Study Tour Scheme: The Way West Australia Encourages Education Industry

August may be the busiest month for Edith Cowan University in Perth, West Australia. Many students coming around the world to experience short term study in this university. It can be one week, two weeks, or one month. That’s usually taken by students in Asia during their holiday. The students are ranging from Junior high to university level.

Every August, students from STIE Perbanas Surabaya, Indonesia, through their program named Auditing Student Program, visit and experience study and life in Australia. They learn English, join in several business courses, do a simple city tour, and stay with Australian family. This is the way they expose themselves to an international exposure and values.

In addition to this group, big group of Junior high school students coming from Japan also visit for 3 weeks. They enjoy more tour and learning English. They do shopping and just get fun in other country spending their Yen.

These activities, viewed from education industry development, contributes well to the hiking points in education industry. Short term scheme attracting students from Asia is evaluated as a brilliant idea of West Australia universities for several reasons:

a. Australia is quite close neighboring country to Asian countries.

b. Australia is considered to have quite good education quality.

c. Australia is considered friendly country and welcomes multi-races people.

d. Australia offers a significantly different nature and culture that people are eager to mingle.

e. Cost to Australia through short term scheme education programs is quite affordable.

This a very smart idea of West Australia Universities in encouraging the education industry, never mind other huge impacts that can be considered both by Australia and other visiting countries for other purposes.

Lindiawati

Head of International Cooperation Unit