Telford Rural Polytechnic may look across the Tasman for students as it explores ways of attracting enrolments.
Some research has gone into the possibility of Telford approaching Australian students but the idea has yet to be fully debated and considered.
In her report to yesterday's Telford council meeting, marketing manager Marilyn Sayers said there had been some talk about marketing Telford correspondence courses in Australia and she had researched the eligibility of Australian residents studying and paying domestic fees for courses.
"Australian residents must pay international fees while living in Australia, but if they live in New Zealand, then they pay the domestic fee only," she said.
This could save students hundreds of dollars.
Mrs Sayers believed Telford could be successful in increasing its enrolments, both for full-time and correspondence courses, by "direct marketing" in major Australian agricultural areas.
Telford's course fees compared well with other providers and the exchange rate was still appealing to prospective students in Australia.
"Isolation for some students means New Zealand-based training is often more economically viable than within Australia," she said.
Australia was already being strongly targeted by Telford's competitors, who were reporting annual increases in enrolments.
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