Navitas buoyed by stronger enrolment

Education provider Navitas has recorded its strongest ever first-semester university programs enrolment figures, with the company attributing the growth to supportive regulatory and visa policy settings. 

Navitas announced total student enrolments of 18,862 equivalent full-time student units for the first semester of 2014, a figure which represents an 11 per cent increase on the previous corresponding period.

The figure is 6 per cent higher than the previous peak in the first semester of 2010, where the company had 17,811 enrolments.

It was driven by an increase of more than 25 per cent in recruitment of international students from their source countries, with Vietnam, India, Nepal and Pakistan highlighted as high-growth countries.

"This very solid growth for the main Australian intake is pleasing especially as it was largely driven by significant increases in the recruitment of international students from their home countries," Navitas chief executive Rod Jones said.

"This results builds on more than four semesters of growth in total enrolments for the university programs division, a foundation that will contribute strongly to Navitas's financial performance in the coming years."

Mr Jones praised streamlined visa processing and post-study work rights as supportive policy instruments that had contributed to Australia's attractiveness as a high-quality education provider.

The Gillard government introduced streamlined visa processing reforms in 2012, which allow prospective international students who are enrolled in university programs to be assessed as though they are a lower migration risk, regardless of their country of origin.

It also introduced post-study work arrangements which offer eligible tertiary graduates extended options for working in Australia.

Despite the solid growth in total enrolments, the number of new students recruited in Australia fell by 3 per cent compared with the previous corresponding period.

Mr Jones said total Australian enrolments were still down 13 per cent from their first-semester 2010 peak, despite new colleges coming online since that time.

Navitas shares closed the day's trade 2 cents lower at $7.49.