INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION campusreview. com. au
The place to be
Australian universities are well positioned to benefit from a coming global surge in foreign students; it’ s time to look at how to stay that way.
Paul Wellings interviewed by James Wells
International students are key for Australia’ s prosperity, the vice-chancellor of the University of Wollongong says. In his address to the Times Higher Education World Academic Summit, Paul Wellings said international student numbers would double worldwide over the next two decades and predicted Australian universities would play core roles in educating these students.
Today, international education is Australia’ s third-biggest export, worth $ 18 billion a year, but Wellings says the nation must maintain a political and social climate that is friendly towards these students as the values of Australia’ s other exports begin to drop.
“ Given that the United States is relatively restrictive on visas and at the moment the British position is extremely restrictive on visas … we’ ve actually crafted a distinctive policy setting here that is permissive to the building of a sector and also uses the great strengths of the 41 universities we’ ve got here in Australia to huge effect.
“ That has geo-political ramifications because it allows Australian credentials to be available and used all over the world and it provides a huge amount of credibility for Australian education and culture. Over time, that will pay dividends in greater China, South-east Asia and India.”
Wellings, who chaired the discussion on the future of international student mobility at the conference, spoke with Campus Review to elaborate on the issue.
CR: Paul, what do you see as the future of international student mobility in universities?
PW: I think there are several elements to that. Here in Australia, we’ ve seen student mobility programs rising quickly – the new Colombo plan and the initiatives of the government have been driving that. Now,
70 per cent of Australians going overseas on programs are on short study abroad courses as opposed to exchange programs. That’ s a big shift.
Transnational education is also significant. We attract large numbers of international students and this will persist. World students will double in the next 20 years, and I think Australia’ s institutions will continue to be deeply embedded in that activity.
Do you think it’ s possible that the next generation of Australian uni students may become international students themselves in countries such as China? In niche areas. I think most Australian students will want to do the bulk of their degree here, and then most probably study overseas to do a master’ s degree or possibly get work experience.
I’ ve just come back from various alumni events, and if I go through New York or London I’ m guaranteed to meet a large number of Australians in professions like finance, law, media and the creative arts. There are many people who are spending part of their time after graduation doing that. I’ m not sure they’ re going to run to do their degrees overseas beforehand. I think having an Australian credential is still an important thing at the national level.
Keeping in mind that, say, Wollongong is getting campuses all across the world, is the notion that a student enrols in a single campus and stays there to study dissolving in a globalised market? No, I think the bulk of the students still come and want to do the whole experience in one institution.
I subscribe to the view that says, certainly for undergraduates, education is a body-contact sport. They want to meet other academics, they want to meet other
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