Jon Aizlewood

Considerably more Americans are studying in China than previously thought, according to a new study from the Institute of International Education. It also claims the US is likely to meet its goal to send 100,000 students to China in four years by 2014, despite fears to the contrary.

Student visa holders in Australia have been tricked into paying large penalty fines to offshore accounts for unlawfully working beyond their visa conditions. DIAC issued a warning to international students to be aware of individuals impersonating their officers; with more than 300,000 student visa holders in the country at risk, it is taking the scam "seriously".

A new university ranking system aimed to provide a more realistic and user-friendly guide to higher education institutions – and challenge the hegemony of today's leading rankings – was launched by the European Union in Dublin last week. 500 universities from across Europe and the world are expected to take part.

Malaysia has announced a two year moratorium on new private tertiary institutions with the aim to raise its status as an educational hub. "Highly rated" foreign campuses are exempt from the freeze. Currently there are 414 private colleges in the country - a figure Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin considers too high.

ISIS Education, based in London, UK, has expanded its operations into North America by acquiring Vancouver Maple Leaf College Inc, which operates two English language schools in Canada under the Eurocentres brand.

Presenting new opportunities for foreign providers, the ELT market in India is set to nearly double by 2015 according to a report by The British High Commission in New Delhi. The vocational training (VET) segment of the market has the most potential, the report claims, as the government endeavours to up-skill the labour market.

There are certainly not high volumes coming to Australia. The university is looking at doing things very differently now. Not necessarily by cutting things, but we can’t just rely on going to exhibitions like we did over the past 10 years

The White House and Senate are reaching common ground on the issue of post-study work rights for foreign students. A week after his second inauguration, US President Barack Obama outlined plans to fast-track green cards for skilled science graduates of US universities, with a bipartisan group of senators unveiling similar proposals days earlier.

According to its Bureau of Immigration (BI), the Philippines welcomed 14% more foreign students in 2012 than the previous year, reflecting the country’s rapid rise as an affordable study destination. The bureau’s student desk approved 47,478 applications for student visas and permits, up from 41,443 in 2011.

International applications to UK universities rose 9.6% by the January deadline, UCAS revealed today, defying fears that tougher visa policies are damaging the country's appeal as a study destination. Observers welcomed the growth but cautioned that new interviews of students by border officials this year could harm final enrolments.