FOLLOWING THE RECENT ATTACKS ON INDIAN STUDENTS,NISHTHA TAPOSH WONDERS WHY AUSTRALIA CAN NOT LIVE UP TO ITS IMAGE OF A MULTI-CULTURAL,GLOBAL COUNTRY

Cashing on the phoren craze of Indian students and parents alike, Ozzie land witnessed an exodus of Indian students after the lack lustre American economy experienced a series of bankruptcies. Turned down with the raised bar on US visa regulations, the till now westward bound Indian students started chanting the southward ho mantra. A melting pot of various cultures, as Australia has been known, saw its education industry prospering with their campuses dotted by Indian and Chinese students pursuing all sorts of intellectual and not-so-intellectual courses.

   However, as the recent headlines brought to light the dark side of Australian education, the flurry of fatal attacks on Indian students busted a lot of desi Australian dreams. Leaving a fierce question mark on the 'portrayed' cosmopolitan culture, friendly environs and picturesque campuses that Australia was famous for, the assaults have shaken up Indian students who admired Australia for its proximity to home, relatively simple visa formalities and most importantly, the bright permanent residency prospects.

   India is, in fact, the second largest contributor to Australia's international student numbers (following China), education services being its largest services export industry. A whopping 81,000 Indian students packed off to Australia in the last quarter (January '09 to April '09), accounting for 18.7% of total international enrolments. Assuming that each student paid an average of AU$20,000 for their course (almost 35% more than his Australian counterpart), we alone upped the Australian cash reserve by AU$1.62billion. Add to it the income generated through education related travel services sought by the students, shouldn’t the Australian government take some visibly concrete measures? Dubbing the heinous criminal instances 'opportunistic' just does not help.

   Adding another dimension to the racial issue, Sumit Kumar Bansal, an alumnus of Royal Melbourne University of Technology, currently employed as a software engineer with HCL Technologies avers "There is no dearth of desperation driven students who want to go to Australia for mere status reasons. A lot of such students, who are not IT or management geeks, enroll for short term diploma programmes and double up as cab drivers doing graveyard shifts. Ferrying locals around the city, such students face highest risk of violent attacks from drugged or drunk locals. Another set of students who are at the receiving end of such attacks are those who commute by public means of transport in wee hours of night. Dubbing all the attacks racially motivated is an exaggeration, as a lot of them are deployed by unemployed, broke Asian and African migrants who survive on government aid. However, involvement of Australians can never be completely ruled out."

   "In addition to the phenomenal number of Indian students who join vocational courses in Australia, there is another set that enrolls for high end technology and management courses. The latter set of students don’t always consider the option of permanently relocating in the Ozzie land. Bogged down by the lack of job security in Australia, students prefer coming back to India or migrate elsewhere," he adds.

   With so much brouhaha around the issue, one question that continues to baffle students is that should such instances (understanding that things got blown out of proportion) govern the educational choices they make. And if yes, to what extent? Karan Gupta, education consultant is of the opinion that such criminal instances should be strongly condemned and their seriousness should be no way underestimated. He recomends students to plan their Australian education after thinking through it well, not just because of the recent attacks, but more so because of the dearth of quality education institutions there. "If I were to rate Australia as an education destination, I would rate it sixth, with the US, the UK, Canada, Singapore and Europe leading in the order. For students who were opting for Australia because of their budget constraints, Singapore is a good substitute with its reasonable fee structure and the range of courses it offers," concludes Karan.

For students who have already planned their academic pursuits in Australia for the admission cycle lined up, Anil Verma of Canterbury Education Group gives some useful tips:

1. Always check the credentials of the agency you are seeking services of.You must evaluate it in terms of its experience and the quality of institutes it represents.

2. Always refer to the website of the desired college for qualitative details and if possible, seek favour of an acquaintance residing there.

3. before Clarify signing the refund the policy acceptance of the of college offer and paying fees.

4. Stay cautious of fly-by-night colleges that mushroom during the boom time and vanish when there is a dearth of students. A lot of small (dodgy) colleges operate from 2-3 rooms in rented premises.

5. Make smart use of networking sites like Facebook to establish contacts with students studying in the colleges you are considering for your academic pursuits. If necessary, join the online communities of those colleges and get a first hand feedback from their students.

6. Once you land where you wanted, shed inhibitions and socialise with students from different cultures and not just Indians. Make the best use of the culture cocktail you are exposed to as it will make you a well-rounded, mature individual and also help you broaden your horizons.

7. Abide by the law of the land to prevent unfortunate consequences.