Australia’s Minister for Education, Julia Gillard, has welcomed the Council of Australian Governments’ (COAG) agreement of 21 April, 2010, to introduce a range of measures to improve the safety and wellbeing of international students.

The key measures to be implemented include:

• A central portal to provide students with up-to-date information on personal safety, student support services, housing, workplace rights and other useful information.
• A national strategy to improve connections between students and the communities they live in.
• An international student committee to give students a forum to put forward their views on their experiences in Australia.
• An independent statutory complaints body which will be mandatory for international providers.
• Taskforces in each state and territory to ensure students are provided with proper support in the event of a provider closure.

The planned improvements form part of COAG’s International Students Strategy for Australia (ISSA).

The agreement is designed to benefit over 434,000 students from 190 countries worldwide who are currently living and studying in Australia. The federal government has already introduced a nationwide audit of providers and a requirement to re-register courses under tighter criteria in effect in 2010.

Ms Gillard said the COAG strategy would complement the findings of the Baird review to ensure Australia remains a world-leader in the international education sector.

The Baird Review into the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act was released on 10 March, 2010. It included widespread recommendations for amendment of the ESOS, and a number of supplementary findings designed to enhance Australia’s education reputation and support international students.

The key recommendations of the final review were as follows:

• That the Migration Act 1958 be amended to add flexibility to the current visa cancellation requirements for students failing to maintain satisfactory course progress; and
• That ESOS be amended to:
  • Require providers to uphold the integrity of the student visa program and maintain appropriate support, English language entry levels and professional outcomes
  • Only allow providers to maintain registration if they meet a series of thresholds
  • Introduce financial penalties and clear standards
  • Require an independent complaints body
  • Ensure students can accurately compare potential study choices
  • Introduce financial penalties for providers whose offshore agents act unethically
  • Implement a unique identifier for each student

The full text of the Baird Review into the ESOS can be found Here.

You can also view DIAC's Student visa program integrity measures 2009-10 Here.

We will keep you up to date when the final International Students Strategy for Australia is released by COAG in the coming weeks.
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