The announcement of an Australian Parliamentary committee inquiry to ensure that international education is in a prime position to contribute to the post Covid-19 economic recovery has is welcomed by the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA). ITECA is the peak body representing independent skills training, higher education, and international education providers.
"The issues that will come before this parliamentary enquiry will be critical to independent tertiary education providers which support 54% of all international student enrolments in the tertiary sector," said Troy Williams, ITECA Chief Executive.
Data from the Australian Government shows that independent providers support 96.5% of all international student skills training enrolments and 17.5% of all international higher education enrolments. Collectively, these combine to produce the 54% of all international student enrolments that Mr Williams referred to.
According to ITECA, the enquiry comes at a critical time for the international education sector.
"Although it has now been ten months since Australia's international borders reopened, independent tertiary education providers that support international students continue to face challenges. Processing times for international student visa applications continue to be unacceptably long, and ITECA members are noting some irregular patterns when it comes to student visa approvals," Mr Williams said.
The Parliamentary inquiry offers the opportunity to identify ways the Australian Government can better support Australia's international education sector.
"ITECA has previously raised concerns with the Australian Government about a lack of coherent policy design and implementation regarding international education. The different ways that different arms of the Australian Government operate and interpret their responsibilities cause confusion for students and regularly causes considerable uncertainty for tertiary education providers – plus it's waste of taxpayer funds," Mr Williams said.
ITECA is a strong proponent for the appointment of an Australian International Education Commissioner. The role of the Commissioner would be to provide advice and recommendations to the Australian Government on whole-of-government strategies to achieve the sustained growth of Australian education exports, to ensure the sector's resilience from external shocks and to monitor and protect the welfare of international students in Australia.
"The Commissioner would play a critical role in coordinating the different aspects of the Australian Government's international education regulatory and promotion architecture and provide a single point of reference for state / territory governments and education providers," Mr Williams said.
The review into international education is being undertaken by the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, through the Trade Subcommittee (the Committee) which was announced on 20 October 2022
Key Facts:
Independent Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) support 96.5% of all international skills training student enrolments.
Independent higher education providers support 17.5% of all international higher education enrolments. Collectively, these combine to produce the 54% of all international student enrolments.
About us:
ITECA Introduction - The Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA) is the peak body representing non-government Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) that support more than 87% of the 4.3 million students in skills training and around 10% of the students in higher education.
