China’s latest multi-pronged moves to stall the flow of students to Australian universities — both official and unofficial — will be a great test of how much control the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has over the country’s increasingly wealthy burgeoning middle-class.
In the past week, it has emerged that Chinese authorities have brought significant pressure to bear on the nation’s network of education agents. These agents play a major part in recruiting students for Australian universities, TAFEs and other institutions.
Such action is seen as “unofficial”, with no public notifications or admissions by authorities. But in a country where the CCP controls every aspect of society, the unofficial is too often the official.
A range of mainland agents from major student placement firms including New Oriental, JJL and EIC have reported to Australian interlocutors that they have been invited for “cups of tea” with officials. This is code language for backroom warnings in China.
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On the “official” side, Crikey has learned through sources in the international student sector that the Chinese government across multiple provinces is pulling support from its employees studying in Australia, including those mid-way through study.
The concerted efforts by Chinese authorities has led Austrade (the government agency responsible for promoting Australian education services overseas) to suddenly withdraw from a key education expo (the China International Education Exhibition, taking place online on March 20-21), leaving participating Australian institutions in the lurch.
“After careful consideration Austrade is opting not to participate in this year’s event. There will not be a strong Australian presence,” Austrade China education trade commissioner Andrew Carter wrote in a letter obtained by Crikey.
Based on official Australian government figures, international education was worth $37.5 billion to the Australian economy to June 30, 2020, with Chinese students contributing $10.5 billion (although many observers think those figures are pumped up).
The latest moves follow safety warnings from the Chinese Ministry of Education warning of “malignant attacks” on Chinese students here. And, in the potentially darkest warning from Chinese authorities, a number of Australian universities including the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Swinburne University of Technology, Griffith University and the University of Southern Queensland have been slammed for poor teaching quality.
Australian institutions are all on the official list of those approved to work with government in China. Any removal from this list would be a disaster for any institution and would effectively spell the end of its Chinese student days.
“They have tried this before, both in previous years and particularly over the past year as Beijing has tried to reduce exports to Australia,” one Australian education sector executive said.
But insiders said that the Chinese have to tread a fine line. They can’t “cancel” Australian education altogether, given the growing alumni cohort now working inside China and the significant cohort of CPP cadres and their children who have studied or are studying in Australia.
“They want to be able to turn the tap on and off — like coal and wine,” one observer said, but this is no easy feat. When Australia opens once more for international students (probably for the 2022 academic year), it will be very attractive. There will be low or zero COVID-19 cases and lots of job opportunities. Australia stands out internationally (along with Japan) as having the most generous post-graduation work rights for students as well as a safe environment, despite CCP propaganda.
Australia is seen as a destination not just for study but for longer-term work. It’s an appealing immigration prospect for students from China, India and elsewhere.
People in the sector argue that there is no shortage of demand from international students. There are also a limited numbers of places, and the barriers to entry to the higher education sector — especially universities — are very high; capital costs are massive and it’s a sector tightly regulated by education and immigration authorities.
The education sector dodged the first COVID bullet, with most students managing to reach Australia before lockdowns began in late March last year. Since then, the situation has deteriorated.
The latest official figures (released last week for July-November 2020) show a fall in commencements of 9% compared to the previous year. They are expected to fall off a cliff in 2021 with Australia’s borders still all but closed. A Victoria University study last October predicted student numbers would drop by up to 50% this year.
As students from the other major markets, including India, have walked away — spurning a year or more of online learning — the Chinese have become this year’s almost exclusive buyers, according to industry insiders.
Australian universities, particularly the elite Group of Eight that is usually the go-to for Chinese students, will be sweating on this latest test.
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Blind Freddy could see this coming. Everything happening in our dealings with China boils down to the crappy “megaphone” approach that Hillsong Scotty and the Limited News Party have taken with China including our “all mouth no trousers” approach on Hong Kong and China’s internal affairs. Speak to any actual Diplomat and they loathe the approach we have taken. As a result, China considers that we are no longer a friendly nation and is simply doing exactly what we would do in their position and redirecting their cashflow elsewhere. The rise in hostility towards Asian people in the West generally has also played it’s part. Why would anyone want to study in a country that doesnt like your Government and hates your race? There will be more to come. You can disagree with China, just be polite and respectful about it (as we demand of other countries).
Here we ago again, the CCP’s opinion police pa-trolling Crikey comments, making sure nobody goes off the rails about China.
“China considers that we are no longer a friendly nation and is simply BECAUSE AUSTRALIA IS NOT doing exactly what they think we should be doing -as China says- As for the cashflow elsewhere: good riddance.
Such a democratic country, the new empire of the fair go, lecturing Australia on human rights, racism and else.
Here we go again, the ‘straya opinion police, with the usual “we can do no wrong in ‘straya” arrogance, trolling others views lest he actually have to acknowledge Australia’s own failures.
Let’s see, 1. the Australian Government made no attempt to contact China to discuss any concerns Diplomatically (if you understand what that means) prior to making announcements to the International Press, 2. the Australian Government bitterly complains about, and attempts to, interfere in China’s Internal Affairs yet further complains bitterly when China attempts to influence our Government (which all countries do and is not the same thing as interference), 3. the Australian Government declines sales of Assets (that are already foreign owned) on the basis of “National Security”,but only when its China, 4. ignored Human Rights abuses in Kashmir by India because they “share our values” yet complains about China. The list goes on.
Looks like the usual two-faced Australian approach by the ruling caucasian Limited News Party class to me. Even the Lowy Institute has confirmed there is bias against China in Australia. Pretty bad when they are forced to admit this. Is it any wonder that China ignores any attempts at contact. Too little, too late.
Tired of The Australian and Sky After Dark perhaps?
If you go by the comments by Australians on social media like you tube then one can’t blame China for avoiding a racist country. Good old Aussies are not fond of Indians either, that’s the next export country we will trash.
Been there done that. The Indian education market, not to forget India in general and related to cricket, was trashed over ten years from about 2007/8.
This was exemplified by draconian changes restricting visa applications and raising the bar (Gillard govt.) in response to biased media reporting, key commentators (masquerading as experts) etc..
Meanwhile violence towards Indian students was justified through media by dog whistling, ‘whataboutery’, victim blaming etc. and ‘population growth’ through ‘immigration’ (spike then emerged in the NOM due to an unannounced change in the UN definition that inflated data from 2006), but misrepresented by media and demographers leading to a ‘Malthusian’ Minister for Sustainable Population).
Limited sympathy.
At the risk of sounding like a news corp/govt stooge (is there a difference?) the universities have had this coming.
They remind me of the ceaseless whining from the fossil fuel brigade about their jobs disappearing.
In both cases the proganists have had a couple of decades to game this out.
Australian higher education have been massively over-exposed to international students-the Chinese cohort in particular.
The nexus between study and work visas, and ultimately immigration, is up for speculation but the author rightly highlights the generous arrangements in place here.
Presumably this has been a quid pro quo for progressive defunding.
Yes they’ve been treated lousily by a succession of governments, this mob in particular, but they’ll have to treat the pandemic as a moment for reform whether they like the idea or not.
The sandstone brigade are kidding themselves if they believe, at some arbitrary point along vaccine distribution, pre-covid norms will return.
They won’t-nor should they.
Agree, universities and TAFE have been talking about marketing and decreasing their dependence upon PRC and/or Sub-Continent for years, with numbers peaking in recent years from the latter while PRC softened.
One important point is that although suggested widely, immigration is an incentive for study but eligibility and successful immigration outcomes are very limited and overstated, significantly (not helped by the confusion created when media and demographers describe all temporary residents under the NOM as ‘immigrants’ even if they have no plan of applying for migration, let alone staying long term).
Further, from a generation ago, Australian international education sector, mostly the managerial classes and some faculty, has focused upon aggressive offshore promotion and short term selling (similar message was promoted by Austrade offshore, too).
However, this avoided long term, consistent and diverse market development based round sustainable e,g, digital marketing (vs. their preference for spending on one off events, hotels and FIFO travel, then responsibility/pressure for results outsourced to agents for recruitment ‘success’ with micro management from the institution e.g. arbitrary targets).
Think the business behaviour of many in universities, TAFE and state bodies reflects how deep libertarian tendencies, instincts and materialism have infected Australia, including the public sector, reflecting business, politics and society influenced by the US.
The feds, like most western national governments, have degraded the universities until they became diploma mills for foreign students. Then they shut the international border. Then they pissed off the biggest market for students.
What China is doing in this case is irrelevant. The fault lies in the first step our government took: making it so educating us isn’t sustainable, let alone profitable. This was a choice, and they could choose to stop all the problems that came from it. The political class has to choose, graft and jobs for mates or a higher education sector of the economy.
They’ll pick the former, though. They’ll keep doing it until the demos reclaims democracy.
Most ‘problems’ are not supported by clear evidence but mostly hearsay and dog whistling; while it’s Australian university management and govt. who are responsible for systems, processes, visas and academic integrity.
There has been a simple outcome, and has been going on for a few years; most PRC students now choose other competing destinations including Canada, UK, EU etc., and of course the US is now back in the picture.
How good is Australia with MPs and media following Trump White House policies and trash our own interests in trade in goods and services with PRC, for others to take advantage, while we still dog whistle….. ?
Food for thought: consider googling instead as nothing is mentioned about this in Michael Sansbury’s article:
-University of Queensland Chinese funding”
-Why an Australian student who is anti-Beijing is facing expulsion from the University of Queensland
There were more than 260,000 Chinese student enrolments in Australia in 2019.
Obviously, a cash cow for Australian Universities, where most of the international student gain access by meeting high fees and obtaining certificates and masters in many cases without basic English language skills
“Without basic english language skills”? Do you work in the Sector? Suspect not as all my friends (lecturers and Professors in Universities) tell me the exact opposite.
Foreign Students are required to meet certain english proficiency standards for all Undergraduate, Post Graduate and Higher Education study.
https://www.usc.edu.au/study/how-to-apply/english-language-requirements
Universities Propaganda, keep milking the cash cow. “Truth isn’t truth” Giuliani ipse dixit
It is called Entry Criteria actually.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-01/chinese-students-paid-to-ghost-write-for-australia-uni-students/11725330
If you think Australian students are lily white in this area then you are even more deluded than you sound.
Neither universities (nor TAFE) nor ‘Chinese’ students make up or dominate the whole education system; there are also many private English Colleges, RTOs, uni prep and higher education colleges with diverse international students groups and significant numbers of employees; not anymore, and will impact some tens of thousands (but as they are urban and do not wear fluoro vests they do not count as ‘real jobs’ for ‘real men’ mantra).
Also this ‘Why an Australian student who is anti-Beijing is facing expulsion from the University of Queensland‘ think you are referring to Drew Pavlou a seemingly one man band of anti CCP/PRC and freedom of speech issues; in a similar universe as (reemergence of) Bettina Arndt and US influenced grifters promoting ‘freedom of speech’ e.g. UK’s SpikedOnline (seeded by Koch money and guest appearances by Abbott et al.).
Why was Pavlou compelled earlier on, with neither prompting nor a direct question by media, to claim that he had no connection with the IPA? Because it is exactly the type of opportunity or stunt that allows multiple actions including dog whistling China, students etc., also attacking credibility of universities and indirectly, educated ‘elites’, science, critical literacy etc.
Yes, I know, alt-right conspiracy theories included. You forgot to include Milo Yiannopoulos and Jordan Petersen for a comprehensive package.
Regarding the original thread on International students from ABC news:
Chinese students paid to rort Australian universities as government tackles cheating
Or try this one:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-11/chinese-cultural-influence-over-australia-felt-in-perth/11670654
Drew Pavlou, dared to confront the PCC’s thugs deployed on UQ and exposed university reliance on China’s cash. He received death threats. Beijing’s Consul in Queensland, “praised the spontaneous patriotic behavior” of those who attacked Drew
https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-12-21/student-australia-china-xi-jinping-uighurs-muslims
From “the Guardian’ 4 /08/2019:
“Last week, the Brisbane campus of the
110-year-old university became a flashpoint for the ongoing international
backlash against the Chinese state, its influence on Hong Kong and its mass detention of its Muslim Uighur population.
A protest last Wednesday, organised by Hong Kong international students against the controversial extradition law, turned violent.
Pro-Chinese government students interrupted the sit-in, tearing down banners, punching and shoving.”
The PCC? It’s the CPC if you want to be accurate (Communist Party of China). At least get that right before heading back to Sky.
The Communist Party of China (CPC), commonly known as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP),
Only in the West by the uninformed
Facts and figures mate, not vague elucubrations and cheap shots
The official acronym is the CPC. You stated “PCC” (Check your post – “Drew Pavlou, dared to confront the PCC’s thugs”). Check any Chinese Newspaper and you will find I’m right about the acronym. You have obviously never been to China and know nothing about China beyond what you watch on Sky.
Cheap shots? Coming from the ‘straya opinion police (with the usual “we can do no wrong in ‘straya” arrogance, trolling others views lest he actually have to acknowledge Australia’s own failures and racist bias)?
Oops!, I should hire one of those ghost writers Chinese students hire to cheat on university assignments, Huawei technology perhaps?
Well isnt that just might white of you
You’re coming across as awanker mate. Huawei make the best phone’s on the planet ( 2 in out household). That’s why the Yanks can’t handle it. Evil bastards.
What does this have to do with my comment?
‘I know, alt-right conspiracy theories included. You forgot to include Milo Yiannopoulos and Jordan Petersen for a comprehensive package.’
You seem to be familiar with these types?
Not at all familiar with those, but on their side when I see the woke inquisitors trying to suppress their freedom of speech