The interconnection between australia's international education industry and its skilled migration programs

Abstract

Australia has a long history of providing education for its immigrants and international students, and Australian institutions welcomed 455,185 international students in 2007. Its education exports in 2007 were worth A$ 12.5 billion, making education Australia's third-largest export after coal and iron ore. Australia has been receiving a great number of students from various countries, mainly from Asia. However, some changes are observable lately in the country's international education sector. For instance, the major source countries for international students in Australia are changing, with some countries, such as India, having emerged as new key contributors to the international education sector in the country. There are several reasons contributing to the trend, and one of the factors is Australia's skilled migration programs. Because of the globalization of the labor market, people are becoming more internationally mobile enabling them to look for better career opportunities and a more comfortable living environment. This chapter studies the international education sector, labor market demands, and skilled migration programs in Australia, and looks at the interconnection between the international education industry and the skilled migration programs, and also the future trends for such interconnectivity. © 2009 Springer Netherlands.