The table illustrates the number of local and international research students in Australian universities in 2001 and 2010, while the pie charts depict the percentage of male and female students across both groups.
Overall, there was an increase in local and international students, with a particularly significant rise in the latter. The percentage of international students rose accordingly, although local students, especially males, still represented the largest share.
In 2001, the number of local students (33,657) was more than six times higher than that of international students (5,192), amounting to 38,849 students in total. By 2010, the combined student number had surged to 54, 081, with the former increasing modestly to 39,488, while the latter almost tripled to 14,593. This narrowed the disparity between the two groups from approximately 28,000 in 2001 to around 25,000 in 2010.
Accordingly, the proportion of international students almost doubled, soaring from just 13% in 2001 to 27% in 2010. Within this group, the percentage of female students also grew substantially from 4% to 15%, overtaking their male counterparts in 2010. In contrast, local students dropped in percentage, from 87% to 73%. There were slightly more local male than female students in both years (44% vs 43% in 2001 and 38% vs 35% in 2010).
In sum, the increase in international enrollments is reflected in their growing share of the student population, with the increase particularly pronounced among overseas female students. Meanwhile, local students also increased in number but decreased in percentage over the 10-year period.