Federal government policy changes mean students in all regional Victorian centres except Geelong will be eligible for an extra two years on a post-study work visa, compared with their Melbourne peers, from 2021.

La Trobe University has welcomed the changes, with hopes the regional incentives will make Bendigo more attractive to international students.

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (International), Professor Richard Speed said a boost to the number of international students could make the Bendigo campus bigger and livelier, and help investment in a greater range of courses.

"Quite often international students are interested in postgraduate studies," Professor Speed said.

He said the offering of postgraduate studies at Bendigo was 'not as big as we would like it to be', accounting for about 10 per cent of courses.

Professor Speed said extending post-study work visas could also help address skills shortages, particularly in fields like engineering and IT.

"At the moment we're saying to community employers we don't have students for them to employ," he said.

With some students likely to be eligible to stay and work for four years after graduating, Professor Speed said it made it worthwhile for local firms to invest in taking students on and training them up.

International student Justin See, who is completing a PhD in community planning and development, expected graduates would benefit from the opportunity to develop their careers where they had studied.

"It's a good way for us to give back to Bendigo," Mr See said.

He said extending post-study work visas also provided opportunities for international students to generate some income and pay back expenses associated with study.

The longer students were able to work in Australia, the more 'soft skills' and self-confidence Mr See expected they'd develop.

"I think that is very important for us," he said.

The federal government cited decreasing pressure on major Australian cities as part of the reason it was seeking to boost regional migration.

Population, cities and urban infrastructure minister Alan Tudge said almost 70 per cent of population growth in recent years had been into Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

"Migration has been the primary driver of this growth," he said.

He said the policy changes meant more migrants and international students would love, work and study in smaller cities and regional areas.

Federal education minister Dan Tehan said international students made a $35b contribution to the economy last year.

"Yet, just three per cent of the 690,000 international students were enrolled in regional Australia," he said.

"We want the entire country to share in the job, business and cultural opportunities that come with international students.

"International students who study in regional Australia also rate their living and learning experience higher than students based in metropolitan centres."

Immigration, citizenship, migrant services and multicultural affairs minister David Coleman said the federal government would continue to review regional migration settings to ensure they supported regional Australia.

He said regional outreach officers were being deployed to promote skilled migration initiatives and support regional employers.

Sixty-seven more academics are set for the Bendigo campus as a result of the federal government's Destination Australia scholarships - believed to be the highest share of any campus through the program, which is intended to attract students to regional Australia.

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