Campus Review: Students collaborate to fight changes to HELP scheme

Students collaborate to fight changes to HELP scheme

Kirstie Chlopicki, Campus Review

The National Union of Students (NUS) and the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA) has
this week launched a campaign to fight proposals to changed student loan legislation.

The Bury the Bill campaign has seen the two organisations collaborate to instigate change, for the first time
in their 44 year history.

Campus Review: New York Times gives students a voice, gets deluged

Loren Smith, Campus Review

A quick Google of the term ‘millennial’ in the ‘news’ tab yields approximately 2.31 million results. But how many of those were created by actual millennials? A safe guess would be: not many.

[…]

National President of Australia’s National Union of Students, Mark Pace, says the huge student desire for their voices to be heard might be because students’ views are often “ignored or actively silenced” in the public domain. For instance, though sexual harassment and assault of university students is taken seriously now, students have raised this as an issue for decades.

Natasha Abrahams, National President, Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA), likewise used this subject, “which student journalists and student leaders have been talking about for many years”, as an example of the silencing of students.

“The work of student activists is the only reason universities have recently been forced to admit there is a rape culture on our campuses,” Pace claims.

Another underrepresented student issue is the overworking and/or exploitation of STEM PhD students, says CAPA Media Officer, Zoë Tulip.

Media Release: Bury the Bill – Students collaborate to stop Government’s changes to HELP

13 March 2018 – Today the National Union of Students (NUS) and the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA) launch the Bury the Bill campaign to fight the proposed student loan legislation.

This is the first time in their almost forty-year history that the two organisations have united their efforts to preserve the accessibility of university education for Australians.

The student loan legislation, which is slated to be voted upon by the senate in the next few weeks, condemns lower-earning graduates to pay back their student loans when barely earning minimum wage.

The Bury the Bill campaign activates students, graduates, and future students to contact their senators and outline how this legislation will compromise access to higher education in Australia.

Natasha Abrahams, CAPA National President says:

“We need to fight to retain the HECS-HELP system that enables more Australians to access a university education and the opportunities that come from this. Under the proposed changes, highly regarded degrees which lead to lucrative careers will only be accessible to those who can afford colossal upfront payments.”

Mark Pace, NUS National President says:

“Simon Birmingham, the Scrooge of Australian Parliament, gifted universities with $2.3B in cuts last December. Now he’s seeking further budget repairs from those barely earning above minimum wage.”

“The number of graduates earning below the current repayment threshold reflects a failure of this government in providing a quality education. The solution is to adequately fund universities, not burden low income Australians with this Government’s failures in higher education.”

More information on the campaign, including how you can get involved, can be found at: http://www.capa.edu.au/bury-bill-stop-government-changes-help-debts/

END

For further comment:

NUS National President
Mark Pace
E: president@nus.asn.au
P: 0411 606 808

CAPA National President
Natasha Abrahams
E: president@capa.edu.au
P: 0430 076 993

Record rise in international student numbers announced

Brendan O’Malley, University World News

A record number of international students studied in Australia in 2017, as a result of the largest increase recorded in a single year, according to new figures.

Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham said in a statement on 7 March that the 2017 international education data showed there were more than 624,000 full-fee paying international students in Australia in 2017 on a student visa, an increase of 13% (or almost 71,000 students) across all sectors on 2016.

[…]

However, the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations or CAPA, responding to the minister’s statement, has raised concerns about the conditions in which these students support their studies, alleging that they are routinely exploited by “predatory, cash-in hand employers” who deny them workplace rights.

In November a report, Wage Theft in Australia, by the Migrant Worker Justice Initiative, the University of New South Wales and the University of Technology Sydney, found that one in four international students were paid AU$12 (US$9) per hour or less in their workplaces. This equates to less than half of the minimum wage for the roles and industries in which these students work.

In a statement on 7 March, CAPA called on Minister Birmingham to ensure international students are protected from workplace exploitation and to address the “dire employment and immigration prospects of international students” caused by tightened visa regulations and lack of interest among many Australian companies in hiring them.

Exploitation of international students must stop: CAPA

Kirstie Chlopicki, Campus Review

As universities celebrate the economic and cultural wealth associated with record numbers of international
students, others have used the news to call for an end to systemic workplace exploitation.

Following yesterday’s release of new record figures, The Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations
(CAPA) has raised concerns about the conditions in which international students are working while
supporting their studies.

Media release: CAPA responds to increase in international students with a call to end workplace exploitation

7 March 2018- The Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations (CAPA) notes the record increase in international students coming to Australia and raises concerns about the conditions in which these students support their studies.

International students are routinely exploited by dodgy employers. In November last year, this issue was exposed by the Wage Theft in Australia report written by the Migrant Worker Justice Initiative, the University of New South Wales, and the University of Technology Sydney. The report found that one quarter of international students were paid $12 per hour or less in their workplaces. This equates to less than half of minimum wage for the roles and industries in which these students work.

The 13% increase in international enrolments last year was announced by the Education Minister earlier today. This means that there are now even more students who are at risk of being severely underpaid by predatory cash-in-hand employers, who take advantage of desperate students whose workplace rights are being denied.

CAPA is furthermore concerned about the employment prospects of international students coming to Australia. Many of these students arriving are hopeful that their education will be a pathway to migration in Australia, but find that many Australian companies are not interested in hiring international students and graduates. With tightened visa regulations, international students have less opportunities to be accepted for immigration purposes. Accordingly, CAPA appreciates the pledged increased focus of The Council of International Education on work integrated learning opportunities and on the strengthening of employability outcomes for international students.

CAPA calls on the Minister for Education and Training, Simon Birmingham, to ensure that the international students he welcomes to this country are protected from workplace exploitation. We furthermore call on the Government, including the Minister for Immigration Peter Dutton and the Minister for Jobs Michaelia Cash, to work together to further address the dire employment and immigration prospects of international students. These students have contributed to the Australian economy through partaking in our tertiary education system, and seek to continue to contribute as workers.

CAPA National President Natasha Abrahams says:

“International students coming to Australia are often unaware of their rights in the workplace and as a result are exploited and underpaid in alarming numbers. It is crucial that the Government cracks down on crooked employers rather than continuing to admit record numbers of international students with little regard for their welfare.”

CAPA International Officer Florian Spalthoff says:

“International students are more likely to face problems when looking for a job after graduation. A lot of international students did not get the chance to earn relevant work experience during their studies and potential employers are sceptical of the student’s future right of residence in Australia.”

END

For comment: CAPA National President Natasha Abrahams

M: 0430 076 993

E: president@capa.edu.au

Attachment – Submission on terms of reference for post-secondary inquiry

Overview – CAPA welcomes Labor’s announcement to conduct a national inquiry into post-secondary education. We are appreciative of the opportunity to make a submission to the scope and terms of reference of the inquiry.

We make the following recommendations regarding the scope and terms of reference of the committee:
Recommendation 1: That the review investigates accessibility of postgraduate coursework degrees.
Recommendation 2: That the review investigates postgraduate research degrees, in the context of research degrees being a key component of the research training system.
Recommendation 3: That CAPA is invited on to the review panel due to our expertise on postgraduate student issues.
Recommendation 4: That NATSIPA is invited on to the review panel due to their expertise on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander postgraduate student issues.

Students as co-creators of universities #UAConf18

Kirstie Chlopicki, Campus Review

How can universities give value to students as partners, rather than as consumers?
This question formed one of the major themes of the 2018 Higher Education Conference, and not just in speaker content – it was also reflected in the inaugural inclusion of a student panel.
For the first time in the history of this Universities Australia conference series, Wednesday’s session: Employability and Curriculum Designed by the Future, featured a seminar run entirely by Gen Y representatives.
The four student leaders – National Union of Students president Mark Pace, Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations president Natasha Abrahams, Council of International Students Australia president Bjay Sapkota, and National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Postgraduate Association vice-president Sharlene Leroy-Dyer – posed as deputy vice-chancellors for the day and pitched the initiatives and policies of their fictional universities.