International Students Will Return to Pre-COVID Levels Next Year: Australian Education Minister

Students walk around Sydney University in Sydney, Australia, on April 6, 2016. Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

The Australian government has forecasted that the number of international students starting a university degree in the country will return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2023.

During a speech at the Universities Australia gala dinner on Feb. 23, Education Minister Jason Clare provided an update on international students, saying they were coming back to Australia.

“The number of international students starting a degree over the past year is up 38 percent on what it was the previous year,” he said.

“We now estimate that by the end of this year, it’s likely we will be back to the same number of international students starting a degree as there were before the pandemic.”

The minister said a big part of the change was due to increased efficiency in visa processing after the government put on a lot of extra immigration staff.

“The number of students waiting for a visa has been cut by more than half in the past seven months,” he said.

“The average waiting time for a visa has been slashed from 40 days to 12.”

Australian Education Minister Jason Clare speaks during the Universities Australia Conference dinner at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on Feb. 22, 2023. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

Clare also noted that students from some countries were returning to Australia faster than others.

While the number of Indian students starting a degree surged by 160 percent in 2022, there was a drop in the number of Chinese students.