INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION campusreview. com. au
Pieces of a year
THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE
FEES AND CHARGES
ACCOUNTING ON SOL
GENUINE TEMPORARY ENTRANT TEST
STREAMLINED VISA PROCEDURE
MARKETING‘ BRAND
AUSTRALIA’
STUDENT MOBILITY
The big decisions – and how they were made – in 2014.
By Phil Honeywood
At the start of 2014 the international education sector had high hopes for positive policy reform. One year down the track, it’ s good to report that our issues have gained the ear of government decision-makers.
The jury is still out, however, on how much of our reform agenda will be implemented going into a new year. Issues around sector governance, government-imposed reviews, streamlined visa procedure changes, Austrade funding and the overall student experience require much greater attention if we are to maintain our international standing.
SILO DECISION-MAKING A key factor inhibiting progress has been the ongoing tendency for the five government departments and six ministers who administer our sector to make decisions in relative isolation.
After accepting that international education is not likely to have its own portfolio minister, stakeholders were looking forward to the implementation of Michael Chaney’ s recommendation of a ministerial co-ordinating council. This should be up and running by now.
Whilst it is understood that the education minister, Christopher Pyne, is committed to the concept of chairing bi-annual meetings of relevant portfolio ministers, businesses, peak bodies and state government representatives, it is not entirely clear when this forum will be inaugurated.
As a result, our sector remains bedevilled by reviews being announced, and decisions being made, without the benefit of a whole-of-government consultative approach. Key examples of this include:
• Fees and charges review: justified because of the“ war on terror”, and the need to quantify the actual costs of border control, this review caught international education stakeholders unaware. It seemed not to factor in the Gillard government’ s introduction of a new $ 700 student visa extension charge and the fact that, at $ 535, Australia already has the highest student visa charges in the world. Peak bodies were quick to get their submissions in to this review and are hopeful of quarantining any additional cost imposts for overseas students. In the meantime, the sector has been successful in gaining the attention of the Productivity Commission for an investigation that will focus on student visa charges acting as a barrier to entry into the Australian education market.
• Accounting on SOL: the Skilled Occupation List is assessed each year by the Department of Industry, which then makes recommendations to the assistant minister for immigration – currently Senator Michaela Cash. The recommendation was for accounting places in 2014 to be reduced from 6 per cent of the total SOL places down to 4.5 per cent. Cash decided to reduce it even further to only 3 per cent of the list. Given that more than 50 per cent of tuition-paying international students in Australia are enrolled in business-related courses( often with associated English language pipeline course enrolments) such decisions send all the wrong messages about the prospects of gaining skilled migration status in our country for those who study to be an accountant.
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