Anout 20 universities, vocational and language institutes from Australia were represented at the Australian Education Exhibition 2004 in Shenzhen on Tuesday, with many novelty courses being introduced, Shenzhen Daily reported Wednesday.

The AIT (Academy of Information Technology), an institute specialized in Web design and computer programming, promoted game design and programming courses.

"Electronic games and design are now the cutting-edge market in Australia and other countries. The course is customized to help talented professionals break into the niche market," said Lourdes Lynn, marketing director of AIT.

Li Dongmei, marketing director with the overseas study agency EIC, revealed that although Australian education institutions had more opportunities to attract Chinese students, the Australian Government adjusted its visa policy frequently to control the number of international students.

Over the past three years, about 20 revisions had been made to its visa policy to control the number of overseas students. In 2003, about 14,000 Chinese students obtained visas to Australia.

The expo was sponsored by the Australian Consulate General in Guangzhou.

(Xinhua News Agency August 18, 2004)