A New Provider every 6 weeks

the year that made my career

I didn’t build my career as a student.  I built it in the twelve months that followed. 

I was fortunate to study at two unis in the USA in the early 2000s, Florida International University, and the University of Miami. Like every international graduate in the United States, I was eligible for Optional Practical Training: one year of work authorisation in my field of study. Without it, my visa would have expired within weeks of graduation and I would have gone home to Australia with two qualifications and no professional track record.

Instead, I spent 2006 as an adjunct professor at Virginia Tech and Radford College coaching ensembles, and teaching applied music skills and theory. It was where I learned how to apply the lessons learned through my Masters and Doctorate, established vital professional and academic connections, and got the experience that led to a tenure track position. Every role since, including founding Teton Advisory Group, traces back to that year.

The degree gave me the knowledge. OPT gave me the opportunity to use that knowledge.

Two countries, a similar (announced) position

On 7 October, the US Department of Homeland Security proposed a rule that would charge colleges $70,000 for each student’s initial OPT application and $30,000 for each renewal (Fortune/AP). DHS says the fee targets fraud and abuse, calling OPT a “pipeline for cheap foreign labor”. One immigration lawyer described it as an effort to end the program without formally eliminating it. 

The day before, Australia’s Coalition pledged to abolish the Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa, keeping it only for PhD graduates, health and education graduates, and regional students (The PIE News). The same package would cap international commencements at 240,000 a year.

This comes after the 485 application fee doubled to $4,600 in March (ABC News). In 2019 it was $1,535.

The bridge, not the loophole

Post-study work is not a side door into the labour market. It is the final stage of the education itself.

A graduate degree teaches you skills and knowledge in a field. The first job teaches you how that field works with real clients, real deadlines and real consequences. Employers know this, which is why so few hire graduates with no experience. A short, time-limited work right is what lets an international graduate cross that gap.

It also works for the host country. Graduates who stay contribute essential skills, taxes and networks. Graduates who leave become alumni and advocates, often for decades. I am one of them: my year of OPT made me a lifelong ambassador for American higher education.

There are fair concerns about integrity, and no one should defend fraud. But a US$70,000 fee per student, or abolishing a visa outright, does not target misuse. It removes the opportunity for everyone.

What this means for Australian providers

International students compare whole packages, not just degrees. When the US makes OPT unaffordable for universities, Australia gains an advantage. If Australia removes the 485 Visa at the same time, that advantage disappears.

The sector is already feeling the pressure. The Group of Eight reports higher education visa applications down 9% and grants down 17% year on year (The PIE News).

For independent providers, and for those preparing an application for initial registration with TEQSA, three things matter now, more than ever:

1. Build employability into the course design. Work-integrated learning, industry partners and placements matter more when post-study work is uncertain.
2. Plan for policy scenarios. Model enrolments (and financials) with and without post-study work rights, and with lower commencement caps.
3. Speak up. Providers who can show what their graduates go on to do will make the strongest case for keeping these pathways.

I had one year to turn a degree into a career. I would like the next generation of graduates, in America and in Australia, to have the same chance.

Tim Weir is the founder of Teton Advisory Group, which helps higher education providers prepare for initial registration with TEQSA.