Impact of new international policy directions – comment by CEO Jenny Dodd

If you are immersed in international education you will now be familiar with the term “National Planning Level”. In a latter part of today’s TDA Monday Newsletter we explore the details of this change regarding international students. Last week TDA members received letters from the government detailing the changes to their institute’s ability to recruit international students.

There are mixed views across the higher education and vocational education sectors about whether the change is good. For some universities, as well as private HE and VET providers, they will experience a real reduction in numbers. The Group of Eight have been very vocal in their opposition. International education, while very good for cultural development through having students from many different nations mixing in tertiary education environments, is also a significant revenue source for providers.

While not allowing for growth, there is some good news for TAFEs in this National Planning Level change. For TAFEs, the numbers they will be able to enrol are based on their numbers in 2023. TAFEs will receive 100% equivalent of 2023 for their higher education commencements. In VET delivery, because international students account for less than 80 per cent of the total count of students, TAFEs will be able to maintain new overseas student commencements in 2025 also at approximate 2023 levels.

However, the potential impact of the policy is about whether this changed international policy will enhance or detract from the stated desire of a more harmonised tertiary education sector.

Given the likely reduction in revenue for some universities, it is possible that pathways between TAFEs and Universities that had been very attractive may become less so now. They would be less attractive if the University decides to maximise the amount of revenue per international student by ensuring that the student does a longer course with them. Thus, a TAFE pathway which gives the student credit into later stages of a degree may not be attractive.

However, it is equally possible that some universities which have an increased cap will need more international students to meet that cap. Therefore, those universities might be attracted to pathways from TAFE where they did not exist before.

In either case, pathways should be promoted between TAFE and universities. This is part of the broader tertiary education policy agenda. Therefore, TDA is advocating that TAFE-University packaged pathways, like international education twinning programs, should be exempt from the caps. A TAFE-University pathway should not be part of the University’s cap.