It’s the first Global Horizons News episode of 2026, and Rob Malicki and Dirk Mulder are back at the desk with that familiar mix of “happy new year” energy and “wait, what changed while we were away?” realism.

They start with PRISMS and a South Asia assessment-level update that feels, frankly, out of cycle and out of sync. The headline move is Bangladesh, which only recently moved up, now dropping two assessment levels in one hit, and it sets off a wider conversation about policy volatility, recruitment strategy, and just how hard it is to plan when the goalposts keep shifting.

Along the way, you’ll hear them unpack:

• The South Asia assessment level changes (including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka), and why the timing matters for providers trying to plan recruitment responsibly

• The question hanging over it all: what triggers these changes, and should a ministerial trip be enough to reshape settings this quickly?

• A rare moment of mainstream coverage, including a news.com.au write-up, and a longer sit-down interview with Phil Honeywood on Channel 7’s The Issue

Then the conversation moves to ATEC and a detail that could easily slip past most people unless you’re watching legislation closely. Dirk draws on analysis from Andrew Norton to explain how international student allocations, and the power to cap, could be embedded through the proposed Australian Tertiary Education Commission, with serious questions about independence, process, and years of compounding uncertainty.

They also cover:

• What ATEC’s role could mean in practice if international student allocations become one of its key functions, and why that design choice raises eyebrows

• TEQSA’s new requirements for offshore delivery approvals, including the looming reality of application fees and yet more compliance weight on transnational education activity

And then, in the spirit of not leaving you in a pure regulatory fog, they finish with an actual milestone worth pausing for: Adelaide University is now live, the new combined institution born from the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia. There’s congratulations, curiosity about rankings impact, and a few side-eye questions about what happens next, in Adelaide and possibly beyond.

Global Horizons is a production of The Global Society, Australia’s Learning Abroad support company. Our editor is Len Zamora and our distribution specialist is AngeloAblao.

Rob Malicki is the executive editor and host. The podcast wouldn’t be possible without The Koala News, Australia’s international education news website.

This episode is supported by Choosing Your Uni, Australia's unique, AI-powered platform that helps domestic and international students to find the right institution for them, and that helps Australian institutions to access new markets.

For guest suggestions and feedback, email podcast@globalsociety.com.au