Australia:

"The recent attacks, predominantly on young Indian students, have saddened me as an Australian. I have a strong interest in Australia's successful multicultural ethos through my involvement in refugee issues, and it is extremely disappointment to see Australia's reputation as a safe and tolerant country damaged. I condemn these acts of violence."

Mr Baird felt that international students should have somewhere safe to go if they were facing problems, and also felt that new legislation should be introduced to protect international students.

source: workpermit.com

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Baird lifts the bar

Release date: 16 Mar 2010

High-risk international education and training providers will have to clean up their act or risk getting turfed out of the industry next year, after the major parties signalled support for the key recommendations of the Baird Review of the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act. The Baird proposals, which were released last week, now appear likely to converge with other recent developments - including the agreement to establish a national VET regulator and Parliament's recent approval of ESOS amendments - to change the landscape of international education.

Full article is available to subscribers at Campus Review

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2009-12-08T14:25:00.000-08:00

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