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
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
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
