Facts about studying in Australia

Studying in Australia is a fantastic way to further your education and boost your career prospects.

Australia is the third most popular international student destination in the world.

We might be a small country of 24.5 million people but we’re world leaders in education. Australia is soon expected to take over the UK as the world’s second most popular study destination, just behind the US, according to the University College of London’s Centre for Global Higher Education.

Australia is currently home to nearly 700,000 international students.

That’s an 11% increase in international student numbers from 2017. Our high-quality education, easy access to student support services, multicultural society and fantastic lifestyle make Australia an attractive study destination.

We have six of the world’s top 100 universities.

Our education institutions may be relatively young compared with universities such as the UK’s Oxford or the US’s Harvard but they are up there with the best. The University of Melbourne, Australian National University, University of Sydney, University of Queensland, University of New South Wales and Monash University were all ranked in the top 100 universities in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2020.

We have one of the best higher education systems in the world.

Australia has an outstanding higher education system. With over 22,000 courses across 1,100 institutions, our system is ranked 8th in the Universitas 2019 U21 Ranking of National Higher Education Systems, higher than France, Germany, Norway and Japan.

10 facts about Australia

An emphasis on student experience and graduate outcomes.

International students report almost 90% satisfaction scores for their living and study experience in Australia according to the 2018 Department of Education International Student Survey.

Seven of the best student cities in the world are in Australia.

We already knew our cities were great places to live and study but now it’s official! According to QS Best Student Cities 2019, almost all of our major cities – Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide, Perth and the Gold Coast – are in the world’s top 100 student cities.

The Australian Government has invested over A$300 million in scholarships for international students.

Australia offered over 3,000 Australia Awards scholarships and short courses to students from over 55 countries in 2019. You could be eligible for one in 2020.

Our universities rank in the world’s top 50 in a huge range of study areas.

Australia provides world-leading education in many study areas. The Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2020 rated our institutions highly in the following fields:

  • Arts & Humanities
  • Clinical, Pre-Clinical & Health
  • Engineering & Technology
  • Life Sciences
  • Physical Sciences
  • Social Sciences

We have over 2.5 million international alumni making a global difference.

Over the past 50 years, 2.5 million international students have graduated from Australian educational institutions, according to the International Education Association of Australia. These graduates are now part of a global alumni network that is making an impact around the world.

Our universities have produced 15 Nobel laureates.

From the 1945 prize for the discovery of penicillin to the most recent prize in 2017 for the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Australian graduates are high achievers. 

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