International student monthly summary

Key points

• In the YTD May 2026, 680,582 international students studied in Australia, a 6.9 per cent decline on the same period in 2025. The number of new students, studying in Australia in 2026 (91,468) decline by 6 per cent on the same period in 2025. 
• Many international students study more than one course in a reported year. Hence, in the YTD May 2026 there were 752,784 international student enrolments, an 8 per cent decline in enrolments on the same period in 2025. The number of commencements (216,884) declined by 8 per cent. 
• The Higher Education sector still had growth in enrolments on the same period in 2025 (2%), while all other sectors showed declines, notably ELICOS (27%). 
• Fifty-seven per cent of international students were from the following five student source countries: China (23% of international students), India (16%), Nepal (9%), Vietnam (5%) and Bangladesh (4%). 
• The most popular Field of Education in Higher Education was Management and Commerce followed by Information Technology, while in VET it was Management and Commerce followed by Architecture and Building. 
• In YTD May 2026, the most popular Level of Study in Higher Education was Masters degree by coursework (43% of total) followed by Bachelors degree (41%), while in VET it was Diploma (33%) followed by Certificate III (24%).