Indian students urge Australian Unis to lift recruitment ban from North India
The move comes at a time when the rejection rate of Indian applicants across all Australian universities has reached its highest level in a decade. , Officer
MumbaiTwo more Australian universities have reportedly barred students from Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh as well as Jammu and Kashmir from enrolling in response to fresh concerns over a rise in fake visa applications, according to a media report.
Federation University in Victoria and Western Sydney University in New South Wales last week directed education agents not to enroll students from Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh as well as Jammu and Kashmir.
The move comes as the rejection rate for Indian applicants to all Australian universities soared to its highest level in a decade, with one in four applications now being classified as “fraudulent” or “non-existent” by the Department of Home Affairs, Sydney. believed to be “real”. Morning Herald reports.
Indian students and agents have called on Australian universities to revoke the decision to suspend recruitment from regions in northern India, saying the move borders on discrimination.
According to Deepali Sajnani, Australia’s Destination Manager at Search Education, most parts of Punjab and Haryana are the worst affected.
“I understand that profiles coming from these areas are mostly non genuine but then it is biased with minimum % genuine students who may belong to Faridabad or Noida or Gurgaon or any other posh area which fortunately or unfortunately come from restricted areas come in,” adds Sajnani.
Sajnani argues that the Australian government should increase the level of scrutiny of these sectors and choose the best of the best rather than banning these sectors altogether.
A student from Uttar Pradesh, who does not want to reveal his real name fearing visa implications, said he is devastated and is now researching alternative foreign educational venues.
His Australian dream came crashing down earlier this month when he was rejected. He tells FPJ, “I have a good academic record, but still, I got rejected because the officials think I am not a genuine applicant.”
Australian universities, including Victoria University, Edith Cowan University, Torrance University and Southern Cross University, last month banned or banned students from some Indian states, in response to a rise in fake applications seeking employment rather than study in the country. ,
Another applicant, Lavish Sharma from Haryana, who submitted an application to a university in Australia, is still waiting for his offer letter.
“I appreciate that Australia needs qualified and honest applicants to its universities, but banning an entire sector because of a few cases could have a significant negative impact on serious applicants,” Sharma said.
Sharma says that due to the rise of agents and bogus applications, it is becoming increasingly difficult for universities to differentiate between bogus and legitimate applications.
According to a Mumbai-based consultant, “Such ad hoc decisions discourage not only students but also agents. It can damage the excellent reputation of Australian education in the Indian student community.”
“Most universities should be protecting themselves, but they need to recognize that these actions inadvertently harm genuine students just because they are from specific regions of India, as this is discriminatory,” the advisory said.
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