A big draw in any language
Our ailing economy could benefit from foreign students
All smiles: foreign students enjoying a break at Griffith College, Dublin
Attracting thousands more foreign students to Ireland could help to boost our ailing economy.
With Ireland one of only two English-speaking countries in the EU, key figures in education have suggested that the language should be one of our greatest economic resources. But we have so far failed to exploit it.
The potential of international education as an economic moneyspinner is shown by its importance in Australia and Britain.
Last year, the Melbourne Age newspaper reported that education had replaced tourism as Australia's top services export.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that education exports were worth €6bn in 2007.
Almost half of the students were staying in universities, while the fastest areas of growth were in the vocational training and English language sectors. The top five countries for students studying in Australia were China, India, South Korea, Malaysia and Hong Kong.
Those who work in the area believe Britain is beating us hands down when it comes to attracting students from abroad.
Britain is now one of the world's most sought-after locations for third-level students. Over 300,000 international students are enrolled in the UK and spend some €5bn a year.
The British Council sees international education as a major growth business for the United Kingdom and estimates it will almost triple by 2020.
The revenue potential of education for the economy is demonstrated by the work of Griffith College, which currently has 2000 overseas students in Dublin.
Each student pays fees of around €8000, and the college estimates they spend another €10,000 every year on other expenses, like accommodation.
"In Griffith College we estimate that the foreign students are bringing in around €36m,'' says the college's international director, Leo O'Brien.
Third-level education is currently promoted abroad by Enterprise Ireland, while Failte Ireland promotes English language teaching. There is also the International Education Board of Ireland.
In 2004, the Government announced that it would set up Education Ireland on a statutory basis to promote the country as a destination for foreign students. But there is annoyance and anger in the sector over a recent Government decision to scrap the idea, leaving existing provision on an ad hoc and piecemeal basis.
Even without a concerted Government effort to promote Ireland's educational resources, the sector already brings in substantial revenue.
Third-level colleges are taking in approximately €250m in fees from international students -- and a further €150m to 200m is spent off-campus by these students. Revenue from the English language sector is estimated at around €500m.
Leo O'Brien of Griffith College says the Government is not doing enough to promote Ireland as an education centre.
"There needs to be much more co-ordination. The competition is growing. Unfortunately the horses have left the gates and Ireland has been left standing.''
Leo O'Brien says Irish embassies in foreign countries could do a lot more to promote education in Ireland.
"This could become one of their responsibilities. They are not over-stretched at the moment, and could be acting as cultural ambassadors.''
Dr Ed Walsh, former president of the University of Limerick, recently suggested that the benefits of international education do not just come in immediate financial gains.
"There are also significant long-term commercial and diplomatic benefits: many students who come to study are likely to rise to leadership positions after returning to their own countries,'' he said.
"A good 'study abroad' experience can lead to a range of longer-term indirect benefits, from trade and tourism to the creation of useful international networks,'' Dr Walsh explained.
One former civil servant with experience in the field of international education said: "The international education industry is more competitive than ever and our competitor countries are far better organised, financed and co-ordinated than we are.''
Ireland's image as an education centre has been tarnished by a few cowboy colleges, which provide little education, but are used as a device for students from outside the EU to gain visas. While cowboy colleges are used by students to gain entry, legitimate learners who are trying to come here find their visa applications strangled in red tape.
The former civil servant said the development of a Quality Mark for colleges would help to speed up visa approvals for students in approved institutions and eliminate colleges and schools with suspect standards.
This would help to cut down the number of "brass plate'' colleges that have tarnished Ireland's reputation in the past.
Irish third-level colleges do not just have potential to bring in revenue through their institutions here.
They could also expand overseas and set up satellite colleges there.
Senator Fergal Quinn has argued that there is an enormous market for English language education throughout the world..
He recently suggested that universities such as UCD and Trinity College could set up new campuses in places such as Shanghai and the United Arab Emirates.
- Kim Bielenberg
