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Australia September 28, 2011 – Just recently, the Knight’s Strategic Review of the Australian Student Visa Program 2011 was released.

Last September 22, 2011, Minister Chris Bowen MP, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, and Senator Chris Evans, the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations, has released Mr. Knight’s report — the Strategic Review of the Student Visa Program 2011.

In December 2010, the Australian government had appointed the Hon Michael Knight AO — the former NSW Labor MP and the former Minister for the Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games — to conduct the first strategic review of the student visa program to help enhance the quality, integrity and competitiveness of the student visa program.

The Strategic Review of the Student Visa Program is an independent strategic Review of Australia student visa program. It is aimed to enhance the quality, integrity and competitiveness of Australia’s international education sector, as well strengthen the integrity of the Student visa program.

Mr. Knight’s terms of reference is to assess and evaluate at how the student visa program can best support Australia’s international education sector while at the same time preserving the integrity of Australia migration program.

On March 7, 2011, Hon. Knight released a discussion paper and encouraged interested parties to make a written submission to the review. The DIAC received 200 submissions and they are available on the department’s website.

The Review has taken into account the following key considerations:

• student visa programs in comparable countries

• relevant reviews and inquiries

• global trends in the international education market

• the objectives of Australia’s demand-driven Skilled Migration program

• best practice data management, exchange and analysis, with regard to privacy principles

Reported by Mr. Knight on the 30th of June 2011 and was released by the Australian government on the 22nd of September 2011, the Strategic Review of the Student Visa Program 2011 reported to the government with 41 recommendations.

In response to the report, the Australian recently announced that it will accept all 41 of its recommendations, with the implementation of the majority of the proposals to be done through 2011-2013 so that key recommendations can come into effect before second semester 2012.

source:
articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com