The Fall of International Education

I came across this news from the age and think that we are in the cross-road of international education in Australia. Subject matter is Indian students in Australia!!

Indian student enrolments at Australian universities are set to plunge by at least 80 per cent in the 2011 academic year, a leading academic says.

Melbourne University vice-chancellor Glyn Davis warns that higher education across the country, including Victoria where it is the state's biggest export earner, is taking a massive hit after reports of attacks against students from the sub-continent.

"According to our best sources ... the fall in applications from India into Australian tertiary education ... are predicting at around 80 per cent, some institutions are reporting up to 90," Professor Davis told reporters in Melbourne.

"We did have a system where everything was growing. It's no longer true, so we are going to have to go back and look again."

Monash University is expected to cut staff numbers by more than 300 in 2011 due to drastically reduced international student revenues, the National Tertiary Education Union says.

But Melbourne University, with a more diverse mix of foreign students, is "better prepared" to weather the storm, a university spokesman said.

Prof Davis said Australia was the only country in the world where international student numbers were dropping.

"Every other country is seeing an increase in international students," he said.

"We are the only country in the world that is having this sharp fall, which tells you that whatever the factors are that are driving it, they're about what we do in Australia."

If the international student market continues to soften, universities will need to increase pressure of the federal government for more investment, Prof Davis said.

He conceded that the consequences of lost income would be felt by Australian students but would not confirm whether fees would rise.

"We would all prefer to see public investment (rather) than further increases in student fees, but it may be that, in the mix of things that get talked about, student fees is part of them," he said.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said a variety of factors, including the high Australian dollar, some immigration changes and fierce competition in the region had put pressure on enrolments, but the government would continue to promote Australia as a desirable country to study in.

"We do want to see international students come and study here, so we'll keep working with the Victorian government, with individual universities on international education, but there are a range of factors putting pressure on at this time."

Prof Davis said Australia had never been the first destination of choice for Indian students, but actual or perceived violent attacks had not helped the cause.

"There's no doubt that the climate in India was deeply critical of the way Australians had handled it, and there was also no doubt it was going to affect people's willingness to come here," he said.

"We were already in a market where we weren't necessarily an attractive destination - this ensured that we were not an attractive destination.

"It takes a long time to rebuild a reputation ... almost overnight we've shown that.

"You only do it through patient diplomacy, you do it through endless delegations, you do it through scholarships, and you have to work very hard with the community at home to make it clear that there are ... really disturbing consequences."

(Source: http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/indian-student-numbers-to-drop-80-20101014-16l8j.html)