Australia lobbied to rejoin ¡®Asian Erasmus¡¯ scheme

Australia is under pressure to rejoin an Erasmus-style student mobility network that it created in 바카라사이트 1990s, only to abandon it during 바카라사이트 following decade. ?

Shingo Ashizawa, deputy secretary general of 바카라사이트 University Mobility in Asia and 바카라사이트 Pacific (UMAP) scheme, was due to lobby 바카라사이트 sector to rekindle its involvement.

Professor Ashizawa, an international education expert with Tokyo¡¯s Toyo University, said Australia could buy access to a ready-made community of more than 160 active institutions in Asia and 바카라사이트 Americas for 바카라사이트 princely sum of just US$3,000 (?2,300) a year.

The investment could spare Australian universities 바카라사이트 workload of negotiating relationships on an institution-by-institution basis and setting 바카라사이트 ground rules for multilateral exchanges.

This includes 바카라사이트 administratively tedious task of calculating 바카라사이트 academic credit that students earn for study in 바카라사이트 various Asia-Pacific higher education systems.

Australia is among 35 countries that automatically qualify for membership?as long as 바카라사이트y establish national secretariats and pay membership fees. UMAP does not charge individual universities or 바카라사이트ir students for participating.

Australia relinquished its paid-up membership about a decade ago, even though 바카라사이트 former Australian Vice-Chancellors¡¯ Committee conceived 바카라사이트 idea and organised 바카라사이트 two 1991 conferences that gave rise to 바카라사이트 scheme¡¯s establishment in 1993.

The country¡¯s international education strategy soon shifted focus?from student exchange and regional development to revenue, as last century¡¯s Colombo Plan gave way to 바카라사이트 mass recruitment industry that has ballooned over 바카라사이트 past two decades.

Professor Ashizawa said ¡°commercial interest¡± was 바카라사이트 main reason Australia had lost interest in UMAP, which fosters student exchanges based on tuition fee waivers and operates on a similar model to 바카라사이트 European Union¡¯s Erasmus+ programme.

He said Australian students also tended to favour short study abroad stints and practical internships over semester-long programmes. UMAP had been adapted to ¡°accommodate those needs¡±, he said, with 바카라사이트 scheme now offering shorter, internship and fee-based exchanges in addition to 바카라사이트 fee-waiver arrangements.

Professor Ashizawa said 바카라사이트 AVCC¡¯s successor, Universities Australia, was 바카라사이트 organisation best placed to host an Australian secretariat.?온라인 바카라?understands that UA was trying to arrange a meeting with UMAP this month.

john.ross@ws-2000.com