Foreign student push to boost Oz regional power in Indo-Pacific

A post-pandemic bid to attract lost foreign students will help the Morrison Government expand Australia’s power in the Indo-Pacific, the nation’s elite universities say.

Education Minister Alan Tudge. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

A post-pandemic bid to attract lost foreign students will help the Morrison government expand Australia’s power in the Indo-­Pacific, the nation’s elite universities say.

In a submission to the government’s international education strategy for the next decade, the Group of Eight has called on universities to rebuild the pandemic-struck $37 billion international sector to fill a post-Covid skills shortage and expand regional ­influence.

Education Minister Alan Tudge this month unveiled a $53 million support package for international education providers – although universities lost out – after Australia lost nearly 100,000 international students since March last year because of closed international borders.

Australia’s international education sector has also been hit by growing political tensions between Canberra and Beijing, with the Chinese Communist Party appealing to its students to avoid Australian universities.

The Group of Eight, which includes the likes of the University of Sydney and the University of Melbourne, says in its submission that a renewed push to attract foreign students could be used to the nation’s diplomatic advantage.

“The international education sector must be viewed as a key pillar of our national foreign policy and defence sector strategies to build multilateral alliances across the Indo-Pacific region and promote perceptions of Australia as a trusted regional partner,” it says.

“A cohort of native Asian language speakers bring with them cultural capabilities that can be leveraged to the advantage of Australian industry and will increasingly be a critical asset in the current geostrategic context.

“It also helps to build domestic students’ capacities in multi­cultural environments.”

Federal government figures this month show that 450,000 students were enrolled in March this year, which was 17 per cent fewer than in March last year.

The plunge in student numbers has cut international student spending in Australia dramatically. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows spending fell to $29.9 billion in the 12 months to March, 26 per cent less than the $40.3 billion spent by foreign students in 2019.

However, the ABS revealed that the economic damage was eased by $3.3 billion in tuition fees paid to educational institutions in Australia last year by the growing number of international students studying offshore.

The Go8 wrote its submission to the government’s international education strategy after extensive roundtables with industry.

In their submission, the elite universities say the nation could become complacent to the skills shortages caused by closed global borders and overseas talent must be a priority.

“If we do not plan appropriately, Australia could be caught in a vicious cycle,” the submission says, “where dis­engagement from the international exchanges that fuel development and discovery not only dis­courages new talent from coming to Australia but sees home-grown individuals lured to live and work in more exciting, engaged, ­dynamic and lucrative economies.”