Data published by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations shows that the export income from international education activity contributed $18.3 billion to the Australian economy in 2010.

 

The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations released the Australian Education International (AEI) Research Snapshot which has shown that education export earnings were in 2010 ‘only marginally down from the peak of 2009’.

 

The (AEI) Research Snapshot shows education services was Australia’s largest services export industry by far at $18.3 billion in 2010, followed by personal travel services at $12.2 billion.

 

However, the education sector has recorded a 8.7% slump in international student enrollments in the period leading up to the end of March  compared with the same period last year, representing a stark contrast with the average 8.5% increase since 2002, according to an article published by The Age.

 

Although the sector experienced a contraction in international enrollments, the higher education area grew by a modest 3.5% ahead of an expected peak in 2012.

 

As was expected, the largest contraction was in the Indian market, where a total drop of 30.4% followed a spate of racist attacks on Indian students.

 

Nepalese and Sri Lankan student numbers also dropped, by 19% and 17% respectively, after the Federal Government was attacked for its handling of student visas after a backlog of 350,000 non-compliance notices for student visa holders had accumulated.