Federation University vice chancellor Professor Duncan Bentley has proposed a regional student skills visa for international university students, in the face of a Commonwealth Government proposal to cap the number of international students allowed to enrol in Australian universities.
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The visa would prioritise international students taking courses that favour industry placements in sectors where there are skills shortages, and where studies align to the needs of regional areas.
On May 11, federal education minister Jason Clare announced a new framework to for the international education sector including a proposed cap on the maximum number of new international student enrolments that public universities and private education providers can offer.
Professor Bentley said introducing a regional student skills visa would allow universities to develop new offerings to attract overseas students.
The number of international students attending Federation fell 49 per cent between 2019 and 2023, causing a drop of $79.1 million in the university's revenue.
"A priority skills regional student visa is an innovative solution to allow us to recruit overseas students who want the best opportunity to succeed in Australia's cutting-edge industries that are affected by domestic skill shortages," he said.
The proposed visa would also require international students to use student accommodation to avoid exacerbating regional housing shortages.
"Managed immigration is pivotal to ensuring we have equal economic opportunities for everyone in our community ... and we believe focusing on skilled student migration connected to local employees strikes the right balance in easing cost of pressure and create the greatest prospect for productive long-term migration in our communities," Prof Bentley said.
In February, the government released its Universities Accord, which contained 47 recommendations to overhaul the university system including courses better aligned with Australia's skill and migration needs, more diversified international student source markets, and more international students studying in regional campuses.
It also noted that international student fees contributed more than a fifth of overall university funding in 2022. More than a quarter of total enrolments were international fee-paying students, with around 120,000 of those studying Australian higher education courses outside Australia.
"Fully funding research would also reduce the currently excessive pressure on universities to secure international student revenue," the accord stated.
According to its recently tabled 2023 Annual Report, Federation University had 5491 international students last year.
Professor Bentley said the proposed regional student skills visa directly addressed the Universities Accord and Commonwealth Government's call for a more skills oriented international student program.
"Federation University welcomes the certainty the recently announced reforms on international education offer to regional universities," he said.
"Getting started with a priority skills regional student visa under the existing student migration system smooths the way for comprehensive reforms - it means universities can collaborate with their industry and local government partners to offer programs that will be proven, sustainable and demonstrate the greatest return for the community."
