Universities are being urged to set up campuses in other countries and offer more courses online as the federal government attempts to quell the post-pandemic surge of international students in Australia to ease migration pressures.

The Commonwealth’s long-term international education strategy is being revised to boost the focus on overseas offerings, with ministers calling on Australian institutions to establish a greater presence in South-East Asia and the Pacific, as the government’s migration overhaul aims to reduce the volume of foreign students arriving in the country.

International Education Association of Australia head Phil Honeywood, who is also co-convenor of the Council for International Education on which Labor ministers sit, said providers could partner-up with institutions in other countries and split their courses, so students could study offshore. “Clearly the government is concerned about the large increase in students from a handful of countries wanting to study in Australia and ... is now looking at options for Australian education to still be a significant player, but by means of offshore delivery, whether it be offshore campuses or more focus on online delivery,” Honeywood said.

The Australian government is targeting international student numbers as it aims to reduce net overseas migration by half after the figure swelled to a record of 518,000 last financial year – partly due to a post-COVID boom in the number of foreign students. A clampdown on work rights, stricter savings requirements, tougher English-language testing and a new genuine student test are all aimed at improving standards, as the government simultaneously tightens up the integrity of the vocational sector.

Asked during an interview with ABC Radio Melbourne earlier this month whether Australia would cap the number of foreign students – a measure universities oppose – Education Minister Jason Clare said the sector had to become more sustainable through universities exporting their services overseas. “That makes money for us as a country like any other export industry without the pressures that it puts on our economy and our population by having students here in large numbers,” he said.

A Universities Australia-commissioned report by educational consultancy The Lygon Group urged the sector to move into South-East Asia and the Pacific. “Australian universities that have opened in Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia have been good for students in our region and good for Australia,” Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Tim Watt said.

Source: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/universities-eye-offshore-fix-fo...

What this means for the UK sector

Australia’s focus on South-East Asia affirms the importance of the region as a source of quality students for higher education. This development serves as a push to UK universities to continue engaging with and investing in the region both to attract students to the UK as well as to enhance TNE partnerships in the region.

While Australia’s interest in going offshore will increase the competition for TNE, it can also raise the acceptance for TNE in the region. In more mature TNE markets, where the UK and Australia are both big players, UK universities still need to ensure that TNE programmes remain relevant, innovative and aligned with current demand from students and the host government. In emerging markets, UK universities need to be proactive in keeping abreast of opportunities and then seeking out and establishing partnerships, more so at a time when local governments are becoming more receptive to TNE as an important means of internationalising higher education in their respective countries