Looking for greener pastures

Updated on: Monday, December 13, 2010

With the latest figures pointing to the fact that the education industry in Australia is its second or third highest money spinner and gets the country nearly Aus$18 billion annually, Australia is keener than ever before to get as many international students to its shores.

However, the spate of attacks, tough visa norms and the denial of permanent residency have caused around 30,000 Indian students, mostly based in Melbourne, to leave Down Under over the past year says the Federation of Indian Students in Australia (FISA).

Add to all this a strong Australian dollar and life becomes even more difficult for Indian students as the cost of education and living goes up. Take a look at this scenario. Two years ago, one Australian dollar was about `30 now it is about `44. This really means that the average fee for a two-year study Down Under will cost somewhere in the region of Aus$36,000. This makes the cost of education in Australia today rank at par with the US, the UK or Canada.

It is not surprising therefore, that Indian students are looking at other options. According to IANS, Gautam Gupta, spokes-person of FISA said, “Other significant factors (for the exodus of Indian students) include the fact that there are no jobs and students can’t survive without them. Denying permanent residency to many Indians despite fulfillment of conditions has also been a reason,” he added. In fact the only three professions that can help get a permanent residency are engineers, doctors and accountants.

Looking for greener pastures

More Education news