Speaking from Sydney’s Macquarie University, Simon Crean has dismissed the bleak forecasts in the overseas student market.

The Education Minister for Australia insists that enrolments have grown recently, regardless of the adverse conditions. Crean said that despite the current global financial crisis and the exchange rate “the last figures (he) saw showed that enrolments in university-run courses have increased for overseas students”.

Compared to the same month last year, overseas enrolments in higher education have increased 10.7% this June.

Despite this promising figure, there are still hurdles to overcome. As overseas students and the aspiration of many to continue to live in Australia is fast becoming one of the key issues in the election campaign, with Labor set to tighten the migration rules if re-elected.

Rob Forage is Global chief executive for UNSW Global, which offers English language courses and foundation studies for overseas students at the University of NSW. He says that what “we don’t want (is) people offering courses, in whatever institution in Australia, as a means by which they’re selling permanent residency, not quality education.”

However in a survey by market researcher TNS, response shows that the majority of the people who took the poll agreed that international students help make Australia part of the global community. The Australian Technology Network has also said that they believe easier entry of foreign research students would benefit the nation.

Only time will be able to tell the outcome. In the mean time, there will be many prospective international students watching the election poll with very keen interest.

Are you a student looking to study in Australia? How do you feel about the prospective visa changes? Please comment below.