- Australia will stop recruiting new students into the Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) from September 3, 2026.
- Existing students may finish, while providers and agents can no longer use the course for new international enrollments.
- The government said the move targets visa misuse, with 41,033 active enrollments and 15,772 current students.
Australia’s Labor government shut down recruitment into the Graduate Diploma of Management (Learning) on Thursday. The move takes effect on September 3, 2026. Existing students may finish. Labor framed the step as part of a wider push to tighten international education settings and curb visa misuse.
Providers and education agents can no longer recruit new international students into the course. The government said some students were using it mainly to preserve visa status, not for genuine study. That route has closed.
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Julian Hill, the Assistant Minister for International Education, backed the decision.
Labor wants Australia to remain a “trusted global education destination” while protecting students and preventing visa exploitation.
He linked the move to student protection. The minister also tied it to confidence in the sector.
The diploma had drawn concern because enrollments rose sharply as students already in Australia transferred into it. That pattern suggested a stay-on route. The government treated it as a misuse problem.
Labor cast the move as part of a broader effort to strengthen the international education sector and reduce migration pressure. It is the first use of new cancellation powers. The policy shift goes beyond one course.
The scale is easy to see. Three figures stand out.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| VET providers approved to deliver the course | 452 |
| Confirmed active enrollments | 41,033 |
| Students presently studying | 15,772 |
Among 2025 approvals, almost half never turned into enrollments. That gap fed the scrutiny.
