Karen Zhang was taken by surprise when China issued an edict ordering all students studying with a foreign university online to return to in-person classes.
The finance student, who is studying online with the University of New South Wales from her home in Guangdong province in China, is anxiously looking to get to Australia before classes start on February 20 to finish her last semester of study.
She said the biggest issue was securing accommodation.
"My life plans have been disrupted … I planned to go to a city [in China] to work as an intern, and I have already got the offer and found accommodation there," she said.
"Now I have to cancel everything and arrange to return to Australia immediately."
China's government made the surprise ruling on Saturday, banning all university students from studying online with overseas universities, just weeks before classes start.
It means more than 40,000 Chinese students, like Ms Zhang, will need to quickly return to Australia to resume their study on campus to have their qualifications recognised in China.
Deputy chief executive of the Group of Eight Universities Matthew Brown told the ABC that the announcement had left the nation's top institutions scrambling to get more information.
Dr Brown said the unexpected announcement would have "enormous implications" for the 100,000 Chinese students who studied at Australia's top-eight-ranked universities.
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"We have been planning on having students come back on campus this year … but it's the suddenness of the announcement happening overnight without any warning … that's really caused concern," Dr Brown said.
He said the "blunt" decision would impact students who had not gotten an Australian visa yet, organised flights or found accommodation in the country's already-tight rental market.
"You would expect … that will put pressure on students to come back to Australia, which is not a bad thing in itself, but it's just the pressure in the short term," he said.
"Sorting out all of those details, I think, would be quite distressing for students."
The Property Council of Australia said the snap return to face-to-face learning would compound pressure on Australia's already-tight student-accommodation sector, with some capital cities already expecting zero vacancy rates this year.
The Australian Department of Education told the ABC it welcomed the news from China.
It said the ministers for education and home affairs were working with universities to address the "short-term logistical issues" of the decision.
More than 260,000 Chinese students were enrolled at Australian universities in 2019 before the pandemic began, accounting for nearly $13 billion in income, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.
A Melbourne Airport representative told the ABC airlines from China were now reporting more enquiries from students trying to get to Australia.
A few dozen flights from China to Melbourne are currently scheduled each week, but that number will soon grow, with Air China and Sichuan Airlines resuming operations to the city.
Before the pandemic, about 150 flights were arriving in Australia from China every week.
The airport representative said they expected students to start booking flights to Australia soon, despite tickets costing more than before the pandemic.
Melbourne-based migration agent Kirk Yan told the ABC student-visa applications had increased in the two days since the order was issued.
Mr Yan said while some students would be affected, it was a positive development.
"In the long run, I believe it's a good sign that the international-student market enters the post-pandemic era," he said.
"More students or parents will come to terms with understanding the new policy and will prepare accordingly."
Chief executive of the International Education Association of Australia, Phil Honeywood, said the Chinese government had not been comfortable with online learning over in-class teaching.
Mr Honeywood said the Australian government would have to pivot resources and "pull all stops out" to process more Chinese student visas to get more students back to Australia.
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"It's going to be a scramble, but our universities are prepared for it," he said.
Wen-Ti Sung, a political scientist from the Australian National University's Australian Centre on China in the World, told the ABC that China's high unemployment rate and lockdowns had pushed the decision.
Mr Sung said China was experiencing high youth unemployment, and the government hoped sending some young people abroad to study would alleviate the problem.
"One of the consequences of lockdowns has been difficulty creating job growth, resulting in China having one of its highest unemployment [rates] among its youth in recent years," he said.
He also said the push would manage Chinese youth's "political energy", which he said had been a concern for the government since November's anti-lockdown protests.
"This decision moves them out of China, at least for a while."
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Students rush back to Australia after China bans online learning with foreign universities – ABC News
