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The Brazilian students are treading a well-worn path that has been trod by more than 2.5 million international students over the past quarter of a century.

Education is Australia's third biggest export, with annual revenues of more than $16 billion and we are recognised as a world leader in the field, with students from more than 190 countries taking advantage of Australian universities' expertise.

A recent book on Australian international education, Making a Difference, was co-edited by Dr Bruce Mackintosh, former Director of UWA 's International Centre and a local trailblazer.

The launch of the Colombo Plan in 1951 provided the foundations for the Australian success story of international education. The plan sponsored thousands of people in our region to study or train in Australian universities, many of them at UWA, as the closest Australian university. Some have become leaders, both politically and academically.

Indonesia's Vice-President Boediono graduated from UWA in 1967 with an economics degree. He was last year awarded an Honorary Doctorate from his alma mater. Malaysia's Minister for International Trade and Industry, Mustapha Mohamed, is also a UWA graduate.

The Colombo Plan became AusAID, which is sponsoring a record 100 students to study at UWA this year.

But it was in the 1980s that decisions by the Hawke government were the catalyst for shaping our international education sector into what it is today.

In 1985, the then Minister for Education, Susan Ryan, announced a new overseas student policy, which saw Australian tertiary institutions open their doors to full fee-paying international students. The take-up was unprecedented and Australia quickly became one of the most desirable overseas destinations for international students.

Our country has one of the highest proportions of international students in our higher education system of any country in the world.

It is this proud history that is documented in Dr Mackintosh's book, which is published by University of New South Wales Press and has several major contributions from UWA .

Published in UWA News , 6 August 2012