2013 Cambridge Business & Economics Conference
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International Student Recruitment – Are practices of universities
sustainable and ethical?
Peter Gibson
University of Wollongong, Australia
Wollongong, Australia, 2522
1. ABSTRACT
This paper examines current policies in most western universities that are attracting
increasing numbers of international students to their campuses. This is a lucrative business
for universities because fees charged are far in excess of the marginal costs. Universities are
using funds created to support infrastructure, research and the cost of teaching both domestic
and international students. A study is reported of a group of post graduate international
coursework students who were asked about their experiences and expectations during
recruitment and afterwards as an international student in Australia. In general, their
expectations were not met and some felt they had been misled by marketing, mostly through
agents in their home countries. Evidence is presented that suggests that universities may be
lowering their entry and academic standards to enable them to continue growth in this
lucrative market. Many of these students do not appear to be performing to the academic
levels of their domestic counterparts and they appear to be disadvantaged, particularly by
their English skills. The paper concludes by questioning the ethics of recruitment policies that
attract increasing numbers of marginal international students and proposes an alternative of
capping numbers to assure quality and sustainable standards and revenue in the future.
Keywords: International students, recruitment, ethics, sustainable quality, exploitation
1. INTRODUCTION
Established universities in the developed world have been attempting to attract international
students to their campuses across the world for several decades. In the last decade, growth
has increased dramatically at all levels from undergraduate to PhD. This has provided a
welcome and increasing source of revenue to many universities. It has been estimated that in
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the USA international student numbers increased by 40.5% between 2000 and 2011. This is
actually a comparatively low rate of growth compared to some countries and international
students only represent 3.5% of students on American campuses. (Guhr, 2012) However,
these figures hide an over reliance on a very small number of countries. For example, Guhr,
states that since 2007 Chinese enrolments have increased by 186% and Saudi Arabia by
332%. The picture is similar in other countries. Between 2000-2011 international enrolments
in Australia grew by 125.2%, in Canada surged by 189.5% and in the UK, by 90.6%
Several concerning trends are emerging from this growth. Firstly, over reliance on enrolments
from a few specific countries and saturation of those markets is resulting in a major source of
university income becoming vulnerable. That has led to a need for universities to increase
their quotas of international students. As such, there has been aggressive marketing led by
commission hungry agents in some markets. This inevitably places pressure on entry
standards there is a probability that ‘marginal students’ (Guhr 2012) who are deficient in both
English and academic skills are becoming accepted. Secondly, it is questionable whether
some recruiters are being entirely ethical in building the expectations of some students that
they may, for example, easily obtain employment in the country they come to study in when
in fact unemployment and underemployment rates amongst international graduates are very
high. (Birrell and Healy, 2012, Maslen, 2012).
On one side of the coin, this paper discusses the goal for university education to be
internationally inclusive and to embrace diversity as one of its key values. On the other, the
challenge of teaching marginal students who may not have prerequisite academic skills and
who are compromised by language and a lack of cultural awareness is considered. The human
cost to some international students and their families is also examined. Many students borrow
enormous amounts of money or their parents dispose of major assets to pay for international
fees that sometimes amount to decades of their potential salary. They are then at risk of
currency fluctuations and other economic machinations. For example, the Iranian currency
has recently devalued by 2/3 and left some students in financial ruin. In this light, the ethics
of attracting the ‘marginal student’ is discussed. The paper illustrates some of this through
some poignant case studies and questions the ethics and sustainability of international student
recruitment. This paper concludes by suggesting more ethical and sustainable international
recruitment strategies for universities in the future.
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2. WHY INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS?
Many western universities are attempting to become much more inclusive of international
students. It can be argued that universities have a moral duty to expand their services beyond
international boundaries for the good of humanity as a whole. Western universities are
attractive to international students for two main reasons. Firstly, growth in many developing
countries is simply enormous and demand for higher education far outstrips supply. As such,
the premier universities in some of those countries, which rank with the very best in the
world, are very difficult to obtain entry into and hence many potential students look wider
afield, especially at post-graduate level. Secondly, many of those seeking higher education in
developing countries have a desire to travel, see other parts of the world and work and
interact in different cultures. In some ways, foreign universities may seem superior to those
students and they perceive a better education that should improve their career potential. There
are also often possibilities to obtain permanent residence and /or citizenship in the country in
which they choose to study.
The benefits to universities in attracting large numbers of international students are very
significant and essential to their growth and survival. In Australia, international education
sector is important not only to Australian universities, but also the country’s economy.
International education activity contributed $16.3 billion in export income to the Australian
economy in 2010–11.(Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2011). In a GDP of $1.37 trillion, with
growth of about 3%, representing about 1.2% of GDP. Furthermore, many educational
institutions rely on the income from full-fee paying international students to assist in building
their research profile and the provision of education infrastructure to all students, both
international and domestic .This does seem to imply some cross-subsidy of universities from
international income and it is likely that international students are bearing a
disproportionately high cost in the provision of their courses. In 2008-9, there were almost
400,000 international students studying in Australia, a country with a population of around
20,000,000. (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2011). Growth in international student’s
numbers has been considerable over the last decade. Concerns were expressed and ethical
questions asked some time ago, for example, Gibson 2003, 2005. This paper considers
developments since then.
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3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. Are current rates of international student recruitment representative of true demand
such that quality can be maintained and standards of western universities are not
compromised?
2. Is there any degree of exploitation of international students?
3. Are universities behaving ethically in the recruitment of international students?
4. METHODOLOGY
This work is based on case study taken from an Australian university that ranks in the top 2%
of universities internationally. (Academic Ranking of World Universities, 2012) . The work
reported here is aimed at providing a pilot study that may or may not point to the need for a
more in-depth study. The results are somewhat anecdotal but considered in three main areas:
1. International student expectations prior to enrolment and post enrolment
2. International student performance in relation to domestic students
3. Ethics and sustainability of current practices
Focus Group
A group of 12 international students was formed to discuss a number of issues. The group
consisted of students studying in graduate programs leading to post graduate degrees aimed at
enhancing their employability in professional practice both in Australia and internationally.
The group was of mixed nationalities including students from India, China, Iran, Pakistan,
and Thailand.
The following issues were considered:
Reasons studying internationally
Reasons for accepting an offer from this university
Means of financing education program and living expenses
Perceptions of information from marketing activities in their home countries in relation to
perceived reality after enrolment
Comparison of International Student Academic Performance
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The work of University assessment committees is largely confidential and it could be argued
that there does tend to be a lack of transparency in information. Therefore, at this stage, it is
not possible to present definitive information based on an in-depth study of international
student academic performance. However, the anecdotal information presented may perhaps
provide questions that point to a need to investigate academic performance across a number
of universities and disciplines. Finally, there is brief discussion of possible resulting ethical
questions resulting from the above investigation and consequential sustainability of current
practices in universities.
5. RESULTS
Reasons for studying overseas:
All students reported a desire to travel and experience cultures different to their own. About
25% principally for education purposes, some perceiving an institution more prestigious than
their own. Several more mature and experienced respondents from a country subject to
international economic sanctions reported very poor employment prospects at home and felt
they could potentially secure employment in Australia if they obtained a post graduate
qualification. By far the majority reported that they desired to complete 2 years of full-time
education so that they would become eligible to apply for permanent residence and full-time
employment in Australia.
Reasons for accepting offer at this institution:
About half cited competitive pricing of the programs offered. Around 25% were attracted by
the specific attributes of the programs and ranking of the university. All except one reported
‘agent recommendation’ which was clearly the most important factor.
Finance:
Around half of the students had taken student loans in their countries. In most cases, the fees
including tuition and language schools amounted to around $60,000. Typical salaries they
could expect to earn in their home countries were in the order of $12,000 to $25,000 per
annum. Most were planning to repay loans by obtaining a high paying job after graduation in
the country where they studied. Most who had worked since their undergraduate degrees
were using their savings and/or disposal of assets. About half reported being supported by
their parents to some extent, who may have disposed of assets to support their child’s
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education. Mostly, it was clear that the students came from well-off families who were in the
upper socio economic demographics of their countries. However, most also reported major
sacrifice, mostly disposal of property, by their families to support them.
Employment pre and post graduation:
The vast majority reported that it was essential to work during their studies to pay their living
expenses. However, they also reported that they found it difficult to find legitimate
employment paid at what they considered to be reasonable rates. Mostly, they obtained
employment in cleaning, restaurants and as petrol station attendants (often night work).
Students generally report that they were grateful to get any work they could. One student
claimed it was common practice for employers to exceed the maximum working hours
allowed by a student visa by paying for fewer hours than actually worked, whilst only
reporting the maximum. Hence the hourly rate actually paid is effectively far less than legally
awarded minimum rates and hence both students and employers are contravening the
conditions of the students’ visas. However, no definitive evidence of this practice was offered
from this study, although in a study of 40 international students working as cleaners reported
by Donovon 2012, a similar claim is made.. "We've found that they do those extra shifts
because they're frightened of losing their work."[Then] their employer doesn't pay them for
that work and on top of that threatens them that if they seek to recover those lost wages that
they may report them to the authorities." United Voice says owners of shopping centres like
Westfield, who use cleaning contractors, need to stop the exploitation. A spokesman for the
Shopping Centre Council of Australia told ABC's AM the issues are a matter for the
contractors who employ the cleaners, not the centres themselves.”
Rather disturbingly, two students reported being the victims of violent physical attacks. One
was hospitalised after being stabbed in a screwdriver attack whilst working as a petrol station
attendant at night, the other suffered a late night home invasion, where he lost almost all of
his possessions of value.
After graduation, they felt the situation was bleaker and that the chances of obtaining
professional employment, even after obtaining permanent residence status, were limited. It
seems many remain in blue collar part-time casual employment although they could recall a
few ex-students who had obtained high paying, prestigious positions in professional practice
and they felt optimistic they could potentially emulate that.
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What agents told some students about employment prospects:
A common theme promoted was that students would not find difficulty in obtaining a job
after graduation and they would earn $55,000-$70,000 per year. As such they were told they
would be able to pay back loans within a couple of years. One student claimed students were
told ‘all lies’ and the probability of an international student finding a professional job was
minimal. Other students said that their agents made no such claims. In general, most were
pessimistic but hopeful about employment prospects and inspired by some students who have
obtained jobs with high salaries. However, many seemed to think the reality was that they
would continue in their part-time jobs until suitable opportunities arose.
Specific disadvantage for international students:
Several issues were brought up. These included a culturally different education system,
needing to work long hours to support living expenses, language skills, vulnerability to
currency exchange rates, racism, employment culture, inferior assessment performance.
Comparison of International Student Academic Performance:
It is rather difficult to report on actual performance of international students in comparison to
domestic students because the assessment mechanisms of most universities are confidential
and hence neither open or transparent. However, the author can report on over twenty years
of teaching in graduate classes of predominantly international students. In many Business
Schools and other vocational units have designed graduate programs that specifically attract
international students, where the international proportion of students is in excess of 95%.
Hence in making comparisons the sample tends to be very biased towards international
students. However, it is not uncommon for international students to score an average of
around (say) 55% in many of their units. Raw data in these classes might indicate very high
fail rates. However, after processing by university assessment committees it seems there are
far fewer fails than raw data would suggest. Assessment committees undergo a number of
processes to normalise various assessment data submitted to them. Two of the tools they may
use are scaling of results and waiving of examination requirements that seem to have been
resulted in excessively skewed exam scores. After these processes were applied in a unit
offered by the author recently, the average score for domestic students was scaled to over and
90% whereas the average score of international students after identical procedures was 55%.
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However, in that class there around 150 international students and only 6 domestic students
and so the result may well tend to be necessarily skewed.
6. DISCUSSION
This work brings up a number of ethical questions:
Are entry standards being compromised for international students in order for universities to
fill quotas and hence add to their revenue?
This work finds it plausible that entry standards are being compromised to sustain or
maximise number. For example, students themselves report that English skills have
disadvantaged them. They read more slowly and find writing in English difficult. It seems
that many universities accept students with quite modest levels of English. A commonly
accepted level is IELTS 6.0. Some institutions allow lower scores in some bands. 6.0 is
described as ‘generally effective command of the language despite some inaccuracies,
inappropriacies and misunderstandings. Can use and understand fairly complex language,
particularly in familiar situations. 5.0 is defined as ‘has partial command of the language,
coping with overall meaning in most situations, although is likely to make many mistakes.
Should be able to handle basic communication in own field’. (IELTS Website, 2013). The
author questions whether something between ‘some inaccuracies, inappropriacies and
misunderstandings and ‘partial command of the language’ is sufficient. There is evidence
(E.g. Lebcir et al 2008) that shows that students with lower levels of English perform at a
lower level and possibly one that is inferior to domestic student bench marks.
This study points to a strong possibility that lower than optimal entry qualification levels,
particularly in English, are sustained to maintain numbers. In combination with aggressive
marketing and agents paid on commission for each student they recruit, it seems likely that
quality of applicants may be compromised and ‘marginal’ students are being accepted into
university programs. Further, in an expanding international higher education market,
Universities may be missing an opportunity to improve quality by capping numbers and thus
ensuring higher standards of entering students. Universities are increasingly competing with
each other to attract students and it seems likely there is something of a ‘race to the bottom’
by recruiting marginal international students in order to maintain quotas. There is further
evidence to suggest this is an issue for many Western universities. For example it has been
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reported that ‘US universities are facing a "crisis of ethics" and risk "selling out the quality
…’ (Times Higher Education, 2013)
Are students being misled by commission hungry agents and other aggressive university
marketing?
There is evidence from the student group reported here to suggest that some agents are
presenting an overly optimistic view of future prospects. A University of Melbourne report
supports this and found that ‘International students’ employment outcomes are not as good as
their Australian domestic counterparts and that they face greater challenges in finding fulltime employment after graduation. While ELP is a key factor influencing their employment
outcomes particularly if graduates have low levels of ELP. The findings from this study show
that ELP is not the only or principal issue. (Australian Government , 2009) This report
summarises a great deal of evidence to that effect. Universities may need to ‘rein in’ some of
their marketing practices for a more sustainable ethical future. There is perhaps an unhealthy
element of destructive rivalry amongst universities desperate to maintain quotas and revenue
that creates an environment of competition in entry standards, which is further exacerbated by
agnets who are ‘paid by the head’ rather than for quality. This can only comprom
Universitystandards and degrade their reputations. However, whist the London statement
(Maslen, 2013) shows that universities acknowledge this as an issue, and offers guidance in
the form of an ethical framework, there is little to suggest that this framework is workable or
implemented. Certainly, there was very little evidence to suggest from this work that an
ethical framework was having, or would have any influence. It seems unlikely that this
framework will succeed in an environment where there is destructive rivalry between
universities and no concentrated effort to encourage them to cooperate seriously to adopt it
without government regulation to provide a more equal competitive landscape between
universities. It also seems very unlikely that this statement is aligned well with the issues
identified here and there is little in it to slow the ‘race to the bottom’.
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The "London statement" says the principles are based on an underlying ethical framework of:

Integrity – Being straightforward and honest in all professional and business dealings

Objectivity – Not allowing professional judgment to be compromised by bias or conflict of
interest.

Professional competence and due care – Maintaining professional knowledge and
professional service, and acting diligently.

Transparency – Declaring conflicts of interest to all clients, especially when service fees
are charged to both the education provider and the prospective student.

Confidentiality – Respecting and preserving the confidentiality of personal information
acquired and not releasing such information to third parties without proper authority.

Professional behaviour – Acting in accordance with relevant laws and regulations and
dealing with clients competently, diligently and fairly.

Professionalism and purpose – Acting in a manner that will serve the interests of clients
and the wider society even at the expense of self-interest.
Table 1: The London statement
7. CONCLUSIONS
Returning to the research questions:
1. Are current rates of international student recruitment representative of true demand
such that quality can be maintained and standards of western universities are not
compromised?
It seems there is evidence to support a view that demand is being created rather than
evolving. The author is most certainly of the view that quality is being compromised to create
growth in numbers when market growth is actually creating an opportunity to improve
quality by being more selective and reducing the numbers recruited. However, lower or
maintained numbers would inevitably mean no growth in revenue for universities. Growth in
revenue appears to be a principal motivator for many universities and it seems logical that
growth in numbers can only be maintained by lowering standards. As such current practice to
grow numbers is neither ethical or sustainable.
2. Is there any degree of exploitation of international students?
The above work presents evidence that points to widespread exploitation of international
students, both before and after graduation. However, the results and other evidence presented
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are not exhaustive but there are clear indications that a further investigation is needed. It is
also questionable whether the universities themselves are in fact profiting from vulnerable
students from developing nations. A recent currency collapse in one country has left many
students unable to pay their fee debts and in financial ruin in some cases. It is very clear that
international students are being charged far more for their courses than the marginal cost of
adding these students to university rolls.
3. Are universities behaving ethically in the recruitment of international students?
Employment prospects for many international students are not as high as domestic students
and they do appear to be misled on this matter by some university marketing and recruitment
practices. The ethical position of encouraging students to take large loans, luring them into
universities by promises of permanent residence and high paying jobs after graduation and
creating courses to circumnavigate immigration requirements is highly questionable.
9. REFERENCES
Academic Ranking of World Universities, 2012, (formerly known as the Shanghai Jiao Tong
rankings)
Australian Bureau of Statistics , 4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, Dec 2011
Australian Government, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
‘The impact of English language proficiency and workplace readiness on the employment
outcomes of tertiary international students’ Australian University of Melbourne, Centre for
the Study of Higher Education, 2009.
Australian Vice Chancellors Committee (AVCC), Provision of Education to International
Students, Code of Practice and Guidelines, for Australian Universities, April 2005.
Birrel, B. and Healy, E., ‘Immigration Overshoot’, Centre for Population and Urban
Research, Monash University, Research Report, Nov. 2012.
Donovan, S., International students 'exploited' as cleaners Updated Tue Nov 27, 2012
10:03am AEDT ABC News, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-27/shopping-centresexploiting-international-student-cleaners/4393884 Accessed 14-3-2013
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IELTS International English Language Testing Service website,
http://www.ielts.org/default.aspx Accessed 20-2-1013
Gibson, P. R. & Childs, P. W. (2005). International grduate engineering education: ethical
challenges for universities. 9th Baltic Region Seminar on Engineering Educaiton (pp. 1-4).
Gibson, P. R. (2003). Graduate business education in Asia - the ethical challenges for
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Guhr, D.J., ‘US International student growth rates unsustainable’, University World News,
Issue 251, 14 Dec 2012.
Lebcir, R. M., Wells, H., and Bond, A. Comparison of International Student Academic
Performance. International Journal of Project Management, V26, Issue 3, 2008, pp288-274
Maslen, N. ‘Foreign Students boost unemployment among the young’, University World
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Maslen, G., ‘Code of ethics for international student recruitment agents’, University World
News, Issue No:219, 29April 2012
Times Higher Education - US 'ethical crisis' over foreign recruitment
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