Professor Suresh Cuganesan – deputy dean at the University of Sydney Business School – has called for the federal government to give international students even greater post-study work rights as an incentive to encourage greater numbers:
- “Changes to post-study work rights of international students recently proposed by federal parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Migration need to be bolder”.
- “The committee recommends extending post study work visas from two to three years. It also recommends streamlined migration pathways”.
- “So what else should we be doing? From the outset we need to signal that Australia is focused on the longer-term wellbeing and employability of our international students”.
- “Any changes need to reflect our focus on building the long-term employability of our international students so they can be successful well into the future”.
- “We should also address the sizeable challenge that international students face in getting work experience in their chosen fields”.
- “This is where the government should lead a ‘Team Australia’ approach where leading businesses and start-ups formally partner with universities to offer international students more work experience opportunities, both during and after their studies”.
- “A credible government-backed initiative that helps international students gain the work experience that often difficult to obtain would show the world that Australia is different”.
- “In a competitive landscape, we need to show that we are serious about doing more for our international students if we want to attract, develop and retain their valuable human capital. We need to be bolder”.
If you want a golden example of how Australia’s universities have lost their way, bookmark the above self-serving drivel from Professor Cuganesan.
Following his recommendations would demote the interests of Australian students, depriving them of crucial job opportunities. It is the polar opposite of a ‘Team Australia’ approach.
How about “building the long-term employability of our international local students so they can be successful well into the future”, as well as addressing “the sizeable challenge that international local students face in getting work experience in their chosen fields”? Is this too much to ask of Australian universities and the government?
The above drivel is also another prime example of why education is more of a people-importing immigration industry than a genuine export industry, since it is primarily concerned about selling international students work rights and permanent residency than education services.
If access to work rights and permanent residency were curtailed then the entire international education industry would collapse.
