Starting on January 1, 2025, the industry will have to apply new caps; this could mean giving them as little as one day’s notice to do so. This plan has taken the higher education industry by surprise. It makes sense that those in higher education are worried about the future,” he remarked.
According to plans in a new draft international education and skills framework, Australia’s minister of education may set a quota on the maximum number of new international students enrolled at any institution.
International students are to be shielded against “shonks seeking to take advantage of them” by the government. Pictured is The PIE.
The government has announced that, as new legislation comes into effect this week, the minister of education in Australia will have the authority to establish a cap on the total number of new overseas students that can enrol at any one institution.
After an urgent meeting with ministers to clarify details on the most recent declaration, Phil Honeywood of the IEAA affirmed to The PIE that no cap approach will take place until January 2025.
The departments of education, home affairs, and skills & training jointly disclosed that a new foreign education and skills strategy framework is being proposed, which includes a cap on enrollments per institution in addition to new legislation.
According to Minister of Skills and Training Brendan O’Connor, “there is no place for dodgy operators” with the legislation and draft framework.
The government will discuss with the sector on all parts of the framework and deliver a final version later this year.
As the convenor of Australia’s Council, Honeywood stated, “We were very worried it was going to be from 1 July and it was going to be very rushed and a hard cap rather than a negotiated cap.”
“To attempt and encourage more international students to study in regions, we also received an agreement from the government that they would look at securing additional student spaces to genuine regional universities and providers.â
Restricting enrollment by institution is comparable to a step Canada adopted this year when each institution’s ability to issue offers to foreign candidates is limited by the number of provincial allocation letters it receives.
It’s interesting to note that in order to benefit both foreign and domestic students and relieve pressure on the rental market, institutions will need to create a new supply of purpose-built student housing if they wish to enrol international students above a certain threshold.
According to Honeywood, The PIE, they explained that this is a “long game” strategy. Recently, the Sydney Randwick City Council ruled against the construction of a 1,000-bed Iglu lodging complex, which had been in the works for more than two years.
“We informed the government that even after planning, it may take up to three years to have the shovel ready.”
Future legislation will prohibit any educational institutions that are the subject of a significant regulatory inquiry from accepting new students, while new
The vocational college sector is the target of the new regulations. “This is the next step the Albanese Government is taking to strengthen integrity and sustainability in international education,” stated O’Connor, “We are focused on ensuring our VET sector is safe, welcoming, and supportive for international students.”
We are making it harder for bottom-feeders to take advantage of international students in order to make a quick buck since there is no place for shady operators that damage the industry’s stellar reputation.
An overview of the new limitations for enterprises is as follows:
Possibility of limiting fresh enrollment from overseas
Stop education suppliers from owning universities
Put a 12-month hold on all new applications to be regulated.
Terminate inactive provider registrations
Stop any company that is being investigated from hiring new employees.
Demonstrate high-quality service
Delivering on quality and integrity is shown in the continued focus on “bottom feeders” and the well-documented slowdown in visa issuance as the government tries to exert control both before and after a student applies to study in Australia.
Stakeholders will select recommendations from the draft strategic framework for international education and skills.
