“Providers need to have success stories readily available to support their outcomes-based educational experience”

The Education Insights series, launched during March’s APAIE conference in Kuala Lumpur, brings together cross-sector case studies and essays looking at current and emerging trends within international education, starting with Innovation in Employability.

“Australia’s international education sector, supported by Australian governments at all levels, delivers world-leading employability initiatives for international and domestic students,” explained Austrade’s global education lead Rebecca Hall.

“This report is designed to be the start of a conversation, with the Australian education sector, about how we can continue to evolve to meet the needs of international students and global employers.”

Hall told The PIE News that employability and innovation were chosen as the series’ first topic because it was crucial to maintaining Australia’s reputation for both international and domestic students.

“Building employability skills through work integrated learning reinforces formal learning and qualifications – helping graduates to develop the broad skills, knowledge and attributes necessary for global career success,” she said.

“Opportunities to develop employability skills also enhances the overall student experience, for example by facilitating mutually beneficial interactions between international and domestic students.”

The first edition of the series includes case studies from several destination study clusters, including Study Perth, Study Sydney and Study Melbourne, as well as international alumni, including Huong Dang from KOTO, the 2019 PIEoneer’s charity partner.

The series has been welcomed by industry stakeholders, with Gretchen Dobson, president global alumni relations at Academic Assembly, saying it was an important area for educators to focus.

“Discerning prospective students will ask where alumni are working and which paths have they taken after graduation,” she told The PIE.

“Providers need to have success stories readily available to support their focus on an outcomes-based educational experience.”

Future editions of the series will focus on areas of concern for the industry, based on stakeholder engagement and feedback from Austrade’s International Education Marketing Forum.