Changes to Australia’s student visa processing regime have sparked a new wave of onshore poaching, with international students jumping ship after completing just months of their degrees.
Western Sydney University (WSU) vice-chancellor George Williams said government measures to restrict student arrivals in Australia had produced an “emerging market” of institutions pilfering their competitors’ foreign enrolments.
Williams said the current visa processing arrangements, prescribed under “ministerial direction 111”, limited how many students universities could recruit from overseas – but not from each other.
He said WSU had lost a “significant number” of foreign students that it had expended “blood, sweat and tears” in recruiting, with hundreds failing to return for the university’s second academic term.
“International students are leaving in higher numbers than we’ve seen before,” he said. “We don’t know where. They don’t answer their emails – they just move on.
“If you fundamentally change how a market operates, it would not be surprising to see a range of perverse incentives coming in.”
The issue is exacerbating a revenue shortfall that threatens to cost WSU up to 400 jobs. Williams said he was considering charging students 12 months’ fees in advance, but was wary of adding to their financial pressures. “We’re in the most price-sensitive market,” he said. “Our students are literally scraping together their entire life savings to come to Australia.”
Nishi Borra, president of the Association of Australian Education Representatives in India, said other universities had reported similar problems. “Some students are transferring to cheaper institutions or changing their programme of study after the first semester,” he said.
“Many private providers are not actively recruiting students from overseas but instead are targeting students already in Australia – particularly those enrolled in universities. These institutions often offer lower fees and higher commissions to onshore agents. There is no mechanism to stop this.”
prevent international students changing providers within six months or switching to lower-level qualifications. Times Higher Education understands that students sidestep the latter restriction by enrolling in private, dual-sector institutions – those offering both vocational diplomas and degrees – with the intention of only completing the vocational portion of their qualifications.
The government planned to crack down on this behaviour by banning “onshore” commissions, through integrity measures in an . But the amendment bill stalled in the Senate late last year after the opposition vowed to block it over the government’s proposal to cap international commencements, which was also part of the bill.
THE understands that the government now plans to reintroduce the bill without the section relating to student caps. “We’re hopeful that these reintroduced…integrity measures will act as a disincentive against this behaviour,” said?Phil Honeywood, CEO of the International Education Association of Australia.
Williams said a census of WSU’s current enrolments had revealed that the institution was in better financial shape than originally thought, with next year’s predicted A$79 million (?38 million) deficit revised to A$74 million. He said it was too early to say whether this would reduce the need for job cuts.
But he said WSU’s feat in topping 罢贬贰’蝉 Impact Rankings, for the fourth year in a row, should help ease the sector’s social licence problems. “This is…demonstrated, measurable evidence that we’re delivering things that the community is seeking from universities – real-world impact to improve lives.”
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