For Anannyaa Gupta, completing her studies in Australia has always been the “dream”.
“Their education system is one of the best in the world,” explains the 21-year-old from the Indian city of Hyderabad.
After completing her bachelor’s degree at Melbourne’s Monash University in July, she applied for the master’s qualification she needs to become a social worker – the kind of skilled job Australia desperately craves amid a labor shortage.
“I really want to study here, offer my skills and contribute to society,” she says.
But Ms Gupta is among current and prospective international students in panic caused by the Australian government’s plan to reduce the number of foreign students.
The new cap – which would significantly reduce new enrollments – is needed to make the A$47.8 billion (£24.6 billion, $32 billion) education sector more sustainable, the government says.
It is the most controversial of recent measures which have also imposed stricter English language requirements on student visa applicants, and greater scrutiny of those seeking further study. Non-refundable visa application fees have also doubled.
However, the industry and its supporters say they have not been properly consulted and the changes could devastate the economy, cause job losses and damage Australia’s reputation, while punishing both domestic and international students.
“[It] sends the message that Australia is not a welcoming place,” said Matthew Brown, deputy chief executive of the Group of Eight (Go8), a body representing Australia’s top-ranked universities.
Education is Australia’s fourth largest export, behind only mining products. Foreign students, who on average pay almost twice as much as Australian students, support some institutions and subsidize research, scholarships and domestic study costs. At the University of Sydney, for example, they account for more than 40% of turnover.
But Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government is under pressure to reduce record levels of migration, hoping to improve housing affordability and ease the cost of living crisis ahead of next year’s federal election. And international students – a total of 793,335 last semester – have become a target.
International students make up only a small part of the migration peak. . .
The government has proposed limiting new foreign registrations to 270,000 by 2025, which it says is a return to pre-pandemic levels. An accurate comparison with previous years is not possible because publicly available data is inadequate, an education expert said.
Education Minister Jason Clare says each higher education institution will be subject to an individual cap, with the biggest cuts to be borne by VET providers. Of the affected universities, those in the capitals will see the largest reductions.
The government says the policy will direct students to regional towns and universities that need them, rather than to overcrowded big cities.
It also says the changes are aimed at protecting prospective students from ‘unethical’ providers, claiming some accept students without sufficient language skills or academic standards and enroll people who plan to work rather than study.
“International education is extremely important, and these reforms are designed to make it better, fairer and put it on a more sustainable footing in the future,” said Clare.
Education Minister Jason Clare says the borders are a return to pre-pandemic levels [Getty Images]
Abul Rizvi, a former government official who shaped Australia’s skilled migration policy, says the “underfunded” sector “has long chased tuition revenue from overseas students, sacrificing learning integrity in the process.”
Institutions themselves are asking themselves whether they are too dependent on international student income and how they can solve this, says Dr. Brown: “It is a discussion that every university is having.”
But the caps announcement still provoked a largely furious reaction from the industry.
The Go8 has called the proposed laws “draconian”, while others accused the government of “deliberately weakening” the economy and using international students as “cannon fodder in a poll-driven battle over migration”.
-
Australia halves immigration and tightens the English test
-
Australia introduces a cap for international students
The government has not confirmed how long the caps will remain in place, but Dr. Brown says the Go8’s calculations indicate they will have a A$1 billion impact on their members in the first year alone. According to their research, the broader economy would take a hit of A$5.3 billion, resulting in the loss of 20,000 jobs.
Australia’s Treasury Department has called these projections “questionable” but has not released its own modeling of the economic impact of the changes.
Dr. Brown also warned the caps could cause some universities to withdraw offers already made to overseas students, undermine vital research programs and mean an increase in tuition fees for some Australian students.
The University of Sydney is among those saying the caps will lead to major cuts [Getty Images]
However, a handful of smaller universities, for whom the caps are favorable, welcomed the news.
La Trobe University Vice-Chancellor Theo Farrell said they support “transparent and proportionate measures” to manage international student growth in Australia.
“We recognize that there is broad political and social support for reducing net migration levels,” he said.
But Dr. Brown argues there is also a blow to Australia’s reputation, which is harder to quantify, pointing to Canada as a warning sign. The country introduced a foreign student cap this year, but industry bodies say enrollment numbers are well below that as nervous students prefer to sign up to study somewhere with more security.
“We need an international education system that manages built-in growth. It is not up to the minister to unilaterally decide on limits based on a formula that satisfies a political goal.”
Mr Rizvi argues that rather than continuing with the proposed maximums in Australia, the government should consider introducing a minimum score for the university entrance exam.
“We are shooting ourselves in the foot… It won’t deter low-performing students, but it will deter high-performing students who have options,” he wrote on X.
Meanwhile, the Greens in parliament have said the policy amounts to “racist dog whistling”, and one of the government’s MPs has broken ranks to attack it too.
“A hard cap would be bad for Australia’s human capital and talent pipeline, bad for soft power and bad for academic excellence and research,” Julian Hill told The Australian newspaper.
But despite the criticism, the bill setting the borders – which will be debated in parliament this week – is expected to be passed, with the support of the opposition.
Clare has acknowledged that some providers may face difficult budget decisions, but said any claim that the policy is “somehow destroying international education is absolutely and fundamentally wrong”.
However, with less than two months left before the changes would come into effect, they are causing extreme anxiety and confusion among students.
In China and India – Australia’s two largest international markets – the news is going up like a lead balloon.
“This will be very difficult for students in India, most of whom come from middle-income backgrounds and spend years planning and preparing for their education abroad. Their dreams will be shattered,” Amritsar-based immigration consultant Rupinder Singh told the BBC. .
Vedant Gadhavi says the changes are already having an effect on Australia’s reputation [Alessandro Russo/Monash University]
Vedant Gadhavi, a student at Monash University, says some of his friends back home in Gujarat, who were hoping to come to Australia for their masters, are in shock.
“It seems like they changed their plans a little bit because of the constant shifting… They thought it might be a little difficult to plan their careers and lives.”
Jenny, a high school student from China’s Anhui province, says she set her sights on Australia because it is “easier” to get a good quality education there than going to a fiercely competitive Chinese university.
“It’s all up in the air now,” she told the BBC.
She adds that going to a lower-ranked university in a regional location is not an option for her or her peers: “We [just] I’m not going to Australia at all.”
Rishika Agrawal, chair of the Australian National University’s Department of International Students, says the proposed laws have stirred up other uneasy feelings.
“There are certainly other students who think this is a sign of increased government hostility towards immigrants in Australia.”
And, she adds, with international students’ contributions to society often overlooked, while their post-graduation employment opportunities dry up, resentment is growing.
‘They go back to their own country after spending a huge amount of money on their education and not really reaping the benefits.
“They definitely feel like cash cows.”
As the debate continues in parliament, there is some relief for Anannya. Shortly after speaking to the BBC, and just weeks after the start date of her course, she received the official certificate of enrollment for the master’s degree and a new study visa that she feared would never come.
But many other students are still waiting and worried.
“If I were in their shoes I would feel very helpless and very disappointed. It is already taking away the credibility that Australia used to have,” says Rishika.
Additional reporting by Fan Wang in Singapore and Zoya Mateen in Delhi.
