Adelaide urged to eradicate student divide[Newspaper]

FROM: THE AUSTRALIAN WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7 2009

LOCAL and overseas students at the University of Adelaide move in "different worlds" and something must be done urgently to bridge the divide, the universities quality agency has warned.

Adelaide had to do more to sell students on the benefit of interaction, as the attitudes of domestic and international student bodies seemed part of the problem, the Australian Universities Quality Agency says in an audit report.

AUQA praises other aspects of Adelaide's approach to internationalisation, and vice-chancellor James McWha said the agency had pointed to a challenge facing the sector and civic leaders as overseas student numbers rose.

"We are in danger of having two discrete populations of students that don't engage particularly closely with each other," he said yesterday.

Asked about the problematic attitudes of students, he said: "(Often) local students will only engage in events where alcohol is involved and some of the international (student) groups won't involve themselves with that."

Professor McWha said overseas students who arrived 20 to 30 years ago found themselves "welcomed and kind of adopted" by locals such that they could go home knowing "how Australians think and act".

"(But) as the numbers (of overseas students) have grown, that kind of engagement has become less and less (pronounced)."

Adelaide has lately experienced sharp growth in its overseas student body. Most are onshore and concentrated in two faculties. About half are from China, a proportion higher than the sector average.

In 2005 Adelaide considered capping enrolments from certain countries in particular programs, but was advised this would breach anti-discrimination law.

AUQA suggests Adelaide should look at capping enrolments of international students generally in disciplines or faculties where an imbalance in the student body affects the learning experience.

"If we're not careful, we can end up promising an Australian educational experience (yet) importing students into little ghettos of students from their own country," AUQA executive director David Woodhouse said.

Professor McWha said Adelaide hoped to do more recruiting from the Americas, Europe and the Middle East rather than resort to enrolment caps.

Survey results show "high levels" of satisfaction among overseas students at Adelaide, AUQA says. But these students are concerned about lack of work experience in some programs, and language support. AUQA says Adelaide should improve language and other support as it pursues more postgraduate students from overseas.

Although some within the university argue it should lift its English language entry standard to the level demanded by other Group of Eight universities, AUQA says the most important issue is to provide effective language support.

The report says if the university accepts the students, it should ensure they graduate with appropriate English language competence.