NEWS

Australia: Caps, Closures, and a Sector in Flux 

Australia’s international education sector remains unsettled following two years of policy turbulence. The government’s proposed cap of 270,000 new international enrolments was blocked in Parliament, but visa fees have since doubled to AUD 1,600, and stricter assessments have led to a surge in rejections and closures of some private and VET providers. Universities warned that capping city-based enrolments wouldn’t shift students to regional campuses, but to other countries entirely—at a time when global competitors like the US, UK, and Canada are also tightening student migration.

Financial pressure is mounting. The upcoming merger of the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia is one high-profile response, but many institutions are seeking more sustainable funding. In its March 2025 budget response, Universities Australia welcomed short-term cost-of-living relief for students but called for the abolition of the Job-ready Graduates (JRG) Package, which it says distorts fees and underfunds teaching. With enrolments projected to rise by a million annually by 2050, the sector is urging long-term investment in research, infrastructure, and a sustainable international education strategy.

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Anti-Racism/Anti-Semetism Universities Australia Statement

In February 2025, Universities Australia released a sector-wide statement reaffirming that racism has no place on Australian campuses and committing all 39 member institutions to a harmonised response to discrimination. The statement came in response to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights’ final report of its inquiry into antisemitism at Australian universities. As part of this commitment, member universities unanimously endorsed a working definition of antisemitism—closely aligned with the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition—to strengthen institutional responses to antisemitism while upholding academic freedom and addressing broader concerns around Islamophobia, First Nations justice, and campus safety. 

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