Aus developing strategy to address issues of intl students

Updated on: Saturday, October 10, 2009

New Delhi: In the wake of the series of attacks on Indian students in Australia, the federal government there is developing an international students' strategy that would address all issues, including quality of education, accommodation, safety, employment and migration.

The strategy is being developed by the Council of Australian Governments under the leadership of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Premiers of Australian States. This was informed by Dr Lachlan Strahan, Deputy High Commissioner, Australia at the first meeting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) on students' mobility between India and Australia held at the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs on
Tuesday.

The delegations were led by G Gurucharan, Joint Secretary, MOIA, and by Strahan and Colin Walters, Chief Executive Officer, Australian Education International. Both sides recognise the poor quality, unscrupulous education providers and agents, and said they are simply unacceptable.

The federal government of Australia is bringing an amendment to the Educational Services for Overseas Students' Act. The amendment will also require the education providers to list the education agents they use.

India briefed Australia on its consideration of measures to regulate enrolment agents and registration of students prior to their overseas departure and the pre-departure training proposed to be developed and delivered through various agencies.

The meeting also reached an agreement for a Memorandum of Understanding on better management of student mobility between the two countries, including the exchange of information on undesirable or illegal activities of agents, and other information relating to the quality of education providers and
agents.

Both the countries will collaborate on provision of student information service by Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs for prospective students, including those to enable them to verify claims made by education and enrolment agents.

The two countries will work together on the development o f a training module for pre-departure information for Indian students intending to study in Australia and collaborate over the creation of a registration system by the Indian Government for Indian students travelling overseas to study.

The next meeting of the Joint Working Group will take place in Australia in the second half of 2010

Aus developing strategy to address issues of intl students

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