How overseas students spend

International Exchange Program
Department of Education

How overseas students spend

INTERNATIONAL students are injecting about $109 million a week into the Australian economy. And that's not counting the millions they pay in tuition fees.

A new report reveals that although many of them work, their spending far outstrips their income from employment. The Survey of International Students' Spending in Australia found that almost one-third of students gained income from work. But 72 per cent of those earned less than $200 a week, way short of the $539 they spent weekly.

The study was carried out by the University of Queensland Social Research Centre for the Department of Education, Science and Training's Australian Education International.

Although most of the 3186 students were in higher education, the survey also covers students in vocational education, secondary schools and English language colleges.

It shows that, like their domestic counterparts, overseas students studying in Australia spend most of their money on basic living. And while they spend more than they earn, they do not have large amounts of discretionary income.

The biggest outlays were on housing at $122 a week, food and groceries ($129 a week) and telephone ($35 a week). Students also spent about $43 a week on transport, $34 a week on entertainment and $34 a week on course costs, excluding their tuition fees. Higher education students spent the most - $597 a week - and those enrolled in English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students spent the least: $390 a week.

The report's co-author Mark Western, director of UQ's Social Research Centre, said the findings highlighted the fact that international students were a significant export earner.

"If we are going to continue to be attractive to them, then we need to support the national education system across all the sectors in order to stay competitive," he said.

Associate professor Western said the two-thirds of students who were not working were either on scholarships or being supported by their families.

"One of the things we know about international students is that a lot of them come from advantaged backgrounds. So a lot of them have access to funds back home, or they are here with family members who are probably working here or supporting them."

Most of the students in the survey were studying in Victoria (38 per cent) and Queensland (23 per cent). NSW was under-represented because some institutions with large international enrolments did not co-operate with the survey.

Overall, 68 per cent of students were in higher education, 8 per cent in vocational education, 12 per cent in schools, 9 per cent were enrolled in ELICOS and 3 per cent in foundation or enabling courses.

Those intending to migrate were most likely to be from India (41 per cent), followed by Britain (34 per cent) and China (29 per cent).

Students from Japan, North America and Canada were most likely to say they had no intention to migrate.

Dorothy Illing
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/
November 30, 2005