Vietnamese students in Australia face declining employment rates, lower salaries

By Khanh Linh December 1, 2025 | 03:00 pm PT

Only about half of Vietnamese undergraduate students in Australia secured full-time employment after graduation, according to a survey funded by the Australian Government Department of Education.

The findings come from the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) survey program, including the 2024 Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS), which tracks employment outcomes for bachelor’s degree graduates 4–6 months after completing their studies.

The data shows that just 51.6% of Vietnamese undergraduates found full-time work in 2024, down from 58.9% in 2023.

Of the 30,500 students surveyed, around 1,250 were Vietnamese.

Employment outcomes for Vietnamese postgraduate students (master's and doctoral) also declined. Their full-time employment rate dropped to 63.4% in 2024, compared with 78.4% the previous year. Only research-focused postgraduate degrees recorded stable employment outcomes.

Vietnamese undergraduates earned an average salary of AU$63,700 in 2024, below the international student average of AU$68,000 and AU$1,300 lower than in 2023.

Levels of study	Employment rate of Vietnamese students (%)	Average Salary 2024 (AUD)
Levels of study	Employment rate of Vietnamese students (%)	Vietnamese students	International students	Domestic students
Undergraduate	51.6	63,700	68,000	75,000
Postgraduate	63.4	71,300	70,000	100,000
Postgraduate research	78.2	97,800	95,600	104,400

Among the top five source countries for international students in Australia—China, India, Nepal, Vietnam, and the Philippines—Vietnamese undergraduates recorded the lowest average salaries. Their employment rate ranked fourth, ahead of only China.

In contrast, Vietnamese postgraduates reported the highest average salaries among the five groups, with employment rates ranked second after the Philippines. The survey did not provide figures for research-oriented postgraduate students.

The challenging job market is affecting domestic students as well. Full-time employment for Australian bachelor's graduates fell to 74%, down five percentage points from last year. Employment rates for postgraduate and research postgraduate graduates also declined by 2–3%.

According to the Australian Department of Education, around 822,000 international students are currently enrolled in Australia. Vietnamese students make up more than 36,000 of them, ranking fourth among all nationalities, though the number has fallen 4% from last year.

Khuôn viên Đại học Adelaide, Australia. Ảnh: The University of Adelaide Fanpage

Students are seen at the University of Adelaide. Photo from the university's Facebook page