Coronavirus: Stranded Chinese students to cost unis billions in earnings

Australia’s universities, which earn more than $5bn a year in tuition fees from Chinese students, are running scared. If the stringent quarantine measures being applied in China and around the world don’t quickly bring the coronavirus under control then the hit on the university sector, particularly the elite Group of Eight, will be immense.

About $4bn of Chinese tuition fees go to the Go8 — the universities most attractive to Chinese students — and this money is critical to them maintaining their standing in global research. Seven of the eight in the group are in the world’s top 100 research universities and the $4bn annual influx of money from Chinese students is what keeps them competitive in that list. But this is only part of the damage that will be caused to the education sector, and the broader economy, if the coronavirus is not beaten quickly.

Phil Honeywood, chief executive of the International Education Association of Australia, estimates that, in the worst case, it could cut $6bn-8bn from Australia’s $39bn annual education exports. This figure is based on Chinese students last year pumping $12bn into the Australian economy, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, not just through student fees but also in what they pay for accommodation, food and other living costs. Student spending is also heavier at the beginning of the year when they bear the cost of setting up their living arrangements.

A shock of this magnitude can’t be easily cleared from the system. Students planning on coming to Australia this year will now be rethinking. That’s why, even in the middle of this crisis, universities and others in the education industry need to go the extra mile for every Chinese student.