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.
A spokesperson for Education Minister Jason Clare said international education was not a “one-way street”.
Loading
“It is not just about international students coming to Australia,it is increasingly about Australian universities going to the world,” the spokesperson said.
The Albanese 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.
“We expect to see that[foreign student] sector continue to grow,but we don’t want it to grow as fast as it has been growing in the past few years,” Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said during a December 11 press conference,where she also warned against a “free-for-all”.