Student voices: enhancing the experience of international students in Australia

Australia hosts more than 400,000 international school, vocational education and training (VET), higher education and English language students each year. With word of mouth being one of the most important influences on the decision making process for prospective students, the experiences that these international students have living and studying in Australia are important for Australia’s education system. To develop a greater understanding of and ideas for improving the experiences of international students around the issues of interaction, support services and relevant work experience, Australian Education International (AEI) conducted 41 focus groups across Australia in 2011. These focus groups included groups of international school, VET and higher education students, as well as domestic VET and higher education students and international education support staff from a wide range of international education providers. International and domestic students shared their experiences of studying in Australia and talked about ideas for improving interaction with Australian students and enhancing the experience of international students. Some of the voices of the students are captured in the body of this report. The focus groups with international education support staff provided an opportunity to discuss strategies that effectively support international students, and to discuss ideas that can further enhance and improve the experience of international students in Australia. Many of the ideas and experiences that were communicated by international education support staff are also presented in the body of this report.

Excerpts from publication. Show less