The Australian Government has confirmed that it will publish education agent data to improve transparency and accountability in the international education sector.

In a 16 October media release, Australia’s Minister for Education, said:

Education agents are playing an increasingly larger role in the international student sector, and education providers are responsible for ensuring they are using reputable agents.

The publication of this data will help inform providers about how agents are performing and to use that information when making decisions about which agents to do business with.

This data gives providers visibility of the enrolment and visa outcomes of students recruited by their agents, as well as benchmarking performance against other agents.”

The Hon Dan Tehan MP, Minister for Education

It seems that the publication of education agent data will be phased. Initially it will be available to education agent providers, but the Department of Education advises that the Australian Government is working towards full public release of education agency data.

Report on the role of education agents in Australia

The Minister also released a report that provides detailed insight into the role of education agents in Australia’s international education market.

Key points…

  • Education agents were involved in 75% of overseas student enrolments in 2018.
  • In 2018 there were 6,878 education agencies and 19,413 agents involved in enrolments for international students at Australian insitutions.
  • Small agencies (1-10 enrolments per year) account for just 2 percent of all enrolments. Large agencies (500+ enrolments per year) were responsible for almost 70 percent of enrolments.
  • Larger agencies experience lower visa rejection rates than smaller agencies.
  • (Thanks to Sarah Kuhne from Student Success in Australia for the infographic.)

Working with education agents? Protect your institution and students.

An effective and well managed education agent strategy can deliver great results for your institution and international students.

When education agents behave badly, students are harmed and the reputation of the institution takes a hit. Our database of education agent alerts shows the damage caused when agents are unprofessional, unethical or dishonest.

We strongly recommend that you check the education agent alert database before entering into, or renewing, a contract with an education agent.

It is critical that you manage the risk effectively by implementing a best practice education agent recruitment, monitoring and management system. The protection of your institution and international students depends on it.

AgentBee offers a solution that will hugely improve your approach to education agent recruitment, monitoring and management, and save you a heap of time in the process.

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Photo by Carles Rabada on Unsplash