It estimated that the University of Melbourne draws more than 15 per cent of its revenue from Chinese students, while noting that Melbourne does not publish firm data on this. The University of Melbourne's annual report notes international students comprised 42.1 per cent of its full-time students. Loading To protect this income, many institutions were creating entry pathways for students whose English fell short of the universities' International English Language Testing System (IELTS) standards by enrolling them in expensive preparatory courses that either guaranteed entry, or made it easier. "Australian universities are, in effect, taking actions that reduce their financial risks by increasing their standards risks," Associate Professor Babones wrote.

Sydney University requires an IELTS of 6.5 or 7 (an operational command of the language) for direct admission, but a $34,000 preparatory course at Taylors College, which is half-owned by the university, only requires 5.0 (partial command of the language). The college advertised that 95 per cent of its students received an offer to Sydney, suggesting nearly all students who requested an offer received one, Dr Babones wrote. A similar pathway program at the Australian National University accepted students with a score of 5.0 (not able to use complex language), and promised that students could progress to an ANU degree if they scored 60 per cent in the program, the report said. There were also so-called foundation programs at the University of NSW and Adelaide University, which guaranteed those who sign up have a place in their chosen degree when they finish, the report said. But these universities rejected the claims, saying they maintained high English standards for all students.

The University of Melbourne also offers foundation programs for students who do not meet entry requirements, and its website reassures international students who fall short of requirements that there are other pathways to a degree. A spokesperson for the University of Melbourne said international applicants whose results or qualifications did not meet English language entry requirements had the option of completing a foundation studies program. “This is a rigorous program, overseen by the University’s academic board. Students who undertake the foundation studies program typically come from a program the University does not deem equivalent of VCE and therefore additional study is required,” the spokesperson said. "Foundation programs are the ticking time bombs of Australian higher education - and virtually no data are published on their size or performance," Dr Babones told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Salvatore Babones, an associate professor at the University of Sydney, says many of his Chinese students struggle with spoken English.

The universities published little data on the foundation programs, or on the ability of international students to cope with the English-language demands of their degree once they arrive at university. However, in Dr Babones' personal experience, many struggled. "Sometimes I have Chinese students who are not even able to understand the instructions I give for writing assignments," he said. "Difficulty with spoken English is so common that it is usually impossible to engage Chinese students in tutorial discussions. "They are often eager to participate, but unable to articulate their thoughts in English." Other English-speaking countries had nowhere near the exposure to foreign student income as Australia; no public universities in the US enrolled more than 20 per cent of international students, and only two major private ones had more than 30 per cent, the report said.

Loading "Australian universities' China dependence is an extreme outlier among peer countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada," it said. "The average Chinese student concentration of the entire Australian university sector is similar to that of the single most exposed public university in the entire United States."