In Australia, student visa applications are now starting the be on the decline. And many of the those in the foreign education sector worried that if the trend continues, it can have a negative effect on the industry. Thus, they are now urging the government to act on the situation.
One of the biggest reasons for the decrease in the number of foreign students enrolling in the country is said to the changes in the student migration program that was made by the Department of immigration and Citizenship. It should be noted that the DIAC started the implementation of these changes since early last year. The biggest of these changes is the reorganization of the skilled occupation list, which resulted in the removal of a lot of jobs in the list. This, in turn, has affected he number of educational courses that can be granted a visa.
On the other hand, the stricter qualifications that the Department requires of student immigrants is also considered as another thing that has contributed to the decrease in the number of foreign student applicants lately. The most notable of these new qualifications has been the increase in the amount of funds needed before one can be granted a student visa. The stricter requirement for English proficiency has also been a major problem for those students coming from non-English speaking countries, like India and China.
Because of these, many foreign students are asking the government to act in order to give them the chance to get into the country. According to current Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans, the downturn of foreign student numbers is indeed quite alarming. He noted that the foreign education sector is one of the biggest industries in the country today, totaling to more than $18 billion annually. He added that this has been one of the country's top priorities in recent years.
Thus, he emphasized that both the government and the private education sector must closely cooperate in order to attract more foreign students into the country. Evans made this statement while meeting with education representatives in Beijing last month. China still remains one of the country's biggest clients when it comes to foreign students, comprising 27 percent of the entire population. However, the number of Chinese enrollments have been declining in the last few months.
However, Evans also said that he will still stand by the changes made in student migration program. He said that these are essential to safeguard the quality of the country's education system. He also urged foreign students to increase their efforts in order to get in.
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