Trends and opportunities
The market
Italian student enrolments in Australia have continued to increase over the past five years across all educational sectors. The number of Italians travelling to Australia to study is often highly underestimated due to the fact that students attending short-term courses (eg. English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students - ELICOS, in particular) often travel on tourist visas. The European summer holiday months of July and August are popular times for Italians to travel for ELICOS courses.
Demand for studying abroad is expected to continue to grow due to the following factors:
- Employment opportunities in Italy are highly competitive and Italian students recognise the need to enhance their skills in order to improve their chances of securing professional employment.
- English language and computer literacy are regarded as key requirements in finding a job.
- Australia's profile has risen dramatically in recent years and continues to be perceived as a safe and friendly country.
- Italians are attaching growing importance to international study and there is wider recognition by both the Italian Government and businesses of overseas study experience.
- Exchange programs between Italian and foreign universities continue to be popular and foster student mobility.
Despite the bilateral relations developed between Italy and Australia for mutual recognition of higher education qualifications, titles obtained in Australia do not always translate into comparable qualifications recognised across the board in Italy. In many instances, recognition needs to be negotiated on a case-by-case basis between institutions and this can inhibit Italian students from travelling to Australia for study purposes.
The job market is very competitive and Italian students are increasingly prepared to spend some time studying abroad in order to improve their chances. At the same time, the Italian labour market has areas (such as the environmental sector, ICT and social services) where skilled people are hard to find and more specialisation is needed.
In Italy there has previously been no equivalent to vocational education, which has generally been state-funded, free to students and low profile. This explains why the majority of Italian students wishing to continue their studies tend to enrol in universities.
The Italian Government is, however, endeavouring to revamp vocational studies. While Italian students have traditionally undertaken degree courses due to the non-existence of viable alternatives, students often emerge from university with qualifications that bear little relevance to the job they finally secure.
Shorter, more practical courses provide students with specific job-related skills that help set them apart from their university counterparts and thus create diversity in the labour market.
The Italian education system has been restructured as follows:
- Kindergarten (three to six years)
- Primary school (six to 11 years)
- Secondary school (11 to 14 years)
- Senior secondary school (14 to 19 years)
One of the most important changes introduced as part of the restructure is the possibility to select, at the age of 14, either theoretically-based studies or a more practical vocational stream.
Online courses
The number of Italian's connected to the Internet continues to grow. Students seeking to study in an English language environment generally have some proficiency in English and it is quite common for them to seek information and enrol directly online.
Online courses are also growing in awareness and popularity, with many universities continuing to expand their online course offering.
Opportunities
Educational opportunities in Italy exist in the following areas:
- ELICOS programs: Italians generally have a lower level of English language skills than those from other Western European countries and therefore demand for English language courses remains high. The Working Holiday Maker visa agreement, which commenced in January 2004, has created additional opportunities for Italians to work and study in Australia. The demand for study programs linked with work experience and/or internship opportunities is also increasing.
- Higher education, especially at postgraduate level - Law, Engineering, Business and Marketing are the most popular areas.
- High school programs, study-abroad experience is recognised by the Italian Government.
- Opportunities for specialist training and courses should increase in the future as a result of the endeavours by the Italian Government to upgrade the quality and appeal of vocational education programs.
Competitive environment
Italian students often travel to improve their English language skills, however markets with closer proximity to Italy such as the UK, Ireland and Malta provide strong competition for Australian institutions. |