Australia: College fraud crisis?

We have been following the story of alleged illegal activity by education and training providers in Australia.

International students are at the centre of the controversy. Sometimes they are victims - charged exorbitant fees by institutions for subject results, or for failing to submit assignments. In other instances it is alleged that students are complicit in the wrong doing, paying dishonest operators to obtain fraudulent visa credentials.

There are differing views on the extent of the problem in Australia, but it appears that pressure is mounting on the Australian Government to take decisive action on the matter - see full story

The Government seems to be trying to play down the issue. That is all very well, and it may be that the problem is not as significant as the media reports make out. Even so, if momentum in the media continues to build on this issue so will the public perception that there is a problem. Negative perceptions of the integrity of the Australian education system is something that the Government definitely does not want, especially considering that the provision of education to overseas students is the country's third largest export industry.

Australia is not alone with this problem. Coincidentally a story in the Times Online today outlines similar visa fraud problems in the UK and notes that "bogus colleges set up to help foreign workers to enter Britain illegally have long been considered the biggest loophole in British immigration controls" - see full story

It is vitally important that Governments get this kind of activity under control, both to protect international students, and to safeguard their country's international reputation as a high quality education market.