The University of Wollongong says it will support any initiatives that facilitate the return of international students in a way that is "safe for our domestic students and our communities".
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UOW has welcomed a proposal by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to use one-third of the state's hotel quarantine slots to bring in international students and skilled migrants, starting in January.
However, a UOW spokesman said that while any return of international students would be beneficial, "it is likely to be gradual, on a small scale and insufficient to avoid UOW needing to make significant savings to return to a financially sustainable position".
"UOW budget forecasts provided to staff on 9 June include significant deficits for 2021, 2022 and 2023 that require savings to be found.
"Making these savings without significant organisational change would require a rapid return of very large numbers of international students. This is highly unlikely considering the current state of the world economy."
The Premier's scheme puts her at odds with Prime Minister Scott Morrison and a national cabinet agreement on November 13, which expressly said the priority of hotel quarantine was returning Australians.
But Australia's universities have already lost thousands of jobs, and are facing a bleak 2021.
A recent report by education think tank Mitchell Institute calculated there are more than 200,000 fewer international students in Australia because of the pandemic, and that figure could rise by another 100,000 by the middle of next year.
And while this is causing the university sector a huge headache, the Mitchell report also points out that almost 60 per cent of the $37.5 billion international students would usually spend in Australia goes towards goods and services in the wider economy.
The UOW spokesman said the university continued to work with the NSW and federal governments on planning for how to return international students in an appropriate and safe way.
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He said any measures to facilitate international students' return would be welcomed by the university and students themselves.
"Both the city and University of Wollongong have a long history of welcoming international students with open arms and Wollongong is renowned as a study destination for international students.
"But the university acknowledges that facilitating the return of international students will be a complex operation that requires compliance with quarantine arrangements, bringing additional costs for the NSW Government, UOW and the students themselves.
"As the university has stated repeatedly, COVID-19 has brought far-reaching and permanent changes to the world economy and the global higher education sector. This includes changes to international student movements around the world.
"No university is immune from these changes. UOW must transform its organisation to prepare for a post-COVID-19 world."