The Australian government announced last week that international students would no longer be allowed to enroll in the Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) (GDML).
The suspension and cancellation will take effect on Oct. 5. From that date, overseas students will not be able to enroll in the GDML, while education providers and overseas education agents will no longer be permitted to recruit or refer international students to the course. Existing students will be able to complete their studies, the Department of Education announced on its website.
“The instrument responds to identified significant and systemic integrity issues associated the course, including issues that may undermine the integrity of Australia’s student visa program and the reputation of Australia’s international education sector,” it said.
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Students walk through the historic Quadrangle at the University of Sydney, Australia, August 2025. Photo from the university’s Facebook page |
The GDML is an Australian postgraduate qualification focused on management, organizational learning and workforce development. The course covers areas such as strategic management, organizational performance, learning and development, and workplace innovation.
It is a vocational education and training (VET) course lasting one to two years and classified at Level 8 under the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), between a bachelor’s degree at Level 7 and a master’s degree at Level 9.
The program has relatively flexible entry requirements and focuses on business management skills such as strategic planning, marketing and financial management.
Under Department of Home Affairs rules, international students who transfer to a course at the same or a higher AQF level do not need to apply for a new student visa. This means they do not have to repeat rigorous assessments and interviews concerning their applications and study intentions. The government believes many people have been exploiting this policy to extend their stay in Australia.
“The government has identified significant and systemic integrity concerns with the GDML. These concerns relate to enrolment patterns, student transfers, students not starting the course, course completion outcomes and possible student visa integrity risks.
The action will protect overseas students, support the integrity and reputation of Australia’s international education sector, and safeguard Australia’s student visa system,” according to a fact sheet issued by the Education Department.
According to ABC Newstransfers into the Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) have surged in recent years, jumping from 510 in 2020 to 4,000 last year.
However, nearly half of those approved in 2025 did not enroll, and completion rates were significantly below those of other VET courses.
International Education Deputy Minister Julian Hill said the government was acting “to ensure Australia remains a trusted global education destination, to protect international students and to prevent misuse of the student visa system.”
“Australia continues to welcome genuine international students seeking a premium education and must maintain a ruthless focus on quality, integrity and a great student experience,” he was quoted as saying in a ministry release.
Last year, Australia passed legislation giving the education minister powers to specify classes of courses for automatic suspension or cancellation if there are systemic problems with their delivery, they provide limited value in meeting the country’s current or future skills and training needs, or suspension or cancellation is considered to be in the public interest.
The latest move comes as Australia’s latest 2026-27 Budget forecasts net overseas migration (NOM) at 295,000 for the year ending June 2026, down from an estimated 305,000 in 2024-25. It then forecasts NOM at 245,000 in 2026-27 and 225,000 from 2027-28 onward.
A broader reform package is also expected to introduce further restrictions on international students and their families, limit visitor visas to six months, curb course switching, particularly from higher education to vocational training, and tighten rules for visa applications lodged from within Australia, according to a report published by SBS Australia on Aug. 31.
The number of international students in Australia totaled 845,933 in the 2025 calendar year, according to Department of Education data, down 1% from 2024. China remained the top sending market, followed by India, Nepal, Vietnam and the Philippines.
For January-February 2026, government data shows that 622,043 international students were enrolled in the country. The top nationalities for this period were China, India, Nepal, Vietnam and Bangladesh.