|
A diverse range of nationalities took part in this year’s Feedback survey of Australian language schools and 93 per cent of them said that they would recommend their school to others.
Australia feedback at a glance
|
|
|
Total number of students: 164 (female 70, male 84, unknown 10)
Average age in years: 23.6
Average length of programme in weeks: 17.8
Average number of students in class: 13.9
Average number of hours of language tuition per week: 23.2
% of students who found out about their course through an agent: 66
% of students who booked through an agent or adviser: 75
% of students who had been on another language programme: 18
% of students who would recommend their school: 93
|
| Respondents by world region of origin |
|
Top nationalities |
|
|
|
1. Asia 52%
2. W Europe 22%
3. Latin America 16%
4. C & E Europe 4%
4. Middle East 3%5. Africa 1%
No reply 2%
|
|
1. Chinese 20%
2. Brazilian 12%
2. Swiss 12%
4. Japanese 11%
5. Korean 9%
6. Taiwanese 5%
7. Colombian 4%
8. French 3.5%
9. Thai 3%
9. German 3%
|
| In my class there are... |
|
How easy is it to practise your language skills with native speakers? |
|
|
|
1. The right amount of students (48%)
2. Too many students who speak my language (25%)
3. Too many students from one other country (18%)
4. Too many students (8%)
Unknown 1%
|
|
1. Quite easy (43%)
2. Quite hard (38.5%)
3 Very easy (13.5%)
4. Very hard (4%)
Unknown 1% |
| How did you find your programme? |
|
Did you book your course through an agent or an educational adviser?
|
|
|
|
1. Recommended by an agent (67%)
2. Recommended by a friend/relative (21%)
3. I found it on the Internet (11%)
4. I saw it advertised (0.5%)
Unknown 4% |
|
Yes (75%)
No (23%)
Unknown (2%)
|
Student reasons for school selection included:
|
|
“Because it’s located in the south near to several nice places”
“The information on the Internet looked interesting and it was in a city I wanted to visit”
“It was recommended. They offer all language levels and they have got small groups”
“Small and private”
“The ratio of nationalities. There’s not many Japanese. It’s a good environment to speak French”
|
| Before looking for your course, did you know where you wanted to study? |
|
|
|
Country
Yes (83%)
No (14%)
Unknown (5%)
City/town
Yes (52%)
No (42%)
Unknown (2%)
|
|
School
Yes (41%)
No (52%)
Unknown (7%)
|
Student nationality
While Asian students made up the largest group within the student body at Australian language schools (52 per cent), most classrooms had a wide mix of nationalities. In total, students from 24 different nationalities completed our student Feedback survey on Australia this year, including Hungarian, Persian, Omani and Slovenian. In common with the results of last year’s survey (see LTM, Feb 2009, pages 24-25), Chinese students were the largest single nationality group, making up 20 per cent of the student body, while Brazilians were in second place with 12 per cent. The number of Swiss students had increased somewhat this year, making up 12 per cent of students, compared with just six per cent last year.
Student motivation
The largest group of students (50 per cent) were university students this year, while a further 12 per cent said that they were professionals. The high number of university students correlates with the fact that 49 per cent of respondees said that they currently used their language skills for study purposes. A further 32 per cent said that they used English for work purposes while seven per cent said that they used English for both work and study. The number of students intending to go on to further study in Australia was less this year than previously, with 32 per cent saying that this was their motivation for study compared with 36 per cent in 2009 and 38 per cent in 2008. Meanwhile, the largest group (45 per cent) of students said that they were learning English in Australia for future work purposes.
Student enrolment
Agent usage among students rose in Australia this year, with 66 per cent of students saying that they had found their course through an agency (compared with 60 per cent last year) and 75 per cent booking their course through this method (compared with 65 per cent previously). The students who booked their course through an agency included 100 per cent of the Swiss, Korean and Colombian students and 93 per cent of Koreans. Just 18 per cent of students had been on a previous study abroad trip and of those who indicated where, 81 per cent had visited at least one English speaking country to learn English.
Standard of the schools
Class sizes varied between four and 20 students and just eight per cent of respondents found their class size excessive. Of these, class sizes varied between 12 and 15 students. Teachers in Australia were generally positively received with 62 per cent of students rating their teachers as excellent. This compares with the academic programme which scored less well with 29 per cent of respondents saying it was excellent. However, over half of students indicated that their academic and social programme was at least good and 66 per cent said that their accommodation was either good or excellent. The largest group of students (41 per cent) were staying in host family accommodation.
Living in Australia
The language and countryside were found to be particular favourites of students studying in Australia, while the food and nightlife were less popular. Fifty seven per cent of respondents found Australians easy to talk to. The cost of living was deemed to be higher than their own countries by 61 per cent and the average cost of a one-week course including accommodation averaged out at AUS$454 (US$421).
Thank you to the following schools for participating in our survey: Central Queensland University ELC, Rockhampton, QLD; Embassy, Melbourne, VIC and Brisbane and Gold Coast, QLD; Geos Sydney Manly Campus, Sydney, NSW; John Paul International College, Daisy Hill, QLD; Kaplan International College, Cairns, QLD and Sydney, NSW; Langports English Language College, Brisbane and Gold Coast, QLD; Language Studies International, Brisbane, QLD; Navitas ACE, Sydney, NSW; Navitas ACL, Sydney, NSW; Navitas ATTC, Sydney, NSW; Perth International College of English, Perth, WA; Tafe English Language Centre Northern Sydney, Sydney, NSW; Perth Institute of Business and Technology, Perth, WA; Phoenix English Language Academy, Perth, WA; Queensland International Business Academy, Gold Coast, QLD; SA Adelaide Language Centre, Adelaide, SA; Sea English Academy, Maroochydore, QLD; Shafston International College, Brisbane, QLD; West Coast International College of English, Bunbury, WA.
|
|
