Australian universities woo students from India

Promising quality education and bright job prospects, 18 educational institutes from Australia are touring six cities of India as part of an “education fair”.

According to Tom Calder, trade commissioner of the Australian Trade Commission, eight Australian universities were ranked among the top 100 in the world in 2011.

“We also have lower unemployment rates compared to the United States or the United Kingdom. An Indian student with an Australian qualification will easily get employed there,” Calder told IANS here.

“The universities also offer job assistance,” he said.

He said tuition fees in the universities were between Australian $14,000 (over Rs.eight lakh) to $35,000 (over Rs.20 lakh) per year for under-graduate courses and between Australian $15,000 and $36,000 per year for post-graduate courses.

Apart from the generic courses in science, management and commerce, Australian universities also offered mining, oil and gas, water and sports management courses, he said.

“However, at present, engineering and science courses at the post-graduate level remain the favourite among Indian students,” he said.

On the racial attacks on Indian students in Australia, Calder said the country was much safer now, adding that such incidents could take place anywhere in the world.

“Local authorities have stepped up efforts and Australian people are much more aware of people of different ethnic backgrounds around them,” he said.