Indian students studying in Australia look at New Zealand, Canada for educational opportunities
Indian students studying in Australia look at New Zealand, Canada for educational opportunitiesPhysical attacks, new visa rules, vocational school closures and the strengthening Australian dollar are making Indian students turn their backs on Australia and look for educational opportunities in countries such as Canada and New Zealand.
Australia's multi-billion dollar Indian student market has "collapsed in just 12 months", according to The Australian newspaper, with enrolments from India, which until last year was showing annual growth rates of up to 40 per cent and was worth almost $3 billion to the Australian economy, dropping since March.
The sharp decline is expected to cost the Australian and, in particular Victoria's, economy dearly as it had attracted most of the Indian students over the past decade. By September, commencements were down almost 50 per cent on last year.
The education sector is Australia's fourth largest export earner and contributed more than $17 billion last year. It is estimated that the drop in enrolments in higher education institutions would also drop by 30 per cent by 2015 and conceivably cost 35,000 jobs nationwide.
An Indian employment agent is quoted by the newspaper as saying the mood in the Indian student community in Australia is "bleak and bitter".
"They feel betrayed and let down, and are leaving hordes with no intention of returning," she said.
A major cause of the decline in admissions is a new requirement that requires foreign students to establish they have enough money to cover living expenses, return airfares and tuition fees for the duration of their course which could total more than Rs 45 lakh.
Tightening of the government's requirements for foreign students had been prompted by a desire to close the loophole that had previously enabled thousands of Indian visa seekers to gain permanent residency through short vocational courses linked to the skilled migration list.
The new regulations have been tantamount to throwing out the baby with the bathwater in that, in addition to reducing the number of non-genuine students, they have barred admission to the flourishing under-graduate and post-graduate education market.
Did you know?The education sector is Australia's fourth largest export earner
35,000The approximate number of jobs that would be lost because of the drop in enrolments in colleges
