Education agents play a key role in the international student recruitment process. There is growing interest in the issues surrounding education agents, fuelled by the rapid rise of the education agent aggregator business model in recent years. If you want to go deep, here’s list of useful sources: Suggest an addition The reading list includes work focussing on the role of education agents in international student recruitment. No doubt there is lots of great content out there that we’ve missed. Please help out by suggesting an addition to the list – click here. Useful? Share this post with your networks using…

Attracted by the presumed fast pace environment of scale-up businesses, many experienced staff working at universities, notably in International Offices, have crossed over to the “vendor” side. Data from The PIE Exec Search recruitment business, part of The PIE stable, has revealed a sharp increase in job listings in the last nine months, with private sector jobs accounting for almost 70% of new vacancies. Career confidence in higher education has increased post-pandemic but has also signalled a shift towards professionals considering private sector opportunities. In the months between August 2021 and May 2022, The PIE Exec Search recorded double the number of…

Industry experts gathered at the House of Commons in London to discuss ‘Measuring the wrong things? How should we judge the success of universities in creating value?’ in what HEPI Director Nick Hillman referred to as a ‘morning of self reflection’. Alison Johns, CEO of Advance Higher Education, introduced the ‘fresh debate’, for which the need has grown – amid demand across the sector – on how it captures and measures success beyond traditional measures at the breakfast seminar, which was the first hosted by Advance HE and HEPI since February 2020. Christopher Hales, interim chief executive and director of policy,…

Background The UK government published the International Education Strategy(IES): global potential, global growth in March 2019. Led by Department for Education (DfE) and Department for International Trade (DIT), it sets a cohesive, cross-government approach supporting global activities of our education sector. It also sets out 2 ambitions to achieve by 2030: increase education exports to £35 billion per year increase the numbers of international higher education (HE) students studying in the UK to 600,000 per year The IES 2021 update: Supporting recovery, driving growth, published in February 2021, re-committed the UK government to achieving the 2 ambitions. It made a…

Evolving ambition: How can we achieve sustainable growth in international student recruitment? Source

Graduates from eligible universities who have been awarded a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the last five years can apply for the two-year work visa without a prior job offer, while PhD holders can apply for a three-year visa.  The list for degrees awarded between November 2021 and October 2022 includes institutions from the USA, Hong Kong, Switzerland, Sweden, Japan, Canada, Singapore, France, China, Australia and Germany.  The new route is part of the UK government’s move towards a “points-based” immigration system, which UK home secretary Priti Patel said “puts talent and ability first”.  “It will offer the UK an…

QS’ International Student Survey, released on May 30, coincides with a new update from the UK government on its international education strategy, in which it was conceded that the country must “avoid complacency” when it comes to maintaining its stead in the international education sector. “As a sector we have faced unprecedented challenges over the last two years due to the pandemic,” said QS CEO Nunzio Quacquarelli in a statement about the report. “This year’s report looks closely at the UK’s IES and how institutions can reduce the risk of becoming over-reliant on any single market for their international recruitment…

The Agent Quality Framework, based on research done by BUILA and UKCISA, was presented to delegates during the International Student Agents Summit in London on May 25, by BUILA chair Bobby Mehta, and is now live on the BUILA website – with more news to come as the year progresses. The framework proposes an ethical code, training, agent databases and soft regulation across the board, revamping the UK sector’s approach to agents entirely. “Every institution works with agents in different ways, but this framework gives you the flexibility to use it as a reference point, but in a way that…

In this episode of our continuing podcast series, ICEF’s Craig Riggs (editor of ICEF Monitor) and Martijn van de Veen (vice-president of business development) discuss the latest developments in our sector, with a special focus on a new student survey from Nigeria and a just-announced policy around joint and dual degrees in India. They are joined by extended in-person panels in Toronto and Montreal for a feature discussion on Canada as a leading study destination. The panelists include Magda Link, vice president of sales for ILAC; Thevi Pather, associate vice president international for Saskatchewan Polytechnic; Ana Paula de Souza, senior…