Important Changes to Student Visa Processes from 5th November

The Genuine Temporary Entrant Requirement
This new requirement will affect all student visas, regardless of the student’s country of origin or assessment level. Each prospective student will be assessed on whether their individual circumstances indicate that their main aim is for a temporary stay in Australia and that their intention is to not stay in Australia after their studies. The Australian Immigration Department will look to identify people who are looking to come to Australia on a student visa for motives other than gaining an education: to work, migrate or seek asylum, for example.
At this point it is unclear how each student will be considered and the visa official will have to make a personal judgment. PIER recommends that if there is a possibility that a student may not be considered a “genuine student”, the agent should help them prepare a study plan for their education pathway in Australia and a statement of their intentions after they finish their studies to return home (or leave Australia). Note that undertakings to leave Australia following studies would not be binding, but would provide the visa officials with the information they need to make a positive decision.
Some examples that might cause a visa official to doubt that a student is genuine are:

• The economic circumstances of the student gaining a particular qualification reduces the likelihood for them to return home, as they couldn’t make sufficient money in a related career in their home country.
• The course considered is not consistent with their current level of education of the prospective student. For example, a graduate student seeks to undertake a trade qualification in an unrelated field.
• If on a previous visit to Australia, they did not comply with the conditions of their visa.

While the intention of the criteria is to ensure that only individuals who are genuine students gain a student visa, it is likely that there will be variation in the way in which this requirement operates in practice. It will be helpful for all education agents to get information about how negative assessments of this requirement are being made.

Further information can be found http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-genuine-temporary-entrant.pdf
English Language Test – More options than IELTS
The Immigration Department will accept test scores from alternative English Language tests than IELTS. IELTS is still accepted.
The test equivalencies the department will be using are reproduced below:
Test score equivalencies for the alternative tests are provided below:

Test score equivalencies for the alternative tests are provided below: IELTS SCORE Band	4.0	4.5	5.0	5.5	6.0	6.5	7.0	7.5	8.0	8.5	9.0
Test of English as a Foreign Language internet based Test (TOEFL iBT)	31	32	35	46	60	79	94	102	110	115	118
PTE Academic	29	30	36	42	50	58	65	73	79	83	86
Cambridge English Advanced (CAE) from Cambridge ESOL test scores	32	36	41	47	52	58	67	74	80	87	93

Financial Easing of arrangements for Assessment Level 3 & 4

Students applying under AL 3 will need to supply evidence of 18 months of funds (rather than 24 months previously).
Students applying under AL 4 will need to supply evidence for 24 months of funds (rather than 36 months previously). If showing a cash deposit, the savings history will only be for 3 months (not 6 months as currently)
More information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-vet-schools-non-award.pdf

Removal of English Language Requirements for Assessment Level 4 ELICOS Students

Independent ELICOS (subclass 570) visa who are subject to AL 4 will no longer be required to provide evidence of an English language proficiency test to support their claims for the grant of a student visa.
AL 4 applicants for ELICOS courses must provide evidence of their English language proficiency to their proposed education provider rather than the department as is the case for all other assessment levels currently.
More Information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-elicos.pdf

PVA processing Finishes

AL 3 and AL 4 student visa applications made outside Australia will need to include CoEs as part of their student visa applications.
Education providers will no longer receive a PVA letter before issuing CoEs to students. This change is intended to reduce the time it takes to process a student visa.
More information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-visa-processing-improvements.pdf

Homestay Fees

Pre-paid formal homestay fees will be allowed to be included in the financial assessment process (but not pre-paid rental accommodation or private homestay arrangements).
More Information: http://www.immi.gov.au/students/_pdf/2011-vet-schools-non-award.pdf

Further Changes to come

The government has proposed that the new streamlined visa processing arrangements for universities and post study work-rights will be implemented in the first half of 2012. However at this stage no further details have been released regarding this recommendation.

Source: PIER education agent bulletin

Updates: Aug, 2011

Melbourne named world's most liveable city

Updated August 31, 2011 09:16:50

Melbourne has finally knocked Vancouver off its perch as the best city in the world to live in.

Melbourne claimed the title of the world's most liveable city in the Economist Intelligence Unit's latest survey, with Sydney, Perth and Adelaide also making it into the top 10.
It is the first time in almost a decade of the global liveability survey that Vancouver has not ranked as the best place to live.
Melbourne had shared first position with Vancouver in 2002 but finally nabbed the top spot in its own right in the August survey, released on Tuesday.
Economist Intelligence Unit survey editor Jon Copestake said Melbourne managed to move up one spot to claim the top ranking, thanks to a slight fall in Vancouver's infrastructure score, which is one of the measures of liveability.

Most liveable cities

1. Melbourne, Australia
2. Vienna, Austria
3. Vancouver, Canada
4. Toronto, Canada
5. Calgary, Canada
6. Sydney, Australia
7. Helsinki, Finland
8-- Perth, Australia
8-- Adelaide, Australia
10. Auckland, New Zealand
21. Brisbane, Australia

The Canadian city slipped to third spot, behind Vienna in Austria.
Sydney made it to sixth position in the London-based research company's latest ranking of 140 cities, from seventh in the February survey, while Perth and Adelaide again shared eighth place.
"Australia, with a low population density and relatively low crime rates, continues to supply some of the world's most liveable cities," Mr Copeland said in a statement.
"Despite the rising cost of living driven by the strong Australian dollar, these cities offer a range of factors to make them highly attractive."
Melbourne scored 97.5 per cent, just beating Vienna on 97.4 per cent and Vancouver on 97.3.
A ranking of 100 per cent is considered ideal.
Brisbane was number 21 on the survey, two spots ahead of Wellington but behind Auckland which was number 10.
The debt crisis in euro-zone countries led to a slight fall in European cities' liveability rankings.
Greek capital Athens dropped five places due to its austerity measures and civil unrest, with its 67th place putting it below cities in emerging economies such as Montevideo in Uruguay.
Expats working in Athens could now qualify for a hardship allowance, the survey said.
The survey said the Arab Spring uprisings and the Libyan civil war pushed down scores across the Middle East and North Africa, with the Libyan capital Tripoli falling into the bottom 10 for the first time.
Bottom place went to Harare in Zimbabwe, which scored 38.2 per cent.
The survey ranks 140 locations as having the best or the worst living conditions, with cities scored on political and social stability, crime rates, access to quality health care, cultural events, the environment, education and the standard of infrastructure.

Topics: lifestyle-and-leisure, travel-and-tourism, tourism, industry, melbourne-3000, vic, australia

First posted August 30, 2011 15:41:07 

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-30/melbourne-wins-world27s-most-liveable-city/2862628

Updates: May, 2011

Australia to increase skilled migrant visas

Release date: 26 May 2011

Australian government plans to increase visas in skilled migrant category that was targeted by cookery and hairdressing students by almost 30 per cent under its 2011-12 migration programme.
According to a report in 'The Australian' newspaper, the program projected over 29.6 per cent increase in independent skilled migrants, lifting the number of places to 44,350.
The government had been scrutinising this category after visa grants scam to low-skilled overseas students came into light, the report said.
The report quoted Monash University researcher Bob Birrell as saying that the extra spots were good news for former overseas students waiting for a decision on migration applications.
The government said the queue had shortened from 150,000-plus in May last year to just below 132,000 in April this year.
A tougher points test emphasising advanced skills and superior English starts on July 1.
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen spokesperson said it would take time for applicants under the new points test to make their presence felt in the system.
"While it is not possible to predict accurately, it is likely that initially a large proportion of skilled independent visas will be granted to people who are assessed under the old points test," she said.
These could include former overseas students whose professions, such as accountancy, were on the new, better targeted occupation list, Birrell said.
Universities Australia chief executive Glenn Withers said more places in the independent category, together with the new points test, would help universities replace retiring academics and hang on to promising post-graduate students.
When the new points test was foreshadowed last November, they had been working to reduce the dominance of the independent skilled category, departmental officials said.
"In 2006-07, the independent category was about 55 per cent of the (entire skilled] migration program. That's come down now. We're projecting it's going to come in at about 30 per cent in 2010-11, they added.
But in the 2011-12 program, the share allocated to the independent category rises to 35.2 per cent. And the employer-sponsored category gets only a modest 4.19 per cent increase to 46,000 places.
"That's quite striking in the light of rhetoric about favouring employer-sponsored migrants," Birrell added.
Bowen's spokeswoman said, "The decision to balance skilled migration planning levels between employer-sponsored and independent migration reflects macroeconomic conditions, the need for skills in key occupations, and the likely demand for various visas. Priority continues to go to employer-sponsored categories.
Source: Times of India

Updates: April, 2011

International student visa assessment levels lowered in Aus

Release date: 11 Apr 2011

Melbourne Australian government has lowered the visa assessment levels for International students from 38 countries, including India, under which they would now be required to provide less documentary evidence to support their claims for the grant of visa.
International student visa assessment levels were lowered for 38 countries including India across one or more subclasses from April 2nd this year, according to official statement released recently.
In 2009-10, there were 270,499 student visas granted across the seven subclasses, with 382,710 student visa holders in the country as of 30 June 2010, of whom 80,450 were from India, 80, 010 were from China and 21,720 were from South Korea.
The assessment levels are periodically reviewed and adjusted to reflect changing immigration risk outcomes.
Following the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) review in 2010, the government has decided to implement changes to reduce some student visa assessment levels.
A student visa entitles international students to come to Australia on a temporary basis for a specified period to study at an Australian educational institution.
"Prospective students and their families, agents and education providers should be aware that these changes will lower the minimum evidentiary requirements needed for the grant of a student visa for the selected countries and education sectors," a DIAC spokesman said in the statement.
"However, the reductions to assessment levels do not change the likelihood of a former student in Australia obtaining permanent residence. While many international students apply for permanent residence when they complete their studies, this is an entirely separate process and there is no guarantee that, on the basis of having held a student visa, a person will meet the requirements to be granted permanent residence," he said.
The skilled migration programme is designed to meet the needs of the Australian labour market and strengthen the economy.
Requirements for permanent skilled migration will change from time to time and there is no particular course that guarantees a permanent visa.
"Students should not make educational choices solely on the basis of expecting to achieve a particular migration outcome, because the skilled migration programme will continue to change and adapt to Australia's economic needs," the spokesman said.
Applicants will be required to provide less documentary evidence to support their claims for the grant of a student visa. These may include evidence of English language proficiency, financial capacity and academic qualifications.
Meanwhile, a report in 'The Australian' newspaper has criticised the federal government for not changing the IELTS English test that is prerequisite for granting student visa after a onshore fraud was caught at a test centre in Perth.
At the Curtin IELTS test centre, former staffer Keith Low admitted taking 1500 dollars to falsify results for overseas students including from India needing better English test results to qualify for permanent residency as skilled migrants.
The report said that Low sometimes changed scores on original IELTS test papers.
Eileen Tyson, whose US-based TOEFL test has been lobbying against the monopoly since 2005, said the falsification of results at the Curtin University centre "highlights the need for alternative testing methods", the report said adding both TOEFL and the new Pearson test claim their systems are not open to the manipulation seen at Curtin.

Source: South Asia Mail

Overseas student intake falls

Release date: 07 Apr 2011

INTERNATIONAL student enrolments have dropped again, with the federal government recording a 2.5 per cent fall on last February's results.
The figures, out this week, will do little to quell fears that the slump is set to continue into 2012.
The fall is a sharp contrast to the average February growth rates for enrolments since 2002 of 10 per cent per year.
Advertisement: Story continues below The biggest drop was in the vocational sector - which includes courses such as cooking and hairdressing - with a 21.5 per cent fall in enrolments.
Indian student numbers took another hit, with enrolments from that country across all sectors dropping 30.3 per cent on February 2010. India is still the second biggest market for international education, with a 12.3 per cent share, behind China on 30.5 per cent - up 8.2 per cent on last year.
But the sector is also concerned that the rising Australian dollar will prolong the slump, as destinations such as the United States become price competitive.
Simon Marginson from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at Melbourne University said the rising dollar combined with high costs of living in capital cities would make it more difficult to persuade potential students to choose Australia.
''[Because of the cost of living and housing] you would find there would be places in Australia that are more expensive than the US,'' he said.
''The cost advantage has clearly narrowed.''
Professor Marginson said federal government visa changes last year were a bigger problem than the rising dollar, but that the two combined would cause a lot of potential students to look elsewhere.
China, one of Australia's largest source markets for international students, would look to places such as the United States and Canada if problems surrounding visa processing were not fixed, he said.
''The US has a prestige advantage and if the cost trend is working against us and the US retains its prestige advantage, then that makes things difficult for us.''
Universities Australia chief Glenn Withers said he expected the slump to continue through 2011 and into the future. ''All indications suggest a significant downturn in student commencements for 2011 and for the immediate future,'' he said.
Dr Withers said the problem had been caused by visa changes, the rising dollar, aggressive competition in the international student market and image problems including the recent attacks on international students.
He said there was no evidence the dollar was the decisive factor but it was ''a compounding influence given the more troubling impact of the changes to migration rules and regulations and the reputation damage inflicted by the student safety issues and college closures,'' he said.
Source: The Age

Updates: March, 2011

Extend tougher language standards

Release date: 22 Mar 2011

Alex Barthel, public officer of the Association for Academic Language and Learning, said pathway students, who gain university entry on the assumption they are adequately prepared, are often the weakest performers.

"The sooner the standards are brought in the better, because it is something that needs to be cleaned up," Mr Barthel said.

The number of universities carrying out post-enrolment language assessment to get a truer understanding of skills among students has increased from 18 in 2008 to 25.

Mr Barthel said a draft of English-language standards was submitted to the federal government last year, but they have not yet been released for consultation. The steering group that developed the standards, and of which he was a member, had been asked by the government to toughen good practice principles into standards that could be applied by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency.

The draft sets out standards that describe universities' responsibility to ensure students have adequate English skills and support, early diagnosis of poor performance and the integration of English language learning into the curriculum. The proposed standards would apply to all, not just international, students.

Fellow steering group member Sophie Arkoudis from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne, said the inclusion of attainment strategies should be considered, which could be measured in a variety of ways. These include embedding English standards in assessment practices and including it in peer review benchmarking.

Dr Arkoudis said it was important the standards fitted into the new framework being developed by TEQSA.

Mr Barthel said development of the principles had raised awareness of the issue and the sector was putting more effort into English language provision, but more needed to be done.

Since 2008, the number of universities providing English tutoring had increased from 16 to 23 last year, and 37 universities provide generic English language units such as essay writing, up from 28.

There is also a trend to embed English language learning in discipline-specific courses.

The 2008 good practice principles define language proficiency as "the ability to organise language to carry out a variety of communication tasks [and] distinguishes the use of English language proficiency from a narrow focus on correct use of grammar and sentence structure".

"The guidelines have had a desired effect. Standards are the next step," Dr Arkoudis said.

Source: The Australian

 

Visa centre corruption probe

Release date: 22 Mar 2011

The Corruption and Crime Commission revealed yesterday that it was investigating possible corruption at Curtin University's English language testing centre in Perth, but indicated the probe would also examine other testing centres.

Curtin vice-chancellor Jeanette Hacket said the university became aware of possible misconduct at its centre last year and immediately referred it to the CCC.

She said the officer who triggered the alarm was no longer working there.

Curtin's testing is primarily used for immigration visas.

The CCC said public hearings would begin next week to investigate whether any past or present public officer engaged in misconduct and whether the International English Language Testing System had been compromised.

It said the policies, practices and operating environment at the Curtin centre would all be examined to determine if they were sufficient to deter corruption. Professor Hacket said the university was working with the CCC to ensure any misconduct was detected and able to be prevented.

Source: The Australian

What international students want to study

Release date: 21 Mar 2011

Predicting where future international students will come from and what subjects they go abroad to study has become a mini-industry in receiving countries such as Britain and Australia, where some courses are highly dependent on overseas student fees.
Delegates and experts at the British Council's Going Global conference, held in Hong Kong from 11-12 March, agreed that demand for overseas courses from Asian students will carry on rising.
"Overall demand for international education will continue to grow in the low single digits in the next decade," said Tony Pollock (pictured), Chief Executive of IDP Education, an international student placement service.
However, subject choices may be changing as sending countries like China and India become more affluent, students from Singapore prefer to study at their own excellent universities and Malaysia reduces the number of government scholarships for students on expensive overseas courses.
Medicine and related courses in the West have long been popular with students from India, Malaysia and Hong Kong, while business-related degrees and engineering have been the top choice for students from China, Taiwan and Vietnam.
This is according to a survey of 5,000 prospective international students in 14 countries by Hotcourses, a web-based company that advises students on course choice internationally.
Students from Pakistan are looking for high quality courses in engineering and technology, and Indonesian students are looking at the natural sciences.
South Korean students, on the other hand, go abroad to study creative arts and design, while students from India and Malaysia are interested in social sciences and communications, said Mike Elms, Chief Executive of Hotcourses.
However, patterns are changing in key markets such as China, which last year sent 440,000 students to study abroad, overtaking India as the top sending country.
Prospective students from major Chinese cities may be broadening out the subjects they want to study abroad, according to research by the British Council - information which could also be important for decisions by a number newly emerging regional higher educational hubs on what courses to offer to attract international students.
The British Council's Education Intelligence Unit research into prospective students' intentions in the coming years found that there have been shifts in the most popular subjects chosen for study in the UK in the last two to three years.
Students from China are still most likely to study business administration and engineering and technology at overseas universities, but growth in the number of students selecting these subjects is slowing while students from China wanting to study mass communication and documentation, and creative arts and design, has shown much bigger growth.
"We were trying to capture the student decision-making process before the student embarks on a course," said Janet Illieva, head of research at the British Council in Hong Kong. "For China we have seen decreased demand for engineering."
"There has been a shift in demand towards non-traditional subjects in China at the city level," she said. This was most evident in large cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. "We think this is because of the rise in the middle class in these cities. While in the medium-sized cities, there is definitely a rise in those who say they want to study engineering."
For example, one in four prospective international students in the city of Shenyang want to pursue engineering. In Nanjing, Xi'an and Chengdu the rise was 17% to 18%, taking over where Beijing was a decade ago. These are also cities where there has been a rise in heavy industry and manufacturing, Illieva said.
Students from China saying they want to study mass communication has risen by 81% since 2008, a possible reflection of the burgeoning use of the internet. Prospective Chinese students wanting to study creative arts has risen by 54% during the same period, compared to 25% to 29% growth for business and engineering. Architecture, building and planning has seen 35% growth in interest from China in the last two years.
Mass communication has soared to become the third most popular choice for Chinese students wanting to study overseas, rising from 8th most popular in 2006-07. Creative arts has risen to fifth place behind social studies compared to ninth place in 2006-07.
The findings have implications for universities hoping to replace declining applications at home with students from overseas, particularly in science and engineering.
But Hotcourses' Mike Elms said the key motivator for students looking for courses abroad is "to get a better education. They want a higher quality course than is available to them in their own (education) market," he said.
Source: University World News

Updates: February, 2011

Relief as draft TEQSA legislation released

Release date: 25 Feb 2011

The release of draft legislation to establish the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency by tertiary education minister Chris Evans is the first time debate on its content will be extended beyond the previous closed door consultations.
Peter Coaldrake, chair of Universities Australia, issued a statement roundly welcoming its release and the majority of its content, describing it as "sound and workable".
But he said there were still concerns about universities' ability to self-accredit courses and several transitional issues which still needed to be addressed.
But postgraduate students are frustrated that some of the language on standards in the legislation has been watered down in the effort to allay university concerns over autonomy. Students now fear that there will be little in the new system to ensure the quality of postgraduate courses.
In particular students are disappointed that the legislation has dropped a specific reference to TEQSA being able to use "maintaining a particular student/teacher ratio" as a possible condition of registration. It has been replaced with the vauger "maintaining a particular staffing profile."
Tammi Jonas, policy advisor at the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations said the change "doesn't instill a lot of confidence that coursework postgrads will be ensured a high quality experience in smaller classes."
"While we would be loathe to see universities lose their relative autonomy, as public institutions they must be held accountable for providing a quality experience for students. We're not sure the draft legislation assures this yet," she said.
"If the provider standards don't really address real standards for minimum resources, then the new body is of very little interest to postgraduates," she said.
Final provider standards are still being developed with a third-draft expected to be released soon.
Senator Evans said the legislation would be introduced into Parliament on the week of 21 March and he would also refer it to a senate committee.
"This is important legislation for the future of higher education in Australia and it is important that it be subjected to scrutiny and debate," he said in a statement.
"As higher education goes through a period of expansion, it is important for Australia to have a national system of regulation to assure the quality of all providers."
Jeannie Rea, national president of the National Tertiary Education Union, said significant gains had been made in negotiations about the legislation and was particularly encouraged by the inclusion of provisions that would minimise red tape and ensure "the regulation of standards and quality are risk based and proportionate". In other words, private providers will be subject to more scrutiny than established universities.
Opposition higher education spokesman Brett Mason also supported the legislation, saying "at first blush [it] has much to commend it".
"Australia's higher education sector is simply too small and too inter-connected to sensibly have a multiplicity of [state and national] regulators."
Source: The Australian

Push for probe on foreign student 'rip-off'

Release date: 25 Feb 2011

AUSTRALIA'S elite crime fighting body has recommended an investigation into an alleged rip-off of foreign students at a private education provider in Melbourne, amid claims that regulation of the industry is failing.
The intervention of the Australian Crime Commission in the case raises fears that the thousands of international students in the booming education market are vulnerable to exploitation by bodgey operators.
In a confidential June report, an ACC officer warned also that illegal-sex-trade players could abuse student visas to bring people to Australia.
The June report outlined allegations that the International Business and Hospitality Institute (IBH) in Melbourne, set up by two Chinese businessmen in November 2005, may be exploiting overseas students and be involved in criminal conduct.
It is believed the report also raised concerns that measures to police the overseas-student trade appeared inadequate.
But eight months after the report recommended state and federal authorities investigate, IBH remains fully accredited.
Former IBH student Ivy Xu from China told The Age that, despite paying $6000 for a cookery course, she was told to take business studies. She said those classes ended prematurely last year and she was told to take a long holiday. Another former IBH student, Wendy Meng Ying, said she was told to take long holidays after being taught the same lessons repeatedly.
The ACC prepared the report after meeting a former senior IBH manager, Robert Palmer, who alleged that education and immigration authorities had not investigated concerns he had raised with them in June.
The Federal Government oversees the international education industry, but largely relies on states to police the sector.
Mr Palmer told The Age he contacted the ACC after the state regulator, the Victorian Office of Training and Tertiary Education (OTTE), appeared uninterested in claims that up to 30 Chinese students had been duped into handing over thousands of dollars for substandard training and classes.
As recently as a fortnight ago ? seven months after Mr Palmer made his first complaint ? IBH's Chinese students were being told to remain on holidays. The students also said they were refused fee refunds.
Mr Palmer, a veteran teacher who is taking legal action against IBH to reclaim allegedly unpaid debts, said the failure of education authorities to act quickly had left students open to exploitation.
"I am very, very disappointed with OTTE. It is the regulator, although when you go to it to complain, you don't even get acknowledgement.
"Only the crime commission took the time to hear my complaint. It thought there was substance to it and handed it on to the Australian Federal Police," Mr Palmer said.
An AFP spokesman last night confirmed it had received the ACC report. He said that in November, the AFP had assessed it and sent it to the immigration department.
The Victorian OTTE's director, Terry Stokes, said the regulator had conducted audits of the school last year and the school had agreed to an overhaul. He said an investigation into IBH continued and his office had recently met IBH's representatives to discuss concerns.
The chief executive of the Australian Council for Private Education and Training, Tim Smith, said he had heard of complaints about IBH only when he was contacted by OTTE a week ago.
Mr Smith said the council, which represents 11,000 education providers, took immediate action to help relocate the small number of students still enrolled at IBH.
"IBH had failed to meet the obligations to its students. We put the students first and are helping them move to other providers," he said.
Immigration consultant Bob Kinnaird said quality control of the $5 billion overseas-student education market was struggling. "It is growing like topsy but the enforcement levels are not keeping up to the pace of growth," he said.
The International Business and Hospitality Institute was set up by 22-year-old Huang "Michael" Fu and 47-year old Guanxi "Jeff" Lui.
Mr Fu claimed to have been backed by several major Chinese-based investors who wanted to set up a "world-class" education facility for overseas students that offered English, business and hospitality courses.
Mr Fu hired Mr Palmer to help the institute get the state accreditation needed to tap into the international student market.
But in May last year, three months after the business was registered and began charging students, Mr Palmer and several other teachers were dismissed and staff began to complain about the poor standard of teaching.
Mr Fu refused to be interviewed by The Age, citing his poor English and lack of current knowledge about his own business because he had been living in China.
But he denied his school had been involved in any criminal activity. In written responses to questions, he said the school had been run properly until late last year and if there were problems, they were caused by Mr Palmer's three months at the school in 2006.
But Mr Palmer complained to the state regulator and the immigration department shortly after he left the school and the audits critical of IBH were conducted months after his departure.
Mr Palmer said promises to provide proper teaching material, furniture and equipment were ignored by the institute and that questions surrounded the withdrawal of thousands of dollars from the student's trust fund.
Documents given to The Age appear to support Mr Palmer's claim that some contracts sent to students had forged signatures.
"Not only were the documents false that were given to prospective students, but the students had got visas on the basis of those documents only to find out the courses they had been offered did not match up (when they got to Australia)," said Mr Palmer."
The IBH allegations follow other scandals involving education providers and overseas students. Earlier this month, The Age revealed that Chinese nurses on training visas were being used illegally to cover shifts at nursing homes.
Top 10 nationalities

China 13,429
India 11,209
Malaysia 5768
Indonesia 3672
Hong Kong 3007
Singapore 2419
Sri Lanka 1575
Thailand 1469
Republic of Korea 866

Japan 706
Other 9681
TOTAL 53,801

Source: The Age

Student accommodation too costly

Release date: 24 Feb 2011

International students are mostly satisfied with studying in Australia, but a large minority say the costs of accommodation and living are too high, a survey has found.
The International Student Barometer, a survey for Universities Australia, the peak representative body for universities, received responses from more than 36,000 international students and was conducted at the height of tensions over visa changes and safety concerns, which resulted in international student numbers plummeting.
It found 86 per cent of students were satisfied with their education and 76 per cent would recommend their university. But 40 per cent of students were unhappy with the cost of accommodation, and 39 per cent said general living costs were too high.
Advertisement: Story continues below "Despite satisfaction with living overall, cost is an issue. The cost of accommodation, cost of living, difficulty finding employment [and] visa advice all emerge as concerns," the survey says.
Universities Australia chief executive Glenn Withers said the survey showed most international students had a good experience studying in Australia. But he said universities should not take the results for granted.
"We do not and must not see the world through rose-coloured glasses. The ISB survey also confirms there is no room for complacency and still room for improvement," Mr Withers said.
The survey found a significant increase in concern over accommodation costs in 2010, which was partially attributed to the global financial crisis.
Its authors warned that continued economic gloom could affect the choices of potential students in the future.
"The effects of the recession still linger, the Australian dollar is still high, and the accommodation market generally tight. Should this economic environment carry through into 2011 the sector will face a continuing challenge and this will affect demand from China," the survey said.
China is the top source country for international students coming to Australia, and universities successfully lobbied the federal government to amend visa processing for Chinese student applicants in December over concerns onerous financial requirements would cripple the market.
Source: The Age

Migrant tribunals under resource pressure

Release date: 21 Feb 2011

pplications to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) are up 26 per cent while applications to the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) are up 32 per cent.
"Our workload is increasing," tribunals head Denis O'Brien told a Senate estimates hearing.
More than 5900 applications were lodged with the MRT and 1646 with the RRT in the financial year to January 31.
Decisions in the RRT were up 31 per cent in the same period, with 75 per cent made within the recommended 90 day period. The average decision time was 95 days.
But decisions in the MRT were down 28 per cent in the same period, Mr O'Brien conceded.
"The decrease in MRT decision output - despite the increase in lodgements - is principally due to the substantial increase in our RRT work to which we must give priority," he said.
"Can I say that our resource difficulties have been exacerbated by the recent loss of a number of experienced RRT members."
Eight tribunal members had taken leave of absences for placements inside the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, he said.
As at January 31 there were 829 active cases before the RRT and 9731 before the MRT.
"We just can't afford to let that backlog continually increase without trying to address it," Mr O'Brien said.
Mr O'Brien said he hoped to have new staff in place by the middle of the year.
The increase in MRT applications was due in large part to a massive increase in student visa review applications sparked by recent law changes, Mr O'Brien said.
The MRT reviews departmental decisions made on general visas while the RRT reviews decisions made on protection visas.
Source: The Courier Mail