StudyAdelaide was established in 1998 to promote Adelaide as a destination of choice for international students to study and live and attract students to our quality education institutions, from schools to VET and higher education. More recently, StudyAdelaide has also focused on retaining international students in South Australia to live and work after they graduate.
International education is South Australia’s 2nd largest export (second only to wine) and is currently worth around $1.85 billion to the state’s economy every year. But it’s not just economic benefit that international students bring to South Australia. They provide us with valuable cultural benefits, act as ambassadors for South Australia in their home countries, help grow our trade networks and contribute their time to the local community (37% of international students actively volunteer).
Over the past two years (during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic), international education in South Australia was significantly impacted with many international students stuck offshore, unable to come to Adelaide to study.
With SA’s international borders opening back up in November 2021, international students started to return in numbers to South Australia to study, and this is having a positive impact on the state. South Australia has fared better than other states in retaining students and bringing them back from offshore to study. This is testament to how well the South Australian community looked after the students that remained in Adelaide.
In this episode, hear from Jane Johnston, Chief Executive StudyAdelaide and Janageeth Logeswaran, Sri Lanken International Student.