Needed To Retain International Medical Students Says Australian Medical Students' Association

Main Category: Medical Students / Training
Article Date: 24 Mar 2009 - 6:00 PDT

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The Australian Medical Students' Association (AMSA) applauds the Rudd Government's announcement of the "Study in Australia 2010" campaign today, but says more support is needed to retain international medical students.

International students provided $14.2 billion to the economy in 2007-2008 and so it is essential that Australia remains a "first choice" destination for students wishing to study overseas. Our Universities rely on the financial contributions of international students.

Currently 20% of the 13,000 medical students in Australia are internationals, yet the current restrictions and disincentives placed on international medical students have the potential to deter prospective international students from coming here to study.

AMSA President Tiffany Fulde said, "International students face many difficulties studying and practising in this country. I've spoken with many international medical students who would not have chosen Australia as their place of study if they knew these problems existed."

Current visa legislation heavily restricts the amount students and their spouses are allowed to work, which places a significant burden on our students who cannot both study and earn a living for their families. Expensive tuition fees for international students combined with prohibitive living expenses make supporting a single income family on 20 hours a week unrealistic.

Many Australian medical courses are now graduate degrees attracting older cohorts, many with families. These restrictions act as a deterrent and effectively punish students who want to put down roots and continue to work in Australian communities.

International students (known as Formerly Overseas Medical Students) will also be the first to miss out on internship places once they graduate. These students contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars to Australian medical schools, undertake years of study, graduate having met all Australian standards of healthcare, and then are given no guarantee that they will receive an internship in Australia.

Internship places are a necessary part of medical training, and under current allocation systems these students are the bottom of the barrel - behind overseas-trained doctors.

International students are missing out and will be discouraged from studying in Australia, because their options following graduation from an Australian medical school are restricted compared to studying overseas.

Job opportunities are further restricted by the 10 year moratorium on provider numbers which places restrictions on practice and prevents international doctors from obtaining Medicare provider numbers for a period of ten years. International students who study in Australia are subject to the same restrictions as doctors who study overseas.

This legislation means that, despite a doctor shortage, policy in this country is pushing away Australian trained students. The same policy leaves little incentive to train here, causing damage to one of the country's largest sources of income.

AMSA is also concerned that the current proposal by Health Ministers to change accreditation arrrangements for medical training under the new National Registration and Accreditation scheme could lead to loss of international recognition of Australia's excellent university medical school training and therefore create further disincentives for international students to study in Australia.

AMSA believes changes have to be made. Miss Fulde said, "It is vital that the Government recognises the contribution these students make to our economy and our education, and the potential they have in assisting us in our doctor shortage."

AMSA welcomes the focus on student welfare and support of international students, and hopes that the "Study in Australia 2010" campaign will assist international medical students studying and working in Australia.

If we do not act, Australia will lose its appeal as a place to study, and we will lose our international students.

Source
AMSA