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It is not a matter of if , but when , international students return to Australia .
Not going away
International students want to delay , not cancel , studies .
By Wade Zaglas
A new report has found that most international students want to delay their studies abroad until COVID-19 travel restrictions are lifted rather than cancelling them altogether . And the good news is that Australia is still considered a top destination of choice .
Entitled ‘ International student recruitment trends in global higher education preparing for a post-pandemic world ’, the report was conducted by Study Group and is based on a number of key surveys of international students .
“ This is very welcome news for many Australian universities that have seen international student numbers decimated due to the pandemic . However , the longer the borders remain closed , the less likely this is , and Australia faces the real risk of losing market share to other destinations ,” Study Group Australia managing director ANZ Alex Chevrolle said .
“ International students are still highly motivated to come to our shores and to take advantage of all that Australia ’ s best universities have to offer . The pandemic has been challenging but this latest research shows there are many reasons for our universities to be optimistic . International students want to return as soon as it is safe to do so .”
Study Group ’ s findings provide a more optimistic picture of Australia ’ s international student market than the ‘ Coronavirus and International Students ’ report , published last year by the Mitchell Institute . That report forecast there would be in excess of 300,000 fewer international students in Australia by July this year if travel restrictions were still in place .
However , according to Study Group ’ s report , Australia ’ s projected growth in the share of the international student market in the next few years of over 2 per cent makes it second only to Canada , which registered a projected growth of 6 per cent . Australia also rates in the top five study destinations , coming in behind the US ( top choice for two-thirds of respondents ), the UK and Canada .
According to Study Group ’ s survey of 1000 prospective students , 75 per cent of respondents intended to begin their overseas study in 2021 . The QS Survey cited in the report also found that 82 per cent of international students wanted to start their studies in 2021 , with another 11 per cent in 2022 and 8 per cent in 2023 .
LEARNING DELIVERY The report concludes that the majority of international students would prefer to study on-campus , however “ they ’ re willing to consider online and blended learning options when they ’ re positioned as temporary ”. Another important finding for Australian universities is that undergraduate students prefer on-campus delivery , “ likely due to their desire to experience university life and another country more broadly ”.
Postgraduate students , on the other hand , prefer remote or online learning due to its flexibility , but the report ’ s authors warn this could change post-pandemic .
The report also highlighted that a student ’ s nationality or ethnic background influenced the kinds of delivery modes they preferred . For instance , students from Vietnam prefer on-campus learning , while students from other countries in South-East Asia prefer a mix of online and blended learning .
WILL CHINESE STUDENTS CONTINUE TO COME ? Despite Chinese students comprising the majority of international students at Australian universities , focus groups held by Study Group in China highlighted some key challenges the higher education sector may face in attracting such students to Australia ’ s shores in the near future .
For instance , “ parents are the key decision makers [ in China ] and their main concern is the COVID-19 situation ”. Worryingly , although the parents of Chinese students “ see the value of international education ”, they are “ currently not comfortable with their child travelling overseas to study , despite the availability of vaccines ”.
Chinese students also expressed concern about the quality of remote , online learning in the focus groups : delivery modes that are being increasingly utilised by many of our top universities . The students equated such modes with “ courses not being as academically rigorous and demanding ” and contributing to them “ not feeling part of an international learning community ”.
“ Many of my classmates just sign in on the streaming classes and don ’ t do their assignments . We may fall behind ,” one student told a focus group . “ We are not getting the real experience ,” another said . However , despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and its damaging effect on Australia ’ s higher education sector , the Study Group report argues there will be an eventual snapback .
“ Australian universities have had a tough 12 months and the effects of the pandemic are still ongoing for universities that rely on the contributions of international students ,” Chevrolle said in response to the report .
“ But our research does show a silver lining . It is not a matter of if , but when , international students return to Australia and there is plenty of work that can be done to ease that return . Australia has a global and well-earned reputation as a premium destination for international students and that reputation will long outlive the effects of COVID-19 .” ■
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