Students are expressing anger, sadness and disgust in response to the Australian Government’s announcement on Monday that say student visa application charges increase by 125 per cent to $A1600. Voyage Insights powered by The Social Source, has been tracking student sentiment this week finding that students believe that the increase cost of a visa is unfair and excessive.
Almost half of the sentiment being expressed online about the visa hike is anger with a further 28 per cent and 16 per cent expressing sadness and disgust.
Source: The Social Source
Head of Student Insights and Strategy at Voyage, Varsha Devi Balakrishnan says “The recent policy changes, including the substantial increase in student visa fees and the repeated increase of financial requirements, underscore a troubling trend. While the Australian government emphasises the need for genuine students, these measures suggest that being ‘genuine’ is increasingly synonymous with being ‘cashed up.’ This perception reinforces the belief among many international students that they are viewed as little more than cash cows, valued more for their financial contributions than their academic potential, which has serious implications for Australia’s reputation.”
Students believe that the visa fee is unreasonably high, especially when compared to other countries:
Could anyone among the many downvoters articulate an argument for why the Australian visa should be between 2 and 10 times more expensive than almost every other potential study destination? Anyone want to justify this?
Australia’s reputation as treating international students as ‘cash cows’ has again been raised, with students expressing disappointment that Australia seemingly welcomes international students during enrolment but abandoning them afterwards:
I don’t see how good Australia is to be honest. They are extremely welcoming when they need us but once they have got what they needed, they simply abandon us like we meant nothing to them. I reckon going other countries like UK or US might be a better option tbh. Just my honest opinion as it is very disheartening to see things like this from time to time.
When you want to study there are various conditions that apply, not all students are rich most of those who continue their studies there are sponsored by government or company, it’s better to continue studying in other countries that don’t have nonsense conditions like OZ.
The student visa fee hike is the latest in a series of changes in government policy designed to reduce the number of international students in Australia (see The Koala News for full coverage). With the government narrative clearly targeting domestic voters, there is increasing support within the Australian community for the harsher measures. This is exacerbating the feeling of international students that they are unwelcome.
I moved to Australia on a student visa. I feel like I’m a decent contributing member of society. I don’t really understand why everyone hates international students in this thread.
Online engagement jumped significantly on 1 July 2024, the day of the announcement, as students reacted to the visa fee increase.
Source: The Social Source
So, what’s next? Parliament is now on its winter break. Submissions to the Senate Standing Committees on Education and Employment inquiry on the provisions of the Education Services for Overseas Students Amendment (Quality and Integrity) Bill 2024 closed on 1 July. The Committee is due to report by 15 August 2024.
For views from the sector about the visa fee hike see TKN, “Stealth” Government Announcement of a 125 per cent visa fee jump catches sector off guard.
