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• EdTech connections good for business

  This was the view from Education New Zealand hosted networking events for over 40 representatives from the edtech sector in Wellington, Auckland and Dunedin last month. 

  It was a great opportunity to share development and export experiences and meet like-minded business contacts. As well as making new business connections, attendees were interested in ways to create more opportunities to learn and collaborate. 

  Bennett Medary, Chairman of the NZ Technology Industry Association, spoke to the meetings about creating a group of edtech members under the NZTech umbrella. Edtech investor, Dr Sue Watson, Chief Executive of Summit Education Asia Pacific, facilitated the discussion.

  Views were varied but overall attendees were positive about the formation of an edtech sector group, particularly as part of a well-established industry association. There was interest in a group that connected widely across sectors including with educators, other tech companies and investors. 

  Chris Bulman of Bud-e-Digital said: “Getting together is important so you can learn from what others are doing and joining with NZTech would mean that edtech companies are hooked into the wider tech sector.“

  Other priorities expressed for the group included coordination and monitoring of international research and trends, support to take New Zealand companies to market, and established opportunities for networking and real collaboration.

  “Working together means the sector can have more resources to build the reputation of New Zealand edtech which is good for us all,” said Joanne Ho of Kiwa Digital.

  NZTech and ENZ are working on the formation of an edtech group and will be contacting people who offered support at the meetings to help develop a programme for the group to grow the value of the edtech sector.

  To learn more about global edtech opportunities and New Zealand’s special advantages – a high quality education system and an innovative, problem solving culture - watch this video from the EdTech for Export conference held in late June this year.

• INZ’s new eMedical system

  About 20 percent of visa applicants require a physical health assessment as part of their application. Replacing INZ’s existing paper-based medical certificate, eMedical will be used by INZ’s panel physicians to record results of an applicants’ immigration medical examination. This information is provided to Immigration New Zealand through a secure online channel and in most cases, will not need manual assessment by immigration officers.

  In the first stage, eMedical is available to six offshore countries - Cambodia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Viet Nam.

  There will be a second rollout stage at the end of January 2015 to all offshore eMedical-enabled countries. The final rollout stage will be onshore in New Zealand from the end of March 2015, coinciding with the establishment of INZ’s new onshore panel physician network.

  Paper-based certificates will continue to be used in countries where eMedical is not available.

  For more information visit INZ’s website.

• A day in the life of a Kiwi student

  Going to classes, studying, hanging out with friends, working, shopping and keeping fit are common experiences – shared through videos that are being published around the world.

  “These students are so passionate about their lives in New Zealand,” says Hannah Lee-Darboe, new Acting Marketing and Channels General Manager, who has joined ENZ on secondment from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise until June 2015.

  “Who better to share the New Zealand study experience, than our current students showing what life is like in New Zealand.”

  As well as paid advertising, ENZ are reaching out to prospective students on the Study in New Zealand Facebook page.

  “We’ve been busting myths and providing more info about life in New Zealand targeted at students who are pretty certain they’ll study abroad but are still deciding where,” says Hannah.

  While the videos provide a slice of student life that could be anywhere in the country, the stars themselves come from Onslow College in Wellington (Yang Xiao from China), Youbee Design School in Christchurch (Anaiss Ramirez from Chile) and Canterbury, Auckland and Waikato universities (featuring Hannah Vu from Viet Nam, Alicia Jauhari from Indonesia and Lucas Castro Oliveira from Brazil).

  They won a competition run by Education New Zealand to find local stars by showing on screen their five favourite things about New Zealand they’d share with family and friends back home.

  “Hokey pokey icecream and our beautiful environment came up a lot,’ says Hannah. “Along with the education and lifestyle experiences we know makes New Zealand special: the good friends that are made, the ability to work while studying, their relationships with their teachers – and of course the wealth of lifestyle options on your doorstep after class.”

  So far the videos have seen 16,000 new likes on Facebook, there are more than 750 conversations underway, and the videos are proving most popular in Indonesia, India and Viet Nam.

  The campaign is running on digital and social channels in all ENZ priority markets until mid-December.

  www.studyinnewzealand.com/day-in-the-life

• PMSA students flying the flag in Beijing

  Students Jessica Clark and Samuel (Kiram) Choi are both currently on PMSA-funded exchanges to Renmin University in Beijing, China.

  Recently, they organised a New Zealand stand at the university’s international cultural festival.

  “It was such an incredible day – the weather was close to perfect with a slight breeze, beaming sun and minimal pollution,” says Jess.

  “The day started at 7.00am when we set up the stall. Throughout the day there were many activities, food and photos. It was a great opportunity to hand out items from our New Zealand universities and teach people how to pass a rugby ball!”

  Jess is completing a Bachelor of Management Studies at the University of Waikato and is currently studying at Renmin University’s world-renowned business school as well as undertaking an intensive Chinese language programme.

  Samuel is at Renmin for 40 weeks studying Chinese law towards completing an LLB (hons) and Bachelor of Commerce conjoint at University of Auckland. He is the first student from the University of Auckland to be nominated to study at Renmin Law School as part of a newly developed exchange relationship between the two universities.

  “Our scholarship students in Asia are ambassadors for New Zealand, helping raise the profile of our country and way of life in places where people may never have met another Kiwi,” says Peter Bull, Education New Zealand’s General Manager International.

  “It’s great to see Jess and Samuel proudly representing New Zealand at Renmin University and perhaps planting a seed in the minds of a few Chinese students considering studying overseas.”

  “Education relationships are two-way and having smart capable New Zealand students studying in China is very valuable in building capability for New Zealand's future.”

  In true international student spirit, Jess and Samuel were joined on the stand by Hweiching Lim, a New Zealander studying towards a law degree at the University of Kent in England, who is also on exchange at Renmin University.

  The Prime Minister’s Scholarships for Asia cover overseas study, research, or internships ranging from six weeks to two years at some of the best Asian institutions.

  In three rounds of funding, just over 350 New Zealand students have been given the opportunity to further their studies in a different country and culture while building all important people-to-people networks with our trading partners.

  Applications are now open for the March and September 2015 rounds of the PMSA. Visit the PMSA pages for further information and to find out about this year’s winners. 

  

• Education publishers to go to TIBE 2015

  New Zealand is Guest of Honour at next year’s event and we are part of a wider sponsors group that includes the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, Creative New Zealand, MFAT and the Publishers Association of New Zealand.

  Six educational publishers – Lanky Hippo, ESA Publications, Wendy Pye Publishing, MJA Publishing, NZCER and Clean Slate Press – are attending the book fair to promote their educational products and services.

  “This is the largest offshore presence of education publishers since the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2012,” said David Glover who is managing the project for the Publishers Association.

  “Research shows that one third of New Zealand’s education publishing income is earned from exports and TIBE is a valuable opportunity for publishers to make connections in the Asian market.”

  “TIBE is also a big public fair that attracts almost half a million visitors. With New Zealand as Guest of Honour we should be able to raise the profile of both New Zealand publishers and our education system in general.”

  Over the past 28 years the Wendy Pye Group has worked in many Asian countries, including Taiwan and China.

  “Our flagship product, Sunshine Classics, has already been sold into mainland China and will be released as a celebration package for the Chinese New Year, in Chinese and English in both print and as apps for Apple iPads,” said Wendy Pye.

  “While in Taipei, the company will be involved in a discussion for a collection of the best of Margaret Mahy titles in picture book format for translation into Chinese.”

  Clean Slate Press also have experience in Asia but are looking to get into Taiwan specifically.

  “We are currently selling in China through an agent and have distributors in Singapore and Hong Kong but are keen to expand our base,” said Sandy Roydhouse of Clean Slate Press.

  “PANZ are doing the groundwork around TIBE and getting Taiwanese publishers on board which should make all the difference this year.”

  “Along with our range of maths and literacy books, we are the exclusive education publisher of Joy Cowley titles and she is well-loved in Asia.”

  For David Ellis of the New Zealand Council for Educational Research, TIBE is the opportunity to test the water in Asia.

  “NZCER Press is a small publisher with a long history publishing research-informed content for the education sector in New Zealand. We need to strengthen our international reach to continue to attract the best authors and to ensure the sustainability of our organisation.”

  “We are particularly strong in teacher education, with a lot of interest internationally in our indigenous and early childhood education publishing programmes.”

  “It is difficult to build relationships from a distance and so going as part of a group to this major fair should make it easier for us to meet with the right people and establish connections.”

  “We will also be meeting with the Taiwanese Education Research Association which is a similar organisation to our own. We hope they can help us to understand the market in Taiwan and wider Asia, including partnership opportunities involving our new online assessment platform", said David.

  For more information and news about TIBE 2015 visit http://www.publishers.org.nz/news/

• Gold Standard for Education New Zealand

  The Public Affairs Asia Gold Standard Awards celebrates and showcases the achievements of companies, governments, and diplomatic missions in the Asia Pacific region. 

  In Hong Kong to receive the award, Ziena Jalil, ENZ Regional Director for South and South East Asia said: “It’s fantastic to receive this recognition from industry peers against some very tough competition and for a campaign that has only really been running for a year.”

  The awards attracted more than 200 entries and were presented at a gala ceremony attended by a host of senior professionals from corporate affairs, communications agencies, NGOs, the media and the diplomatic service.

  “Our campaign aimed to build New Zealand’s reputation in India as a high quality education destination. It’s really exciting and satisfying to see the strategy translate into student numbers. India is now the fastest growing source of international students to New Zealand.”

  The Think New: Think New Zealand campaign weaves together multiple strands of activity focused on three strategic themes: deepening government relations; targeted business development initiatives; and an intensive integrated PR and marketing campaign.

  “Our strategy focused on consistent messaging and leveraging advocates across key states in India. The Think New brand launched in November 2013, introducing messaging and visuals focused on the concept of ‘new’ to better promote New Zealand.

  “We also worked closely with other agencies including the New Zealand High Commission and Immigration New Zealand to support the messaging in-market. The changes to students’ work rights policy implemented in January 2014 were followed by joint ENZ/INZ communications in India creating greater awareness of the change,” said Ziena.

  

  Recognising India and New Zealand’s shared love of cricket, popular Indian Premier League coach of the Chennai Super Kings and former New Zealand Black Caps cricket captain Stephen Fleming joined the campaign as a brand ambassador.

  Stephen was integral in raising awareness through digital competitions, media events, scholarship announcements, school roadshows, education fairs and networking functions. He attracted thousands of potential students and stakeholders, taking the time to talk to people about the benefits of education in New Zealand

  We worked to turn challenges into opportunities - during New Delhi’s summer heat and Mumbai’s monsoon, we took to the shopping malls with the Think New campaign, capturing the crowds as they escaped the weather.

  Business development opportunities continue to be explored both in India and New Zealand with ENZ presenting regularly at industry conferences around India, sharing New Zealand’s strengths with key business people. Several new scholarships have been established for study in New Zealand, linked to post-study work options that will establish valuable connections between both countries.

  Brand awareness has increased by 33 percent in India and New Zealand education featured in over 700 print and online media from October 2013 to July 2014.

  Indian student numbers in 2013 increased for the first time in three years and student visas issued to Indian nationals increased 83 percent between January and July 2014.

• ENZ staff update
  Hannah Lee-Darboe has been seconded from NZTE to Education New Zealand as Acting General Manager – Marketing and Channel Development. Hannah was the High Impact Programme Portfolio Director at NZTE and is an experienced international marketer with 14 years’ experience growing businesses internationally. She will be with us until the end of June 2015.
   
  Emily Branthwaite, Programme Leader – Christchurch Industry Support Programme is leaving Canterbury Development Corporation and Education New Zealand after nearly three years of playing a central role in driving the recovery of Christchurch’s international education industry post-earthquakes. As the Christchurch Industry Support Programme transitions from delivery to complete by June 2015, Emily leaves to pursue other opportunities and we wish her well for the future. Emily hands over her programme leadership responsibilities to ENZ’s new Christchurch-based Business Development Manager, Greg Scott.
   
  Chortip Pramoolpol has been appointed to the position of Marketing and Strategic Relations Manager – Thailand. Chortip has been the Marketing Manager for Zespri International Limited since 2011 where she oversaw sales, marketing, customer relations and operations of the Zespri business in Thailand. Her role will be to establish and manage relationships with government agencies and key Thai education partners, provide information on the market and opportunities for New Zealand organisations, and lead ENZ marketing and promotional activities. Chortip starts with us on 12 January 2015.

• We’re Always On

  Having a continual in-market presence that actively promotes New Zealand’s attributes as a study destination boosts our chances of prospective students including New Zealand in their consideration set.

  The objective of the 'Always On' activity is to drive prospective students (and parents of students) to targeted content landing pages on studyinnewzealand.com.  The goal of the landing pages is for these students to register their details to find out more about studying in New Zealand either through an Education New Zealand Recognised Agency (ENZRA) or directly with an institution.  The other objective of the activity is to deliver the New Zealand education brand proposition, ‘Think New’, in a way that will resonate with our target audience and see them consider New Zealand as a valid study option.

  We’re currently live in India, China, Malaysia and Viet Nam, and will go live very soon in Thailand and Indonesia.  For each country we’re creating ‘’home’’ pages

  (e.g. India), sector-specific pages (e.g. universities) and, coming soon, programme-specific pages (e.g. engineering).

  All pages will be in the local language.  

  

• Student stories go social

  The films were promoted on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Weibo, Wechat and the blogging platform Naffnang. Students were encouraged to watch the films, ask questions about life in New Zealand, get in touch and join our social community.

  While the videos provided a slice of student life that could be anywhere in the country, the stars themselves come from Onslow College in Wellington (Yang Xiao from China), Yoobee Design School in Christchurch (Anaiss Ramirez from Chile) and Canterbury, Auckland and Waikato universities (featuring Hannah Vu from Viet Nam, Alicia Jauhari from Indonesia and Lucas Castro Oliveira from Brazil).

  The campaign was designed to show prospective students that New Zealand is a fun and welcoming place to live and study so that, when they’re ready to choose a place to study in a couple of years’ time, New Zealand will already be on their short list.

  The videos were viewed by close to 250,000 people around the world and proved most popular in Viet Nam, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and India in that order. The videos also saw impressive engagement with more than 111,000 ‘likes’, 1,100 ‘shares’ and almost 1,500 questions or comments about the videos and related content posts.

  Topics the students were most interested in included study subjects, living costs, food options and making new friends. Overall, the campaign saw an increase of 32,000 new followers to our social media channels.

  As well as activity on social media, a campaign landing page on studyinnewzealand.com was developed to further engage with prospective students. The landing page has so far seen more than 63,000 unique visitors who have spent an average of 2 minutes 20 seconds on the site watching further videos and learning more about our five campaign heroes.

  There were many learnings from this campaign, not the least of which was gleaning valuable insights in to the social and digital behaviours of our target audiences in each market.

  It is clear from this campaign that social media is both a cost efficient and effective way to reach prospective students and drive awareness of New Zealand as a study destination.

  A reminder that the ‘Day in the Life’ videos are also are available for download from The Brand Lab. You might find them a useful addition to your marketing activities!

  

• Enrolments on the rise

  “These are exciting times for our international education industry – a 12 percent increase in enrolments means just over 10,000 more students from all around the globe have come to New Zealand for a world-class education,” says John Goulter, Acting Chief Executive, Education New Zealand.

  “International education is vital to strengthening New Zealand’s economic and social links with the world. Every student takes home a quality qualification and an unforgettable experience, raising the profile of New Zealand in communities in all corners of the world.”

  International education brings in $2.85 billion a year which makes it the country’s fifth most valuable export industry.

  The International Education Snapshot Report: January to August 2014 is available here.