Australian university denies ban on applications from Indian students
Darpan News Desk IANS, 20 Apr, 2023 11:36 AM
New Delhi, April 20 (IANS) Australia's University of Wollongong (UOW) said on Thursday that it has not placed any ban or restriction on applications from Indian students, nor on students from any specific Indian states or regions.
It was reported that UOW was one of the five universities that had placed ban or restriction on students from some Indian states in response to a surge in fraudulent applications seeking to work, and not study, in the country.
The UOW said in a statement that it "does not have any restrictions on student applications from India other than the standard entry criteria we apply to all international students and the requirements of the Australian Department of Home Affairs".
Instead of introducing restrictions, UOW said it has streamlined its application process for all international students, including Indian students, to speed up the turnaround time on their applications.
An investigation by the Australian media said that these universities are making it tough to enrol students from states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, as they suspect their prime purpose is to take up jobs rather than study.
Australian newspapers reported that UOW has been putting students from the Indian subcontinent and some other countries like Lebanon, Nigeria, etc. through a "genuine temporary entrant" test.
"Like all Australian universities, UOW has rigorous entry criteria for all students. All Australian universities are required to guard against fraudulent applications," the university statement said, adding that UOW works hard to ensure that the "admissions process is fair and just and accessible to all students".
The University said that it monitors trends in enrolment fraud, regularly reviews processes, and works closely with the Department of Home Affairs to ensure international student applications are genuine.
Australia is reportedly set to enrol the highest number of Indian students ever, surpassing the previous high of 75,000 in 2019.
This has raised questions from lawmakers and the education community about "the integrity of Australia's immigration system and the long-term effects on the country's valuable international education market", according to The Sydney Morning Herald.
"Our overall visa refusal rate over the past 12 months is low, with only a tiny amount relating to refusal based on fraud (the lowest of the possible Department of Home Affairs reporting bands)," UOW said.
UOW has research and education collaborations with close to 30 Indian universities, and it attracts significant number of Indian students to both their Wollongong Campus and the University of Wollongong in Dubai.
As of 2023, more than 2,500 Indian students are enrolled at UOW in Australia, with business, engineering and information sciences the most popular degrees.
Last year, UOW had launched the Vice-Chancellor's Leadership Scholarship-India, which provides recipients with generous financial assistance, leadership training, dedicated academic support, community networking, and global mobility opportunities.
The other universities mentioned by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald report included Victoria University, Edith Cowan University, Torrens University, and agents working for Southern Cross University.
According to The Herald, the Edith Cowan University in Perth "placed an outright ban" on applicants from Punjab and Haryana in February, and in March, "Victoria University increased restrictions on student applications from eight Indian states", including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Monkeypox infection is not showing signs of slowing down and is on track to hit 100,000 cases by August as per an earlier forecast, top US epidemiologist and health economist Eric Feigl-Ding warned. About 60 countries have to date reportedly confirmed more than 11,500 cases of the viral disease.
She was found unconscious near a staircase in the home, the people said. The people could not discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. The medical examiner’s office will determine an official cause of death.
Penny Mordaunt, a former Defence Secretary, came second with 67 votes. Third was Liz Truss, Foreign Secretary, securing 50 votes. Attorney General Suella Fernandes Braverman, who is of Goan Indian descent, scraped through with 32 votes.
La Habra is a city in the northwestern corner of Orange County. The La Habra Police Department said in a press release that their officers responded at about 4:55 a.m. to a robbery at a 7-Eleven store, Xinhua news agency reported.
The former Chancellor again batted away calls for tax cuts before inflation is under control, saying "we need to have a grown up conversation". At the event in Westminster, he also heaped praise on Boris Johnson, describing him as "one of the most remarkable people I have ever met" who has a "good heart" - but it was "not working" any more.
The vacancy was created when the incumbent Boris Johnson lost the confidence of his party MPs after a series of scandals, and resigned on Thursday. 11 candidate have since thrown their hats into the ring. Among them, Sunak, who chancellor of the exchequer before he resigned last Tuesday, and Suella Fernandes Braverman, who is of Goan descent and is still serving as caretaker attorney general.
