Opinion | Australian Financial Review
Our universities have become talent bottlenecks
by @Tom Snow
Chair Snow Medical Research Foundation
Australia’s higher education system is optimised for foreign students. It is neither developing enough local skills, nor keeping the best of overseas talent.
International students are not the boogeyman. In fact, there is a vital role for these students to play in higher education in Australia.
Not only are they necessary to subsidise Australian students and research, they should help to fill our nation’s skills gap, particularly in areas such as science, medical research and STEM education.
However, while we have some of the best universities in the world, if we want a skills-based economy, our nation requires fundamental changes at the federal government and university level, allowing a transition from the current system that optimises international student revenue to one that delivers quality skilled graduates.