Australian experts: Chinese students can be a bridge to ease the relationship between the two countries
According to Australia.com, the latest data from the Australian Federal Ministry of the Interior showed that in the 12 months ending in July this year, more than half of the student visa holders waiting to enter Australia were Chinese students.
Statistics show that nearly 143,000 Chinese students account for 30% of the total number of overseas students in Australia, which is stable compared with the previous 12 months. Due to the closure of the Australian border due to the new crown pneumonia epidemic, more than 56% of all student visa holders outside Australia are from China, which is about 90,000.
In this regard, the CEO of the International Education Association of Australia (Phil Honeywood) said that Chinese students are very quick to accept online learning overseas, which is in line with India (the second largest market for international students) and Nepal ( The third largest international student market) is different. He said: "In contrast, our private and academic connections have encouraged Chinese students to persist in studying Australian courses. Good Internet access, similar time zones and access to a first-class university degree in Australia are also positive factors."
Honeywood also said that the continued flow of Chinese students to Australian institutions would also help ease tensions between Canberra and Beijing. He said: "In the future, the soft diplomatic benefits of Chinese students graduating from our world-class universities will far exceed our economic value."
Although the number of Chinese students has remained stable, in the past fiscal year, Australia has lost more than 100,000 overseas students in total, causing a loss of nearly A$6 billion to the economy.
The Australian National University (ANU) higher education analyst Andrew Norton said that the relatively large number of Chinese students who continue to study outside Australia has saved major universities from suffering a greater financial blow than originally anticipated. He said: "In general (we) believe that Chinese students are reluctant to conduct online learning, and continuing to pay tuition is the biggest factor that has not fallen into a fiscal deficit so far by the League of Eight (Go8)."
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