This was published 4 years ago
Overseas students generate record income for NSW unis ... then COVID-19 hit
Overseas students were generating more income for NSW universities than government grants for the first time last year, before the coronavirus pandemic cut international enrolments by more than 13 per cent.
Chinese, Indian and Nepalese students alone brought in $2.4 billion for the state's 10 universities, which was close to the total income raised by domestic students fees, according to a 2019 audit.
The annual Auditor-General's report found universities were suffering from the consequences of an over-reliance on international student revenue. The Auditor-General had foreshadowed the dangers of this income stream for tertiary institutions in previous reports.
Universities Australia this week revealed the country's universities could lose $16 billion between now and 2023, under new modelling which considered the sustained effect of COVID-19 on finances.
Eight thousand fewer students than expected were enrolled in semester one this year across NSW universities, according to the audit. Overseas student enrolments had sunk 13.8 per cent below expectations and domestic student enrolments were 2.4 per cent lower.
This represented a shortfall of 5686 international students, who pay an an average of $31,444 in fees per year, as well as 2323 fewer domestic students, who pay an average of $10,038.
"Travel restrictions have reduced enrolments," the Auditor-General wrote. "Social distancing and other infection control measures have disrupted the traditional means of teaching and impacted other aspects of service delivery, such as student accommodation.
"These disruptions may significantly impact the financial results of NSW universities."
International student revenue had last year increased by 12 per cent, or $381 million, and overseas students paid $3.7 billion in course fees. They were universities' main source of income, worth 32 per cent of combined $11.4 billion revenue.
By contrast, revenue from domestic students grew just 2.2 per cent, by $92.3 million, and made up 19 per cent of total income. At the University of NSW, the University of Sydney and the University of Wollongong, overseas students brought in more money than domestic students.
Government grants continued to decline as a portion of universities' total income, worth 31 per cent of revenue last year. It was the first year government grants represented a smaller portion of income than international student fees.
Just two regional universities, the University of New England and the University of Newcastle, received more than 40 per cent of their income from government grants. The University of Technology Sydney received the least funding from government grants, worth 24 per cent of its revenue, and it was most dependent on fees and charges, worth 67 per cent.
Universities have tried to save costs during the pandemic by reducing the casual workforce, delaying the hire of new staff, eliminating travel, and pausing discretionary spending.
But they also needed to consider the impact of the pandemic on their governance arrangements, risks and regulatory requirements, the report said.
It warned university IT infrastructure would be strained as students and employees worked from home during the pandemic, and that universities were at increased risk of cyber fraud and corruption.
In 2019 two universities had not implemented a cyber risk policy, three universities had not formally trained staff in cyber awareness and two universities had not established formal policies to manage data breaches.