Over the past several years a common practice of pursuing higher education abroad, has been witnessed amongst the Indian and other Asian students. Talking of tertiary education, Australia has been playing a significant role.
According to the Government’s Australian Education International 2010 international student enrolments data, the highest number of enrolments was seen in the management and commerce sector (51.6%), while the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector management and commerce registered 42.6% of enrolments. The second largest field of study in the VET sector was food, hospitality and personal services (Hotel management and other cookery programs), with 25.7% of enrolments. The English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students (ELICOS) sector has also seen a significant number of enrollments.
New South Wales and Victoria are amongst the top Australian towns to by far attract the biggest numbers of international students. However, even the Melbourne Business School has a large intake of international students.
Having said all of this, Australia has seen a 20% decline in the number of student visa applications and especially from the Indian hemisphere due to three major reasons: Firstly, the racial attacks and robbery cases on Indian students last year. Secondly, better performance by the Australian competitors such as UK and USA and thirdly, the Australian dollar has become much stronger and is thus becoming unaffordable, the Immigration Department reports suggest.
When a parent sends their child outside the house to study, their priority is the child’s safety and the issue is of even greater concern if the one is going overseas. Australia has various provisions for an International students’ safety, one of them being the Health insurance policy which is incorporated right at the time of admission in most of the universities. This insurance takes care of any medical aide that the child requires during his stay in Australia.
At a news conference in Canberra on Sept. 22, 2011 Senator Christopher Evans, the minister for tertiary education, skills, jobs and workplace relations said, “a two-year post-study visa, streamlined visa processing and more relaxed rules on students’ financial situations”.
Even though tertiary education norms might be better in India, primary education is blooming at a much higher pace in the Australian continent. “The relaxed and burden free schedule of the children up till the fifth standard has enabled both mental and physical growth in the young minds”, said Mrs. Pooja Dua, an NRI living in Australia.
Therefore, even though Australia might see a lot of ups and downs in the number of International applicants, it is still recognized to be one of the best places to attain education.
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