Universities are blocking applications from students from entire countries as the federal government’s latest stage in its migration crackdown makes it even tougher for some institutions to recruit foreign pupils.
It also banned applications from any Indian student who had a previous visa refusal from Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand or the United Kingdom, among other restrictions. Affiliated Edith Cowan College has also emailed agents saying it can no longer accept applications from Pakistani and Indian nationals for some diploma courses.
Ravi Singh, managing director of Indian-based education agency Global Reach, said he believed institutions such as Central Queensland University were taking the stringent measures after just avoiding moving to a higher risk level this month. “We therefore do not see a shift in the evidence level being a challenge, but rather some of the more arbitrary decisions being made in respect to individual applicants who we have thoroughly screened,” he said.
Naresh Gulati, former international student and chief executive of education agent management system Ascent One, said it should not be the responsibility of universities to assess the genuine nature or financial viability of overseas applicants.