Overseas students pay $90,000 for undergraduate degree

A typical international student pays more than $90,000 for a three-year degree, and much more at some universities.

International students are paying more than $40,000 a year for degrees at Australia’s top universities, and even the average fee level is higher than $30,000.

The University of Sydney and the Australian National University top the fee list for undergraduates, charging an average this year of $42,961 and $40,703 respectively to bachelor degree students, according to figures compiled by international education consultants Studymove.

Average annual fees for bachelor students across all universities are $30,840 a year.

This means a typical international student pays more than $90,000 for a three-year undergraduate degree, with the cost topping $120,000 at the more expensive universities.

On top of this, students need to pay for their accommodation, other living costs and transportation.

The cheapest universities for international students doing bachelor degrees are Charles Darwin, South Queensland and Sunshine Coast, all of which charge less than $24,000 in annual fees.

In the postgraduate degree market, which now makes up more than 40 per cent of all international students, compared with 33 per cent in 2012, annual fee levels are similar.

Again ANU and the University of Sydney have the most expensive masters by coursework degrees, with average annual fees of $42,959 and $42,128 respectively for the usually two-year -long courses.

The average fee level for masters by coursework degrees across all universities is $31,596.

Health courses are on average the most expensive undergraduate degrees for international students, with average annual fees of $34,436. The least expensive undergraduate degrees are in education, with average annual fees of $26,987.