The 10 most-read StudyTravel news stories of 2024

1. Canada confirms study permit cap and Post-Graduation Work Permit changes (published 22/01/24): “Cap” was, unfortunately, a buzzword for the international education sector in 2024, so it comes as no great surprise that this was our most-read story of the year. After a 2023 in which the sector was getting back on its feet, and in some instances surpassing pre-Covid numbers, governments around the world took it in turns to introduce restrictions on student visas. There were rumors and smaller measures at the end of 2023, but Minister Miller’s confirmation of caps for post-secondary study below master’s level and changes to post-study work came as a thunderbolt, especially from a country that had rightly earned a global reputation as a welcoming and open study destination.

Our follow-up story a few days later on the reaction from the sector was also one of the most-read stories of the year. Minister Miller has subsequently confirmed that the cap will be further reduced in 2025 and will be expanded to include master’s programs.

Stories about changes to Canada’s International Student Program were the most read of 2024.

2. Canada planning to reduce post-study work permits and link to skill shortages (published 10/06/24). You might see a theme emerging here! With the cap announcement above in January, Minister Miller confirmed one major change to Post-Graduate Work Permit eligibility – that students at public-private colleges would no longer be eligible – and foreshadowed that more changes would be coming. In June, he announced that students at public colleges would only be eligible if their program is linked to areas of labour shortages. Further detail on exactly which programs would be eligible was later published in October. College associations and provinces have argued that a national top-down approach to skills shortages is clumsy and cannot allow colleges to be agile in serving their local community needs. For the public-private colleges, meanwhile, the Minister pulled a rather unkind trick by moving forward the end of eligibility from September to May at short notice.

3. Australia: visa denials, new rules and withdrawn offers cause chaos for sector (published 22/02/24): It was inevitable that Australia would come next in our list of most-read stories. For our friends down under, it has been a battering year as the government shifted from begging students to come and help fill labor shortages to doing its best to stop them coming at all. There was utter confusion earlier in the year as visa denials spiked, following the implementation of Ministerial Direction 107 to guide processing priorities at the end of the previous year. Schools, agents and associations told us, with dismay, about what was happening in this story.

4.  Australia’s international education sector pushes back against government reforms (published 08/08/24): What followed number three above was frankly a mess. The government introduced a Bill that would allow the Minister to cap new student enrolments, as well as several other measures that would impact the sector. Before the legislation has been debated in the Senate, the government told providers what their indicative caps would be for 2025, which led to job losses and universities implementing waiting lists. In our fourth-most read story of the year, we detailed how the sector pushed back against and criticized the Bill in representations to the Senate Inquiry.

That legislation ultimately failed when the main opposition Coalition said they would vote against the measures, and the Minister responded by saying Ministerial Direction 107 would remain in place. It felt like an awful lot of anguish and time spent for nothing. At the time of writing, there were rumors of changes to MD107. Hopefully, the new year will bring a more rational and collaborative approach to international education policy in Australia and beyond.

5. reasons given for the changes announced in the top two stories above was pressure on housing supply and prices. Whether that policy was justified or not, this data showed that Canada had more than one million study permit holders by the end of 2023 – a 29 per cent increase over the previous year – and may have spooked the government in action. Another way of looking at this, of course, is the immense economic contribution that these students are bringing to the Canadian economy, which many of them will go on to work in or even become employers themselves ultimately, not to mention the cultural benefits they bring to campuses and communities. Following the implementation of caps, colleges and universities have cited falling enrolments, and it seems likely that Canada will slip back below this landmark total when the headcount is done at the end of this year.

Changes to student visas dominated the news coverage in 2024.

6.  UK planning for new English language testing system for visas (published 03/09/24): The UK Home Office dropped a surprise on the sector when it published a tender notice for the new Home Office English Language Test, planning to “move away from a concession model and contract directly with suppliers”. Currently, English language tests required for a visa need to be with a UKVI approved SELT exam – of which there are five providers – while universities can assess applicants as they see fit. It may be that that the Home Office wants to centrally control the language skills of all visa holders, but the full details are not yet known. It certainly represents a shake-up of the language testing market in the UK.

7.  USA presidential election: potential impact on international education (published 24/10/24): In the final days of the presidential election campaign, I published this piece looking at the manifestos, campaign pledges and previous policies of the Trump and Harris to gauge what impact the result would have on the sector. It is fair to say that the thing the sector might be most fearful of is another travel ban when Trump takes office, and it was a manifesto commitment from his team, along with deportations for any students involved in pro-Gaza protests.

A curveball, however, was an assertion during the campaign from Trump that international students should receive green cards. This was made during a podcast with Silicon Valley investors keen to recruit more international talent, and it was followed by a series of caveats from the Trump team of only “the most thoroughly vetted candidates” and the “most aggressive vetting process in US history”. Nonetheless, the Green Card pledge certainly represented a change of tone from the first Trump administration. The industry waits to see what will happen after January 20th.

8.  StudyTravel Star Awards 2024 winners announced (published 01/09/24): Let’s face it, there has been a bit of misery in some of the above, so time for a bit of glitz and glamour and a much-needed celebration of excellence in our industry. The StudyTravel Star Awards 2024 were all of that and more, and once again congratulations to all of the winners and the finalists – it really is a significant achievement to be endorsed in such numbers by your partner agencies and schools. Special mention for Apollo Language Centre | Ireland , which won the ST Leading Star award for the first time, and the four new entrants into the StudyTravel Super Star Hall of Fame for winning their categories for a fifth time: Language Kingdom (ST Star Agency Western Europe), Londonist DMC (ST Star Service Provider), UED – The Association of International Edu (ST Star Agency Association) and Wintech  (ST Star Agency Asia).

9.  Bell unveils new summer location and dual-center course (published 08/02/24): In a typical year, there are a few announcements by established providers that make it into our top ten list. Such stories remain resolutely well read but have been crowded out by the steady stream of government policy announcements affecting the sector. However, story on a new summer location and options of a split-location summer program from Bell made it through! Bell celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2024, and in this special interview with CEO Roy O’Shaughnessy, we looked back at the fascinating history and development of the company and its charitable Bell Foundation, as well as more recent developments and plans moving forward.

The winners of the StudyTravel Star Awards 2024.

10 – Sector concerned as UK imposes VAT on independent school fees (published 06/08/24): Back to the politics I’m afraid! This wide-ranging article published in August gauged opinion from agents in key source markets and sector stakeholders in the UK about the impact of the imposition of VAT on independent school fees. In July, a new Labor government was elected, and such a move had been a long-standing policy for them. The fees were confirmed in the government’s budget in October, and in early November the Independent Schools’ Council, the umbrella organization representing the sector, said it was planning legal action, citing the Human Rights Act and European Convention on Human Rights.

It promises to be a bumpy few months for the sector as schools consider whether to implement 20 per cent on top of regular fees, reduce their own base fees to absorb the increases, or look at other options. Some schools, fearful of domestic losses, may increasingly turn to international markets. Watch this space for more updates as all this unfolds.

Bubbling under the Top 10…

As with the US presidential election story mentioned above, our story on the UK general election and the policies that might follow (including the VAT in number 10) proved a popular read. At least in terms of higher education, the new government has promised a more settled visa regime and welcoming atmosphere for international students, which is to be applauded. But notably it has ruled out repealing the previous government’s policy to stop master’s bringing dependents, which has seen student visa grants drop significantly.

A couple of policy tweaks and updates from the USA were well read, including updated guidance on visa interview waivers for student visa applicants, and USCIS updates on residency and Optional Practical Training eligibility.

Canada and Australia were, sadly, not the only destinations eyeing restrictions on international students. The Netherlands has been pursuing such a policy for well over a year now, with plans to restrict numbers and curtail English language programs. This led to universities proposing their own measures to limit intakes. Further announcements are due soon.

On the plus side, Germany took advantage of competitors doubts to increase work rights for international students. An announcement on a new internationalization strategy between the federal and state governments to boost recruitment and retention of international students was our most-commented-on story of the year!

As well as Bell mentioned above, there were several stories of providers expanding into the summer sector or of those already working in that space growing their presence. One of those jumping in was Ireland-based The Linguaviva Centre, and that proved one of most popular stories of the year.