By Ethan Benedicto
Federation University’s vice-chancellor and president, Duncan Bently, has welcomed the Coalition’s proposed international student policy, as criticisms soared against the capping of international student intake to 240,000 a year.
Bentley said that the announcement serves as a recognition of the distinct role that regional universities play in serving learners who live outside of big cities.
“I urge our political leaders to continue this focus on regional and outer suburban communities, and call on them to commit to policies that ensure everyone can access local education that leads to a local high-paying job, no matter where they live,” he said.
The vice-chancellor encouraged the possible changes to the international student policy to be complemented by initiatives to boost domestic student enrollments.
He added that those policies create “greater certainty for us to make Federation sustainable, but we must have a conversation about domestic student policy”.
“We have an extraordinary opportunity to create real pathways for young people in regional and outer Victorian communities to secure meaningful employment.”
Likewise, Bentley also complimented the Commonwealth’s Ministerial Direction 111, which became effective from 19 December 2024, replacing Ministerial Direction 107 with aims to ensure a more equitable and sustainable approach to international student visa processing.
At the same time, Federation has also made changes to re-size its international student programs in light of changes to the visa policy.
“We now have a smaller, in-demand, and highly rated program that directs international students to our regional campuses,” Bentley said.
“While we are experiencing rapid growth across all campuses, until policy setting provides a clear plan to help us dramatically boost local attainment through refreshed facilities and partnerships, we will continue to make tough choices to keep the momentum going.
“I want to reassure our communities in Berwick, Ararat, Ballarat, Horsham, and Gippsland that we are working hard to become more sustainable in response to the changes in student migration policy.”
