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International Education

News archive 2010

October–December 2010

New report: International graduate outcomes and employer perceptions

22 December 2010
On 22 December 2010 AEI published the report International graduate outcomes and employer perceptions. The report investigates the graduate outcomes of more than 4500 international graduates who completed vocational education and training (VET) or higher education qualifications in Australia between 2004 and 2008.
The report also looks at the perceptions Australian and overseas employers have of international graduates of Australian education and training institutions.
Access the

report

Review of Student visa program

16 December 2010
On 16 December 2010 the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, the Hon Chris Bowen MP, and the Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator Chris Evans, announced a review of the Student visa program, along with the package of measures for the international education sector.
Media release
Overview of Student Visa Changes to Assist International Education Sector
Terms of reference – Strategic Review of the Student Visa Program

2010 International Student Survey

16 December 2010
On Thursday 16 December 2010 the Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator Chris Evans, welcomed the release of the 2010 International Student Survey.
Please see the overview report
Media release

Plan for education reform in China

12 December 2010
China announced its National Plan for Medium and Long-term Education Reform and Development for 2010–2020 in July 2010. The plan outlines China’s commitment to give priority to education and to turn China into a country rich in human resources.
See a short summary of the plan (pdf 87 kb, prepared by AEI; and the translation of the plan (pdf 288 kb; rtf 925 kb), provided to AEI courtesy of the National Center for Education Development Research (NCEDR).

Senator Evans releases the next phase of consultation on the Baird Review

7 December 2010
On 7 December 2010 the Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator Chris Evans, called for submissions to inform the next phase of the Australian Government’s response to the Baird Review recommendations.
The paper is available on the ESOS Review page of the AEI website.
Media release

European Commission’s agenda for new skills and jobs

The European Commission recently adopted a communication on An agenda for new skills and jobs: A European contribution towards full employment, one of the Europe 2020 flagship initiatives. Some of its main actions to improve skills levels in the EU include:
- emphasising the lifelong dimension of flexicurity
- better anticipation of skills needs
- improving the level of basic skills
- providing the right skills for the labour market beyond basic skills
- achieving a better mix of skills.
More information

New Points Test for Skilled Migration applications annouced

On 11 November 2010 the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, the Hon Chris Bowen, MP, announced a new points test to assess independent skilled migrants as a part of the Gillard Government's ongoning commitment to reforming the skilled migration program to deliver the skills Australia needs.
Further information is available on the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's (DIAC) website.

Students Strategy released

On Friday 29 October 2010 Minister for Tertiary Education Senator Chris Evans released the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) International Students Strategy for Australia (ISSA). The Strategy outlines 12 initiatives to address the four key areas: international student wellbeing, quality of international education, consumer protection and availability of better information for international students.
More information

Senator Evans' address on international education and visit to China

On 27 October 2010 Minister for Tertiary Education Senator Chris Evans delivered an address on international education, highlighting the importance of the sector and announcing a high-level university delegation to China.
Media release
Transcript

July–September 2010

Transfer of marketing and promotion of international education and training to Austrade:

From 1 July 2010 Austrade is responsible for the international marketing and promotion of Australian education and training.
Market Information Package (MIP) and eNewsletter subscribers: To continue receiving the MIP post 1 July 2010, subscribers need to set up a new user name and password.

Closure of Australian Education Centres (AECs):

As of 1 July 2010, AECs will close in markets where they still operate. Providers are requested not to send further promotional material to AECs. Austrade will contact providers once needs for promotional material are identified.

April–June 2010

Government closes student visa loopholes

The department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) has recently announced new measures for the student visa program. To view the media release, please visit the DIAC website.
The integrity measures can also be viewed on the DIAC website.
A number of fact sheets on the DIAC website have been updated to reflect these new measures. This includes:

COAG announces outlines of the International Students Strategy for Australia

On 20 April 2010 the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) released its Communiqué on outcomes from the extended COAG meeting.
The outcomes of the COAG meeting held on 19–20 April 2010 are available through the COAG website.

Australia consolidates educational links with India

Minister for Education Julia Gillard and India’s Minister for Human Resource Development Kapil Sibal signed a Joint Ministerial Statement to build on the cooperative ties between the two nations in the education sector.
The Joint Ministerial Statement confirms Australia and India’s commitment to expand the current education exchange program to achieve greater cooperation between the two countries’ schools, higher education, vocational education and training sectors.
More information

New Skilled Occupation List announced

On 17 May 2010 the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, announced a list of occupations that would form a new Skilled Occupations List (SOL). Further information, including the new list, is available on the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's (DIAC) website.
Amendments to General Skilled Migration visa subclasses
The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, has announced a number of legislative amendments that came into effect on Saturday, 8 May 2010. These amendments temporarily suspend the acceptance of applications for the following General Skilled Migration (GSM) visa subclasses: Subclass 175 - Skilled independent, Subclass 176 - Skilled sponsored and Subclass 475 - Skilled regional sponsored.
More information is available on the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) website.

ESOS review interim report released

On 3 December 2009 the Hon Bruce Baird released the ESOS review interim report.
More information
Media release

Transfer of marketing and promotion of international education from AEI to Austrade

Please see the latest update from Austrade regarding the transfer of marketing and promotion of international education from AEI to Austrade.

January–March 2010

Baird Review final report released

The review of the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act 2000 is now complete. On 9 March 2010 the Deputy Prime Minister released the Baird Review final report, Stronger, Simpler Smarter ESOS: Supporting International Students, and agreed to begin work on implementing a number of recommendations immediately.

ESOS Amendment Act

The re-registration of all providers, currently registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS) by 31 December 2010, is a part of the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Re-registration of Providers and Other Measures) Act 2010 that was passed by the Parliament on 22 February 2010 and received Royal Assent on 3 March 2010. The Act will take effect immediately.
Both the Australian Government and states and territories have finalised a nationally consistent risk managed approach to re-registration as required in the legislation.
More information

Re: New AEI

In 2009, the Australian Government announced significant changes to its governance arrangements for international education. In preparation for these changes, AEI is undertaking a consultative exercise under the banner of Re: New AEI to inform the re-focus of its role.
Consultations in March 2010 provide the opportunity for stakeholders to have their say in AEI’s future role and a Re: NewAEI Discussion Starter (pdf 400kb) has been developed to support these conversations. The outcome of stakeholder consultations will guide the development of a five-year plan for AEI. The planning process is expected to be completed by May 2010, with the new strategy implemented from 1 July 2010.
While these changes will impact on Australian Education International (AEI), AEI will continue to play an active role in the policy sphere of international education.

New migration arrangements announced

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, has announced changes to General Skilled Migration in response to the outcomes of the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) Review. The Government has revoked the MODL and will replace the Critical Skills List (CSL) and the current Skilled Occupations List (SOL) with a new SOL formulated by Skills Australia in the second half of 2010.
For answers to some frequently asked questions, see the fact sheet - pdf (102kb), rtf (91kb) or the Department of Immigration and Citizenship’s website.

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