Consul-General’s Address
QUT Agent Workshop
Monday 10 September 2018
Ladies and Gentlemen.
女士们，先生们
It is my great pleasure to be here today at QUT’s first-ever agent workshop in southwest China.
很高兴参加昆士兰科技大学在西南地区举办的第一次教育机构交流会。
As Australia’s Consul-General to the region, I am proud to promote Australia as a place to study. Our track record speaks for itself. Globally, Australia has consistently been one of the leading destinations for international education. In 2017, our international student enrolments hit a new high of 624,000, 13 per cent more than the year before.
作为澳大利亚驻西南地区的总领事，我为能宣传澳大利亚的教育而自豪。数据表明，澳大利亚一直是全球最受欢迎的留学目的地之一。2017年，我们的国际学生人数创了历史新高，达到624000人，同比增长13%。
As you know, China is our biggest source country, providing 30% of all international students. This translates to 185,000 Chinese students currently studying in Australia.
大家或许知道，中国是最大的留学生来源国，中国留学生占国际学生比例高达30%。也就是说，澳大利亚现在有185000名中国留学生。
So why is Australia so popular both in China and globally as a place to study?
澳大利亚如此受欢迎的原因是什么呢？
First, our world-standard education. Australia has seven universities ranked in the top 100 globally, making it a leader in research and innovation. Our institutions were responsible for technological breakthroughs such as wifi, the black box flight recorder, the ultrasound scanner and the bionic ear.
首先，我们拥有世界一流的教育。澳大利亚有7所大学入围世界百强大学，是科研创新领域的领军者。Wifi技术、飞行黑匣子、超声扫描仪以及人工耳蜗都是澳大利亚的发明创造。
The quality of our education is consistently high across the country, owing to world-class standards and regulatory control. This applies to schools, VET and universities.
我们有世界一流的标准和管理制度。不论是中小学、职业技术学院，还是大学，教育质量一直保持着一致的高标准。
Second, our flexible curricula. With both single and double degree and diploma offerings; professional degrees at undergraduate and postgraduate levels; and a range of research degree options, Australian institutions offer curricula that deliver both technical and interdisciplinary breadth.
其次，澳大利亚的课程设计非常灵活。澳大利亚的学校可以提供技术类和跨学科类课程，提供本科、研究生和科研类的单学位、双学位等学位教育。
Third, the relevance of Australian expertise to China. Australia excels in areas of education that are critical to China’s future. In fields such as biotechnology, data analytics, blockchain technology, aged care, tourism and early childhood studies, we offer world-leading vocational and higher education that can provide the training and skills that China needs as it shifts towards a tech and consumption-driven, services-oriented economy.
再次，澳大利亚的教育优势也符合中国发展的需求。我们的优势领域也是中国未来发展的关键领域，比如生物科技、数据分析、区域链技术、养老、旅游和学前教育等。澳大利亚的职业教育和高等教育世界领先，在中国向科技消费驱动的服务型经济转型中，我们能提供所需的培训和技能服务。
Fourth, Australia’s safe, open and welcoming society. The safety, convenience and environmental-friendliness of Australian towns and cities make them a great place to live as well as study.
第四，澳大利亚是个安全、开放和包容的社会。安全、便利、优美的环境，让这里成为适宜居住和学习的地方。
Because they have been welcoming international students for many decades, Australian institutions offer comprehensive support systems in the areas of career guidance, academic support and health services. Indeed, we are the first country to pass laws protecting international students’ rights.
几十年来，澳大利亚一直欢迎国际学生来此求学，我们的院校能为留学生提供综合服务，包括职业规划、学术指导和医疗服务。实际上，澳大利亚是世界上第一个出台法律保护留学生权利的国家。
Finally, our uniquely global education experience. With over half a million international students studying in Australia, our country’s classrooms are some of the most internationalised in the world.
最后，我们还能提供独特的国际教育经历。因为有超过50万国际学生在澳大利亚留学，所以我们的学校和教室是世界上最具有国际化特色的。
The genuine international experience that Australia offers Chinese students gives them the opportunity to develop a cross-cultural skillset and connections that directly assists them to expand China’s internationalisation.
澳大利亚能为中国学生提供真正的国际化经历，让他们有机会发展跨文化技能，建立跨文化友谊，为中国的国际化贡献自己的力量。
Australian institutions recognise the world is changing rapidly. Technological breakthroughs, especially in artificial intelligence, automation and robotics, mean the skills needed to succeed in the future will shift to higher value work. This includes an emphasis on human skills that machines cannot emulate, such as leadership, management, teamwork, negotiation and persuasion. An Australian education equips you with these.
澳大利亚的学校意识到世界正在快速地改变着。技术的革新，特别是人工智能和机器人自动化的实现，让高附加值的工作成为了成功的关键。于是，我们更加重视机器无法模拟的人类技能，比如领导能力、管理能力、团队协作能力、沟通和谈判能力等。这就是澳大利亚教育能给予你的东西。
QUT is an exemplar university when it comes to those factors I have just outlined. A university with a truly global outlook, it excels in real-world learning and high-impact research. It ranked 20th in the 2018 Times Higher Education young university rankings, and 2nd in Australia, while 100 per cent of its research output was rated at world standard or above in the latest Excellence in Research for Australia survey. More than a sixth of its nearly 50,000 students are from overseas.
昆士兰科技大学就是这样一所能满足以上需求的大学，它拥有国际化的视野，在教学和科研方面有着很强的影响力。2018年泰晤士世界大学排名中，昆士兰科技大学位列全球第20名，澳大利亚第二名；在最新的澳大利亚卓越研究调查中，昆士兰科技大学的科研成果被全部列为世界等级以上。而该校5万名学生中，有1/6的学生是留学生。
As our former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull mentioned in a speech last month, the ongoing role of Australian education in the region is vital for the security and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific. International education means more than foreign students coming to study in Australia and leaving with a degree; every arrival leads to long-term relationships that ultimately benefit us all.
澳大利亚前总理特恩布尔今年初曾说，澳大利亚的教育为印太地区的稳定和繁荣发挥着重要的作用。国际教育不只是国际学生来澳大利亚求学，获得学位；事实上，每一个留学生都能建立长期的友谊，让我们所有人获益。
So in that sense, as education agents you are very much ambassadors for the people-to-people links international education fosters which will see Australia-China relations grow even stronger into the future.
作为教育机构，你们就是国际教育的民间大使，你们将见证中澳关系的不断发展。
It is with that thought that I wish you all the best for what promises to be an interesting and rewarding forum.
预祝此次活动取得圆满成功！
Thank you.
谢谢大家。