Number of international students in Australia at record high

The number of international students in Australia has reached more than 713,000 for the first time, an "all-time record" for the country.

The figures, as of February 29, were released by the Australian government on April 1. This figure is up 7.3% compared to figures from September last year with 664,000 international students - a record at that time.

Dr Abul Rizvi, former Deputy Minister of Immigration, said it was an “all-time record”. The total number of temporary visa holders in Australia is also now at an all-time high, at more than 2.8 million.

Although the figures were compiled before Australia's visa tightening policies took effect (March 23), Mr. Abul acknowledged that the government still had much more to do to reduce the number of immigrants.

"The government is pursuing a long-term migration policy but Australia is experiencing the highest number of temporary migrants on record," Mr Albul said.

In 2022, Australia introduced many open policies to attract workers after the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the influx of foreign workers and students has increased pressure on the housing market.

Net migration reached 548,800 in September last year, up more than 30,000 from three months earlier, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australia's population also grew by 2.5% to 26.8 million people. Both were the largest increases on record.

The country then made a series of moves to tighten student visas, such as increasing requirements for financial proof and prohibiting schools from allowing students to take additional courses before completing the main program for six months, in order to prevent the conversion of visas to work.

As of March 23, applicants for undergraduate visas need to achieve IELTS 6.0 instead of 5.5 as before. For postgraduate (masters, doctoral) degrees, the requirement is 6.5, also an increase of 0.5 points.

In addition, international students must take The Genuine Student Test (GST), which replaces the old Temporary Entrant (GTE) report, to ensure the visa is used for study purposes.

Students of Deakin University, Australia. Photo: Deakin University Fanpage — Students of Deakin University, Australia. Photo: *Deakin University Fanpage*

Australia is one of the most popular study abroad destinations in the world , after the US and Canada. Among international students, the largest number come from China, India and Nepal.

International education is Australia's fourth-largest export sector, worth about $50 billion last year.

Binh Minh (According to The Guardian, ICEF, Financial Review )

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