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• International education a $2.6 billion dollar industry
  Infometrics valued the economic contribution of international students to New Zealand at $2.5 billion and the sale and delivery of New Zealand’s education services and products offshore at $104 million. 
  Education New Zealand (ENZ) Chief Executive, Grant McPherson, says while the report presents a comprehensive picture of international education’s economic contribution, its immense social and cultural benefits shouldn’t be forgotten when considering value. 

   

  “As well as its economic benefits, international education strengthens New Zealand’s global connections. It helps tomorrow’s business partners, investors, politicians and leaders – both from New Zealand and overseas – to form enduring connections and build greater cultural understanding.”

   

  Visit the Research webpage for a copy of the report and an infographic of key findings.

• Building links with Colombian scholarship agency

  COLFUTURO is a public/private partnership agency tasked with assisting the brightest young Colombians to pursue postgraduate studies overseas.

  Each university showcased its distinctive strengths during the visit and have all expressed keen interest in working with COLFUTURO to receive top Colombian students.

  Jerónimo was impressed with the quality of our universities, and in particular, the attractiveness of New Zealand’s PhD programmes, which he identified as holding great potential for growth for New Zealand in the Colombian market.

  During the trip, Jerónimo stressed the importance of people-to-people connections in developing links with COLFUTURO – something he regarded as particular success of the visit.

  He also stressed that COLFUTURO is different from most scholarship programmes in that:

  • it carefully matches quality students with quality faculties

  • it supports study in all subject areas

  • an unlimited number of students can apply to any one institution

  Although COLFUTURO does not directly influence where students study, they do have an Academic Advisory Centre where students can research potential study destinations. It is here that institutions can provide targeted information to potential COLFUTURO students.

  COLFUTURO also has a service for self-funded students to look at English study abroad options.  Agreements with English language centres within a number of New Zealand universities are under discussion. 

  COLFUTURO operates a talent recruitment programme whereby it selects high-achieving students from top Colombian universities and supports them to become COLFUTURO scholarship recipients. It also helps them access funding from other sources. ENZ will talk with these students while attending the Latin American and Caribbean Higher Education Conference in Barranquilla, Colombia in mid-November this year.

  If you have queries or would like further information, contact Cecily Lin at Education New Zealand Cecily.Lin@educationnz.govt.nz

• Applying for visas online

  The new system, Immigration ONLINE (also known by its project name as the Immigration Global Management System or IGMS), enables a student to first create a profile and an account that’s unique to them, and then answer questions or provide information to make a visa application in the following tabs: Identity > Contact Details > Study Details > Financial Support > Health Details > Character Details > Education & Work History > Other details.

  A student is then able to upload documents relevant to their application, pay online, declare what they have provided is accurate and true and then submit their application.

  Behind the scenes, the online application process is ‘situationally aware’, only serving up questions relevant to the user. For example male applicants won’t be asked any health questions relating to pregnancy.

  There’s also the ability to answer questions via drop-down lists; populate qualifications-related fields with information driven by New Zealand Qualifications Authority data; and auto save as you go - so you can come back and finish the application later.

  Further functionality includes contextual ‘help’ information if users need more information about a specific question, and alerts to prompt the user to complete any missed mandatory information.

  Applicants can upload their photo which will be run through the new face biometric matching engine in Immigration ONLINE.

  The online application will result in more complete applications being submitted, removing some of the issues experienced with paper based forms, such as unanswered questions or missing supporting documents.

  From the INZ side, Immigration Officers will be able to see the online application and supporting documents on AMS and the new Document Management System. If further information is required, the Immigration Officer can email the applicant and request the information. The applicant then returns to their account and uploads what’s been requested.

  People who are unable to apply online will still be able to apply via a Visa Application Centre or by mail onshore.

  INZ’s next step will be to demonstrate the student visa online application to a representative set of end users building on feedback already received.  The goal for these sessions will be to verify usability and seek feedback on surrounding business processes.

  While the online student visa application service was scheduled to go live in late-2013, it will now be rolled out in 2014 (exact timing to be confirmed) so the system can be further tested and refined to ensure the end product is highly secure, robust and effective.

  For further information, please read the frequently asked questions for education providers here.

• Market Research: Opportunities in China

  The research identifies sector-specific opportunities in the targeted tier one and two cities of Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Qingdao and Chengdu/Chongqing.

  The research has been summarised and arranged under the following headings:

  • Market demand
  • Student decision-making
  • Education opportunities, and
  • Strategy in the Chinese market

  You can access the research summaries here

  Please contact ebd@enz.govt.nz to request the full research presentations.

• School campaign hits a million

  This is a strong result for a campaign that was designed to build awareness of New Zealand’s education brand in these markets. To ensure that the messages reached the right audience the campaign specifically targeted parents via online keyword searches who are thinking of sending their children overseas for high school education. Through short video clips, students shared what it’s like to study and live in New Zealand; parents shared what it’s like to send their child here; and international support staff at New Zealand schools talked about how they support their international students during their studies.

  After watching the videos parents could read further information and follow a link to find their closest local New Zealand Specialist Agent (NZSA). They could also choose to download a PDF of the key information and a list of their local agents.

  The campaign focuses on marketing ‘more than a world class education’ by showcasing to potential students and their parents that you get more from a New Zealand education: a better learning experience, greater lifestyle opportunities and the foundations for a promising future and career.

  The school campaign has now finished but ENZ is using the landing pages for ongoing specific search engine queries from these audiences.

• Changes to INZ’s panel physicians

  INZ is continuing to implement changes to its panel physician network as part the agreement with Australia’s Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) to create a jointly managed offshore panel physician network. 

  Implementation of the network, which is occurring in a phased approach, is expected to be fully completed by November 2014.  Changes implemented in April and June 2013 resulted in alignment of panel physicians in over 100 countries.

  INZ is now making some changes to its panel in China, ahead of formal alignment with DIBP in this region in late 2014.  This will result in the addition and removal of some panel physicians, but will not result in a net decrease of INZ panel physician coverage in China.

  Changes will be effective as of 1 November 2013.

  • Panel physicians being removed from INZ’s list have been informed not to accept appointments after 31 October 2013.

  • Applicants who have had a medical and/or chest X-ray certificate completed by a panel physician being removed from INZ’s panel will still be able to submit these with their visa application if they have been completed prior to 1 November 2013.

  • The INZ panel physician list is on the INZ website . If applicants are unsure whether their medical certificates have been completed by a panel physician they should refer to the INZ website, or contact their nearest INZ office for further advice.

  Further information

  Additional information is published on INZ’s website  

• NZQA brochures now in Spanish and Japanese

  The New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) has developed a suite of language translations to promote NCEA study in New Zealand. Alongside the English language version, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Thai and German translations are available. The translations feature NCEA student success stories and the future study plans of these students.

  The brochure can also be downloaded from the NZQA website at the following links:

  http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/studying-in-new-zealand/secondary-school-and-ncea/

  http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/about-us/publications/nzqa-brochures/

  Free copies can be requested by contacting the NZQA Communications Team at coms@nzqa.govt.nz

• Expert advice for schools

  The case studies provide expert advice for schools from leading international education practitioners within the school sector.

  The case studies highlight key lessons from a primary, an intermediate and five secondary schools, from Auckland to Invercargill. The case studies explore a range of themes, including marketing, staffing models and capability, economics and financing, planning and processes, student experience, homestay and academic support, and overarching principles.

  A summary of the key lessons from all the case studies has been compiled into the Top tips for international student programmes. 

  The case studies are part of the growing range of ENZ products and services for schools. Other support includes the Strategic Roadmap programme, the International Education Growth Fund, school website review service, school reference group and Business Development Managers who can provide advice and support to help you grow your international business. More tools to support schools will be released in the coming months. To keep up with developments, subscribe to our E-news and keep an eye on our web site.

• Govt announcements welcomed

  The new initiatives included allowing more English language students studying at high-quality providers to work part-time, providing full-time work rights during all scheduled holidays to international students who take a course of one academic year or more, and giving unlimited work rights to international PhD and Masters by research students. Immigration New Zealand (INZ) will also no longer grant visas to students seeking to enrol at the few providers in Category 4, the lowest status granted by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA).

  Detailed questions and answers about the announcements are available on the INZ website.

  Education New Zealand (ENZ) has shared this news with agents and overseas media, with the announcements receiving good coverage via Facebook page postings, media coverage and via informing and engaging agents.

  Grant McPherson, ENZ Chief Executive, said last week: “Changes to government policy settings and regulations are incredibly important in supporting your efforts to grow international student numbers – we’ve heard that through the industry survey, the roadshow meetings and the feedback ENZ staff have taken on board at many meetings around the country.

  “These announcements are great news for our international competitiveness, but they’re not the end of the story. We will continue to work closely with agencies on initiatives to help grow our industry and we encourage you to stay in touch with us about the opportunities you see to further remove barriers to growth.”

• New China Team Members

  Felix Ye, formerly Director of International Students at Auckland Grammar School, has just begun work as our Education Manager based at the New Zealand Consulate-General in Guangzhou.  “Felix is perfect for this role”, says Alex.  “Having spent the past 11 years in a variety of international education positions in both public and private institutions, Felix comes to us with strong and proven credentials and networks.”  Additionally, “Felix originally came to New Zealand as an international student, and has a valuable innate understanding of the kinds of drivers and factors that go into the decision to go overseas to study,” says Alex.  “Felix understands ‘Why New Zealand?’ – and can clearly articulate this to prospective students”. 

  “I am very excited, both personally and professionally, to have this opportunity to work for ENZ in China and to grow our links with the South”, says Felix.  “Guangzhou is my hometown, and there is a lot of potential for New Zealand here.  Guangdong is already the number 1 source province for Chinese students in New Zealand, and with an ENZ presence now here – we are well-placed to develop the education relationship even further”.

  Felix is a fluent English, Mandarin, and Cantonese speaker, and will have responsibility for growing education business in Southern China, (Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Hainan, Hunan), Hong Kong and Macau.  To connect with Felix, drop him a line at felix.ye@enz.govt.nz.

  

  Sam Mackay, another familiar face to many, will soon be joining the China Team, based with Alex, Li Zhi, and Rosemary An at the New Zealand Embassy in Beijing.

  “Sam will be joining us as Senior Education Manager from the end of November, with responsibility for the government-to-government/policy side of the bilateral education relationship; as well as on growing education business”, says Alex. 

  Sam has a long history in international education, both at the government and institution level.  Sam has previously worked on the China relationship at our Ministry of Education; and has studied Mandarin in Beijing, where he also worked at the New Zealand Centre at Peking University.  “Sam comes to us with a robust international education and policy skillset and a solid understanding of both New Zealand and China”.

  Sam will be kick-starting his China work at the ENZ Conference in November, where he will represent the China Team in giving overview of China opportunities.  Sam can be reached at sam.mackay@enz.govt.nz.