12 March 2009

Australia becoming first choice for Indian students

Australia is fast emerging as the first choice for Indian students looking to study overseas.

According to the Press Trust of India, the "liberal" education visa rules and prospects of a good career are the main pulling factors for Indian students looking abroad.

The Premier of South Australia Mike Rann said to Indian journalists that Australia's university education is about to step into an even higher level of standard with the introduction of international campuses. 

"Australia is emerging as a seat of higher learning and the scope of educational facilities are set to expand as top universities of the world like Carnegie Mallon and University of London will be opening their international campuses here soon," he said.

An official said Australia usually comes second to America in attracting Indian students, but with the American dollar sitting higher than the Aussie dollar, Australia is looking to be a more profitable prospect during the recession.

The rules for the Australian student visa also allow for greater scope of settlement for those with spouses. 

Currently, nearly 100,000 Indians are studying in Australia, with 30,000 Indian nationals applying to educational institutions last year. 

"Enrolments of Indian students have increased at an average annual rate of around 41 per cent since 2002.  There were over 95,000 Indian enrolments in Australia in the first eleven months of 2008 and according to the latest figures the numbers touched 97,000," said the official.

---

The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people with emigrating to Australia.