Providing Information on Australian Education

“PDavid Samuel, Austrade, Sri Lanka roviding the right guidance, to keep an eye on the students, providing the needed attention - that’s what Education is all about”, said David Samuel, Business Development Manager, Education and Global Value Chains ( South Asia) of Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) in Colombo.

Australian Trade Commission is an Australian Government Agency responsible for international marketing and promotion of Australian Education and Training globally.

The strategic objectives of Austrade’s Framework for International Marketing and Promotion of Australian Education and Training, comprises three strategic objectives that guide all of Austrade’s education promotion work. The objectives are to contribute to the growth of demand for Australian education, to contribute to the repositioning of Australia as a provider of high quality education services to international students and to contribute to the building of a sustainable Australian international education sector.

FACILITATING EDUCATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS

“Austrade is a facilitating agency. If a university is interested in coming to Sri Lanka, we put them in touch with the relevant local stake holders”, Mr. Samuel explained. One the recent successful partnership was Nawaloka College of Higher Studies, together with Swinburne University of Technology. In addition, many discussions and partnership models have been initiated with Australian universities and prominent local higher education providers. Another key role of Austrade is to administer opportunities for

Sr i Lankan students to meet with Australian University representatives to support with their study opportunities in Australia.

Being a prominent and popular personality in the Sri Lankan Education industry, it was a privilege for The Sunday Times to meet with Mr. David Samuel at the Australian Government organised Australia Future Unlimited Education Exhibition 2015.

“Students must be equipped to serve the market demands when they graduate whilst being good citizens. It is possible to make a good citizen only through education and educating them. This is a process that starts at a very young age. My objective is to make the future generations knowledgeable, adaptable, employable and help them to become good citizens of Sri Lanka”, Mr. Samuel said.

PROVIDING INFORMATION TOWARDS MAKING EDUCATED DECISIONS

However, deciding what field of education should be pursued, what university should be joined are important decisions that require information.

“The objective of having Australian Government organised Australia Future Unlimited Education Exhibition 2015, is not just to send students to Australia. It is to educate aspiring students on what Australia and Australian education institutions can offer them and to support fulfil their aspirations to continue higher studies.” Mr. Samuel explained. “There is a growing interest in Australia, and its education excellence and it is well-known fact that Australia has been throughout a most preferred study destinations for Sri Lankan students and indeed the exhibition and school engagement initiatives carried out by Austrade was extremely successful”.

Speaking to the University representatives and students who attended the fair, we were informed that the greatest challenge in going to Australia is not the academics, but is rather adapting to a new county, culture, people and language. This challenge is minimized through information on what could be expected and gaining prior information on methods to adapt.

The need to be adaptable is an increasingly critical issue, and one that most students are struggling with. This is the area that students face as their main challenge when pursuing higher education in foreign countries. “One of the strengths seen in Sri Lankans is their adaptability. They nurture to meet the needs of others. This strength should be directed towards Education too.” Mr. Samuel said in this regard.

FACILITATING HIGH QUALITY EDUCATION

Mr. Samuel takes a great interest in partnerships between Australian education providers and Sri Lanka and has been the driving force behind many success stories. “We are a facilitating agency that supports Australian businesses to expand their business horizons in foreign markets. As for education is concerned, we are not regulators though we keep tabs on what is happening after a partnership is established and commenced. We keep the relevant stakeholders in Australia and Sri Lanka informed if necessary.” Mr. Samuel said in conclusion.