More than two billion dollars were lost in Australia last year as the number of international students dropped.
Major barriers for Latin American and Spanish students include the costs of courses and housing, the 20-hour work restriction and difficulties accessing public hospitals.
Adrian Ramos is an Official of the Council of International Students Australia (CISA) and he said changes in Australian visas for international students are based on these figures and he hopes students will be allowed to work more hours per week.
Last year, almost 560,000 international students were in Australia, most of them from the region.
While the violent attacks towards Chinese and Indian students have affected these communities, Latin American students feel quite safe in Australia.
Last Friday, a group of Chinese students in Sydney launched a campaign calling on students in China to boycott studies in Australia, following an attack on two Chinese students early in April.
Statistically, international students are the victims and not the aggressors in Australian crimes.
Many of these students live in remote suburbs with access to very few services or not at all.
Claudia Gonzalez, a Chilean student in her 20s, says inner city hospitals denied her admission when she fell pregnant with her first child.
Most students complain about the cost of living in Australia. David Ayala, a Colombian living in Brisbane, said 20 working hours are not enough to pay for the cost of living.
Nelson Vedia, from Peru, is also demanding the right to work longer hours.
The total enrolments of students from Spanish Speaking countries in NSW from 2007 to 2010 were 169,543.
Even though the general numbers of International students have decreased in the last two years, the figures are still very high and many of these students never return to their own countries.
Many students sell everything in their homeland and don’t have anywhere to return.
Those who emigrate for education often face a culture shock which includes the social challenge of making new friends and struggling with distance from family, who are often the pillars of Latin American and Spanish communities.
By Florencia Melgar
