Australian outbound student mobility: recent development and possible ways forward

Outbound student mobility has been slowly gathering momentum in Australia over a number of years. It has gradually found its way first into the internationalisation and strategic plans of institutions and, more recently, has been gathering increasing support and momentum at higher levels. Outbound mobility crosses many disciplines at many levels. Students interact with university staff who then submit funding requests to government, who in turn may have discussed arrangements with other governments around the world. The European Union and Bologna Reforms are perfect examples of how student mobility has been carefully and deliberately placed at the front of intricate interactions across borders. This paper will review a number of major developments in outbound student mobility in Australia over the past few years. It will discuss some of the major issues that have been raised and look at possible ways to move forward on those issues. Finally, it will consider some developments and innovations that could take place to better connect Australian mobility with mobility schemes around the world. Show less