The Australian Government is pursuing policies that are inconsistent and confusing immigration and education policy in a manner that is putting the livelihood of more than 30,000 Australians employed in the international education sector at risk. That's the position of the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA), the peak body representing independent skills training and higher education providers.
"Over the past year, we've seen a series of intellectually inconsistent decisions by the Australian Government that lack a clear, consistent and cohesive approach to international education," said Troy Williams, ITECA Chief Executive.
Highlighting the inconsistencies in the Australian Government's approach, ITECA draws attention to the fact that upon coming to office, the new Australian Government took great pride in clearing a backlog of visa applications, many of them from international students. When these students then came to Australia, the Australian Government demonised these same students and claimed that they were driving up housing costs, despite experts struggling to find merit in this argument.
"The Australian Government's international education policy is in tatters and lacks a cohesive strategy. The Government is now drowning in its own baseless rhetoric," Mr Williams said,
ITECA is concerned the Australian Government is now making international education policy on the run.
"The result is a number of knee-jerk policy responses that are not only damaging Australia's reputation as a welcoming destination for overseas students but causing anxiety for the 30,000 people employed with independent providers in the independent tertiary education sector that support international students," Mr Williams said.
Despite the official data showing high levels of student satisfaction when studying with independent providers in the skills training sector, the Australian Government is pursuing a different narrative to cover-up its own shortcomings according to ITECA.
"The Government is using a very small number of abhorrent cases of wrongdoing by some non-genuine providers to take a sledgehammer to the international education sector that is second only to the resources sector in terms of overseas revenue earned by Australia. Such an approach is economically reprehensible to all Australians and manifestly unfair to all those employed in the sector", Mr Williams added.
ITECA draws attention to the lack of consistency in approaches in the draft "International Education and Skills Strategic Framework" released by the Australian Government and the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Quality and Integrity) Bill 2024 currently before the parliament.
"Both the draft framework and the legislation before the parliament are short-sighted responses to the failure of the Government to properly administer the migration framework. Small businesses in the international education sector and the working Australians employed by them deserve better," Mr Williams said,
ITECA has again called for an Australian Government strategy for the international education sector.
"We need a long-term strategy for international education that creates a framework where the sector can operate sustainably, jobs are protected, and international students feel welcome. Sadly, the Australian Government's approach to international education is diametrically opposed to these outcomes," Mr Williams concluded.
