Right next to affordability, post-graduation work opportunities are a major concern for international students during their study abroad journey. Student visas to Australia have been booming since borders reopened at the end of 2021, and those students will be wondering what career options await them.
Here’s some great news for students interested in working post-graduation: the need for workers in Australia reached all-time highs in May 2022, with 480,100 total job vacancies.1 International students may be the key to filling many of those positions. Let’s dive into how the new vacancy high compares to previous years, which industries need employees the most, and where these job vacancies are located.
Key Insights at a Glance
- Job vacancies in Australia grew 30% year-over-year in May 2022, and 115% compared to five years ago.
- One in four Australian businesses reported a need for workers.
- Healthcare and social assistance had the largest number of vacancies, and professional, scientific, and technical services needed the third most of all 18 Australian industries.
- Job vacancies grew by more than 83% in every Australian state and territory compared to the start of the pandemic.
Why International Students Will Be The Key to Filling Record-High Job Vacancies in Australia
Like most destination markets, Australia’s need for workers has spiked since the pandemic. However, in the graph below, we can see a consistent rise in job vacancies in the years prior to the COVID-19 outbreak as well:
The total number of all job vacancies increased by 30% in May 2022 compared to May 2021, and by 115% over the past five years. Also, when we look at the previous decade, we see a consistent six-year stretch where vacancies grew starting in 2014. This stretch was interrupted only by the global economic slowdown during the pandemic’s onset, and returned with authority in the following years.
What’s more, as job vacancies have swelled at a record rate, the number of available workers in Australia has declined. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.5% in June, a near-50 year low.2 This has led to more than one in four businesses reporting a demand for workers.
So what does this all mean for international students? With Australia’s increased need for workers but fewer workers available to hire, international students will be a key demographic for filling those jobs. While the drastic spike in vacancies is unsustainable, students should feel confident that post-graduation career opportunities will remain plentiful even once the number of vacancies starts to plateau.
The Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) is a post-study work stream that lets international students who have recently graduated with a degree from an Australian institution to live, work, and study in Australia, usually for between two and four years.
What Jobs Are Available for International Students in Australia?
Many of Australia’s job vacancies are in high-skilled industries. Health care and social assistance is the top sector in need of workers. Also, organizations in professional, scientific, and technical services reported the third most vacancies out of Australia’s 18 total industries.
Let’s quickly dive into the vacancy trends of both sectors to see what international students might find after graduation.
Australian Job Vacancies in Health Care and Social Assistance Sector
There’s a growing need for health care workers across the globe, including in Australia:
The COVID-19 pandemic exasperated a sector that had already seen a steady rise in job vacancies. In May 2019, the industry required 125% more workers than it had in 2015. After climbing to nearly 70,000 job vacancies in May 2022, the industry’s need for workers is up another 131% compared to 2019.
Australia is predicted to require 250,000 more skilled health and social care workers within the next five years.3 Also, more than half of Australian doctors were born overseas as of 2020, as were one in three nurses.4 With no end in sight to Australia’s (or, in fact, the globe’s) need for health care workers, international students should feel confident that graduating with a health-related degree from an Australian institution will lead to ample career opportunities.
The need for health care workers has also clearly reached the ears of students. In our analysis of exclusive ApplyBoard internal data about student search interests, we saw a tremendous rise in health sciences and general sciences for all destination markets.
27% of organizations in Australia’s health care and social assistance industry reported a need for workers in May 2022.
Australian Job Vacancies in Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
The sector with the third largest demand for workers as of May 2022, professional, scientific, and technical services started seeing a sharp climb in job vacancies in 2018:
The near 27,000 vacancies in the industry in May 2018 represented an increase of 44% compared to the previous year. Vacancies have climbed every year since, with the exception of May 2020’s drop amid the pandemic’s onset. The near 43,000 vacancies in May 2022 was a growth of 129% compared to May 2017.
Careers in this industry include scientists, accountants, engineers, architects, advertising and marketing specialists, and more.5
Students and RPs can use the ApplyBoard platform to find their ideal program of choice at an Australian institution.
Which Australian States and Territories Have a High Demand for Workers?
With the interactive map below, we can see that the need for skilled workers is consistent across Australia’s six states and two territories:
In February 2020, New South Wales had the largest percentage of businesses reporting vacancies at 12.1%. By May 2022, not only had every region surpassed that number, but five more than doubled it.
New South Wales’s 145,100 job vacancies in May 2022 represented the largest total, followed by Victoria’s 120,100 vacancies. From February 2020 to May 2022, job vacancies increased by more than 83% in every Australian state and territory. Further, vacancies more than doubled in six of these regions over the time period.
With the interactive bar chart below, you can sort through Australia’s states and territories to see how the total number of job vacancies have changed since 2010:
The Second Post-Study Work stream is a visa for holders of a Temporary Graduate visa who graduated with a degree from an Australian institution located in a regional area, allowing students to stay an extended period of time.
Competition for Workers Benefitting International Students Around the World
Australia’s need for workers is at a record-high, with many high-skilled sectors like health care and professional, scientific, and technical services leading the way. However, Australia is not the lone market facing a labour shortage. Many destination countries are seeking skilled workers. Vacancies for skilled positions in the UK have reached all-time highs, and total job vacancies in Canada grew by 61% in Q1 2022 compared to the previous year.6
With job vacancies swelling across the board, there’s arguably never been a better time for students to pursue higher education. There are ample opportunities for skilled students to study and work in Australia. But with Australia competing with many countries to attract these students, it will have to continually innovate and improve what it can offer students to remain a top destination.
We’re already seeing how the increased competition benefits international students hoping to work in Australia after graduating: The requirement to nominate an occupation from the skilled occupation list and obtain a skills assessment has been removed for Temporary Graduate visa Graduate Work stream applications lodged between July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023.
Check out ApplyBoard’s recent video showcasing five in-demand careers in Australia, and subscribe to our YouTube channel for more great video content:
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FOOTNOTES:
1. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Job Vacancies, Australia, May 2022.
2. The Guardian, Australia’s unemployment rate falls to 3.5% – the lowest in almost 50 years. July 14, 2022.
3. The Age, Australia urgently needs a health workforce plan, May 2022.
4. OCED, Contribution of migrant doctors and nurses to tackling COVID-19 crisis in OCED countries. May 13, 2020.
5. Australian Government, Professional, scientific and technical services industry. September 14, 2021.
6. Statistics Canada, Job vacancies, proportion of job vacancies and average offered hourly wage by selected characteristics, quarterly, unadjusted for seasonality. June 2022.
