international education of any proposed student visa rejection letter by an Australian staff member. Many other practical issues have also been resolved at these meetings.
2: Cooperation across the sector There has been increased emphasis on industry association cooperation, arising as an unintended consequence of the establishment of the EVCC.
As a result, much greater cooperation and even collaborative policy work now takes place. Ironically, this means that whereas previously the government of the day had been able to divide and conquer the various industry associations due to their competing priorities, this has now all changed.
In the lead-up to Australia’ s federal election in September 2013, the various industry associations involved in international education intend to have one combined policy submission and one voice.
3: Post study work rights At the same time as the UK was ditching the policy that allowed international students to stay and work in its economy after graduation, Australia was embracing it. The decision in 2011 to decouple migration from education had enormous negative implications for Australia’ s ability to
continue to attract high numbers of full fee paying international students. A solution was found by persuading politicians and civil servants that there had to be some alternative to ditching the migration option. Post-study work rights were seen as a legitimate compromise.
Lessons learned The recent focus in the Australian media on limiting overseas worker( 457 subcategory) visas has led to concerns that“ dog whistle” politics around migration may become a feature of the federal election later this year. If the UK example is anything to go by, such a focus could also have unfortunate ramifications for our dynamic international education sector and industry.
Happily, great efforts have been made by all stakeholders and peak industry associations to better educate the Australian voting public, politicians and civil servants about the many benefits that accrue from international students enrolled in our education institutions.
These stakeholders have ensured that official data is now robust enough to prove the benefits to the Australian economy of international education, not just tuition fee income but the multiplier effects of accommodation, food, entertainment, and family visiting from overseas as tourists. They have also been prepared to paint“ what if” negative scenarios that suggest that if public university funding gaps are not filled( for example by additional full-fee paying revenue from international students), then planned new buildings cannot be built and cutting edge research cannot be funded.
In this process, international education stakeholders have come to understand that they must seek out champion MPs, local government councils and civil servants and other community leaders who will assist in their lobbying efforts. Each of these constituencies has, in turn, expected to receive from the international education industry an advocacy and lobbying strategy that sets out achievable goals in the short, medium and longer term.
If the recent negativity shown in the UK towards increased numbers of overseas students is anything to go by, the road ahead is fraught with challenges. Nonetheless, in reaching out to each other as international higher education professionals there is much that we can share and learn. n
Phil Honeywood is the national executive director of the International Education Association of Australia( IEAA).
Better Strategic Decision Making Historical & Predictive Analytics
Discover how to make the shift to improved financial sustainability and transparency using business analytics
Join us in Indianapolis July 13-16 for the NACUBO Annual Meeting- Driving Innovation.
The University of Sydney’ s Director of Corporate Finance, Matt Easdown will outline the University’ s Strategy for Driving Financial Sustainability and Transparency.
www. pilbaragroup. com www. nacuboannualmeeting. org sydney. edu. au
www. campusreview. com. au May 2013 | 13