AN undercover reporter working on an ABC Television program into fraudulent migration and education schemes has been bashed, the broadcaster said today.

The young Indian woman was subjected to threats during the making of Monday night's Four Corners program and was attacked over the weekend.

Police had been notified, the ABC said.

She had interviewed two migration agents for the program and was offered a fake work certificate and the chance to cheat on an English language test if she handed over up to $5000.

Education agents are key feeders for Australia's $15bn education export sector. But in the residency-driven training sector, students, especially from India, complain of being duped by unscrupulous agents who lie about college facilities and enrol students in the wrong course so as to win lucrative commissions.

International students who have been ripped off by an aviation school and a cooking college in Sydney also spoke to Four Corners about their experiences.

Kumar Khatri told Four Corners he enrolled at the cooking school to become a chef but did not get proper lessons.

"I don't believe that there is a kitchen because I haven't seen the college kitchen," he said.

The program reports students who made serious allegations to the relevant government authorities were either ignored or themselves put under investigation.

Bob Birrell, from Monash University's Centre for Population and Urban Research, told the program the government might be reluctant to investigate for fear of jeopardising an industry that is "more than wheat, wool and meat put together".

The Australian Council for Private Education and Training is aiming to establish the online register within three months and hopes it will guide international students and Australian colleges towards using reputable agents.

"It won't address all the issues, but some students are clearly not happy with what they have been told by their agents," the council's chief executive, Andrew Smith, told The Australian.

The council is working with the Federal Government's international education arm, Australian Education International, to establish the register. Agents that make it on to the register will have to be members of reputable associations and perhaps need testimonials from reputable Australian colleges. The council is also planning to eventually update the list using feedback surveys from international students.

Some big colleges can have more than a thousand offshore agents on their books.

With AAP / The Australian