Media releases

Statement from Professor Duncan Bentley, Vice-Chancellor and President of Federation University Australia

“I ask the Federal Government to note the Victorian Government’s calls to allow Federation University Australia to continue our plans to recover from COVID-19 and grow our educational offerings to aspiring learners across regional and outer metropolitan Victoria.

A social media post from the Minister for Skills and TAFE, the Hon Gayle Tierney MP, about her letter with the Treasurer, the Hon Tim Pallas MP, to the Minister for Education, the Hon Jason Clare MP, and, the Minister for Home Affairs, the Hon Tony Burke, on how recent international student visa migration decisions and policies are impacting Federation University and our role in the Victorian economy.

I thank the Allan Victorian Government’s support for Federation and acknowledgement that its campuses across regional Victoria – which includes Ballarat, Gippsland and Horsham – and their call for the Federal Government to recognise the damage these decisions could cause.

These decisions create significant risks to the educational opportunities for regional Victoria and the state’s broader economy, and impact how Victoria’s Skills Plan can be achieved to support vital industries in Gippsland and other regions within the state.

The Victorian Government’s commitment to the important role international education plays in the Victorian economy and community, and especially in the regions, must be applauded.

I am equally committed to ensuring Federation’s aspiring and current students are able to study in the communities they live in. The majority of these students are female, part-time learners with caring responsibilities, or are young people seeking higher education locally.

This is why, despite these challenges, our University is committed to continuing to roll out our Australia’s first fully Co-operative Education Model and growing our domestic program offerings to meet the critical skill shortages across regional Victoria.

Decisions trying to address student migration issues in other parts of Australia should not inadvertently impact regional Victoria. This is especially the case after Federation has invested significantly in developing a more robust and targeted international student program that meets the needs of regional Victoria.

I am hopeful that our ongoing engagement with the Federal Government to take imminent action to address student visa settings and restore certainty in international student markets into 2026 will be successful.

Without this, the impacts on regional communities and industries could be profound. There is a real risk that Federation’s proposed international student level could become meaningless in terms of promoting Federation’s recovery or role in Australia’s international education sector.

I note that these issues have been acknowledged at senior levels of the Federal Government and local Members of Parliament on all sides, in particular the Member for Ballarat, the Hon Catherine King MP, and the Member for Bruce, Mr Julian Hill MP. I thank them for their strong interest in Federation’s situation and to continuing positive engagement on these issues in the coming weeks. 

Because of these decisions, the proposed international education legislation must provide certainty for regional universities, who hold just 10,000 of the 240,000 places under the National Planning Level, so universities like Federation can grow their programs and support their local communities' workforce and skills needs.

These proposed laws should not risk pushing regional universities further into deficit, create uncertainty for regional students, or make regional investment less attractive.

Federation has seen strong demand for its domestic programs and our University should not have to choose which courses to prioritise while regional leaders are calling for more growth in skills and course offerings for local domestic students.”