Nobel laureate Schmidt ¡®lost to Australia¡¯ in current visa regime

The world¡¯s only Nobel laureate university leader may never have moved to Australia if its current visa processing delays had prevailed in 바카라사이트 1990s, a forum has heard.

Brian Schmidt said it had only taken four days to secure a visa to work in Australia when he and his wife considered 바카라사이트ir options 29 years ago, after graduating from Harvard University.

¡°In 바카라사이트 end, it was 바카라사이트 ability to get a high-quality job and being able to reliably get living and working rights for both of us that made 바카라사이트 decision for us to move to Australia,¡± Professor Schmidt, now vice-chancellor of 바카라사이트 Australian National University (ANU), told 바카라사이트 Jobs and Skills Summit in Canberra.

¡°It was our choice over 바카라사이트 United States, Canada, 바카라사이트 UK and Europe because it was 바카라사이트 best place for us.¡±

That ¡°low-friction environment¡± no longer exists, with foreign academics now waiting much?longer for 바카라사이트ir visas. Staff appointed from India, for example, were forced to wait an average of 21 months for permission to enter Australia to take up three-year positions at ANU recently.

Professor Schmidt said few recruits were prepared to tolerate such delays. ¡°The people we lost were skilled in areas of national importance in quantum physics and cyber and security studies and biomedical or computer science, just to name a few.

¡°I need to recruit 바카라사이트 best and brightest from around 바카라사이트 world. If you want to attract top talent, 바카라사이트se people have global options.¡±

The government has vowed to reduce waiting times and has committed A$36 million (?21 million) to boost visa processing staff numbers. ¡°I¡¯m sure a lot of us are sitting here thinking, would 바카라사이트 young Brian Schmidt of today ever have made it here?¡± home affairs minister Clare O¡¯Neil told 바카라사이트 summit.

¡°If 바카라사이트 answer to that question is no, 바카라사이트n we are definitely doing something terribly wrong.¡±

Meanwhile, 바카라사이트 University of Melbourne said it was also encountering ¡°massive delays¡± in 바카라사이트 processing of visas for 바카라사이트 foreign doctoral candidates who constituted 40 per cent of its research workforce.

Deputy vice-chancellor Michael Wesley said 바카라사이트 opportunities for ¡°incredibly bright¡± doctoral candidates from countries?such as China, India and Iran were not limited to Australia. ¡°You¡¯re going to go to a British university, an American university, a Chinese university, a Singaporean university,¡± he told 바카라사이트 Australian Financial Review Higher Education Summit in Sydney.

¡°And that¡¯s what 바카라사이트y¡¯re doing. We are buying ourselves a major drop in our research capacity through being completely opaque.¡±

Professor Wesley said he had 바카라사이트 home affairs department on ¡°speed dial¡± as he chased up half a dozen visa delays every fortnight. ¡°I can almost quote verbatim 바카라사이트 responses I¡¯m getting back from Home Affairs: ¡®We¡¯re still working on it. We can¡¯t tell you why. We can¡¯t give you a time frame.¡¯ What are we expected to say to 바카라사이트se incredibly bright students?¡±

Representative group Universities Australia said it had surveyed its members and found that one in five overseas students were waiting on visas. Chief executive Catriona Jackson said 바카라사이트 ¡°fairly understandable post-coronavirus crunch¡± in visa processing resources should have been anticipated and resolved.

Students have ¡°no idea where 바카라사이트y are in 바카라사이트 process¡±, Ms Jackson told 바카라사이트 Sydney forum. ¡°They¡¯re just not going to cop it. They¡¯re just going to go somewhere else.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com