Page 57 - EducationWorld March 2023

dents coming to the UK. It said there are concerns that the
2019 target to recruit 600,000 overseas students annually
by 2030, met last year, has been “too successful”. Sunak
and Braverman are alarmed by rising net migration figures,
which include students. Figures published in November
showed net migration had risen to 504,000 last year.
On dependants, Braverman reportedly wants to change
the rules so only overseas students studying in postgradu-
ate programmes of at least two years can bring family with
them. The proposal to reduce the number of additional
family members entering the country comes after figures
showed a tripling in visas issued to students’ dependants,
with 70 percent of all dependants coming from Nigeria and
India.
Universities would be quite content to see another of the Chinese students in Australia: abrupt reversal
changes reportedly being sought by Braverman — barring
students from switching to a work visa in the UK until they currently based elsewhere.
have finished their course — which they had long warned Their ready embrace of online education surprised many,
was a problem with the scheme. and it cushioned Covid’s impact on Australian universities’
bottom lines. Diplomats had warned that Beijing’s endorse-
CHINA ment of online degrees wouldn’t last forever, but the rapid
Online degree bans fallout reversal reflects speedy dismantling of China’s pandemic
regime.
CHINA HAS ABRUPTLY WITHDRAWN ITS Cov- Australian universities have until mid-2023 to meet rules
id-era endorsement of remotely delivered tertiary requiring them to deliver at least two-thirds of foreign stu-
education. This order is likely to galvanise inter- dents’ degrees conventionally.
national enrolments in Western countries while straining
university admissions services, visa processing and flight YTT programme failing
and housing availability.
Beijing authorities have reversed a 2020 rule change that HINA’S MOST PROMINENT TALENT RECRUIT-
allowed for the local accreditation of degrees and higher MENT programme is still failing to lure ‘top’ global
education diplomas taught online by universities and col- Cscientists back to the country, a study has found.
leges in other parts of the world. The new arrangements, Established in 2010 as a key pillar of Beijing’s Thousand
revealed in a “special announcement” posted in late Janu- Talents Programme, the Young Thousand Talents (YTT) ini-
ary on the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange tiative seeks to recruit science and technology experts from
(CSCSE) website, apply from the main autumn semester to abroad, especially Chinese expatriates.
institutions based in the southern hemisphere and affect In the West, the initiative has come under scrutiny from
both new and continuing enrolments. lawmakers, who fear espionage and intellectual property
“Students should return to school as soon as possible,” theft amid rising geopolitical tensions. But research sug-
advises an attached document. This gives Chinese students gests that YTT is not yet attracting cream of the crop. “Al-
enrolled at Australian universities between two and four though designed to improve China’s prospect of becoming
weeks to relocate Down Under in time to start or resume a global STEM leader, the programme’s effectiveness in
face-to-face classes. attracting top talents and nurturing their productivity is
Phil Honeywood, chief executive of the International Ed- unclear,” write academics in the journal Science.
ucation Association of Australia, says that while China has Yanbo Wang, an associate professor at the University
“never been comfortable with online learning”, educators of Hong Kong’s business school, and Dongbo Shi, assis-
had expected a transition period before reversion to usual tant professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, examined
arrangements. “Such a rapid pivot back to regulated face-to- researchers’ motives for turning down the invitation, which
face learning requirements will definitely create challenges includes a one-off, tax-exempt income subsidy of 500,000
for our education providers and our visa processing. None- yuan (Rs.60 lakh) and start-up grants of 1 million yuan to
theless, it will be welcomed by most stakeholders.” 3 million yuan. Dr. Wang and his colleague surveyed more
Federal government statistics say that as many as 40,000 than 400 researchers who were approached for the pro-
of some 119,000 Chinese student visa holders were located gramme’s first four cohorts starting in 2011. They included
outside Australia in mid-November. Chinese citizens ac- 73 scientists who rejected the YTT offers and remained
count for the bulk of the 62,000 foreign higher ed students overseas, and 339 who accepted spots in China via the pro-

MARCH 2023 EDUCATIONWORLD 59