Ministry of Education figures released today show a 6 percent increase in international fee-paying student enrolments compared with 2008.Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce said the boost would be a boost to the economy and tertiary education sector.
Ministry of Education figures released today show a 6 percent increase in international fee-paying student enrolments compared with 2008.
Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce said the boost would be a boost to the economy and tertiary education sector.
There were a total of 93,505 international fee-paying students studying in New Zealand in 2009.
"New Zealand has the capacity to increase these numbers further and, with numbers now rising, it's also time for us to look at widening the scope of our international education activities," Mr Joyce said.
"It's essential that we maximise our opportunities in this area and that we are able to compete with other countries for international students in a sustainable way.
"International education contributes more than $2 billion to our economy each year -- continued growth will bring real benefits in terms of economic growth and the money available to allow our tertiary institutions to grow."
There was a 10 percent overall growth in revenue from international fee-paying students during 2009, totalling $664 million.
The Ministry of Education thought there would be more growth this year, based on projections of global student demand, the level of student visa approvals, and recent advice from providers.
