鈥淎nyone who has walked across a campus this week would have felt the excitement building as students and staff are reunited after what has been a long period apart for so many,鈥 Ms Jackson said.
鈥淎round 80,000 international students have returned to the country after up to two years away. We pay tribute to the commitment they have made to Australian education and the resilience they鈥檝e shown studying offshore and online for so long.鈥
鈥淣early 13,500 students arrived in Australia last week alone 鈥 a 33 per cent increase on the week prior.鈥
鈥淭he strong numbers of returning students we鈥檙e seeing is indeed a milestone worth celebrating. We know there are students still to return, and we, as well as their domestic peers, stand ready to welcome them back.鈥
鈥淭he sector, of course, faces a significant road to recovery and the full picture for 2022 and beyond will take time to form.鈥
鈥淯niversities know they鈥檙e not out of the woods, confronting revenue hits and job losses as consequences of COVID-19.鈥
鈥淭here is rebuilding ahead and we continue to work with our communities to do that in the national interest.鈥
鈥淚n the meantime, however, we are glad to see a return to the vibrant, hard-working campuses that sit at the centre of the communities we serve.鈥