Highlights
- NSW presses pause on a plan for the return of international students
- Victoria, South Australia, and ACT continue to work on plans to fly back overseas students
- Northern Territory to bring back the next batch of students from Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Subcontinent
International education advocates are pushing the states and territories to furnish plans for the return of overseas students ahead of the February intake, as universities report a dramatic increase in deferments and a steep decline in new enrolments amid the ongoing uncertainty around travel.
A estimates over 300,000 fewer international students will be in Australia by July 2021 if travel restrictions remain in place, causing significant losses primarily to universities in New South Wales and Victoria - the two states which host the largest cohort of international students.
International Education Association of Australia chief executive Phil Honeywood said Australia desperately needs one of its state or territory governments to be “politically brave” enough to make plans to fly back their share of international students.
“If it is good enough for 1200 tennis players and their entourages to come to Australia in a secure bubble, if it’s okay for international cricketers to come to Australia and if it's good enough for hundreds of foreign military personnel to come here for training for only a few weeks then why can we not have international students come back and they are here for three to four years?” Mr Honeywood said.
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