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ATEED launches new Auckland strategy to guide visitor economy
ATEED General Manager Destination, Steve Armitage, says while more visitors are good news economically, the growth comes with challenges.
“People travel to Auckland to experience the many things our region has to offer. For some, it’s the world-class food and wine; for others, it’s the sporting, cultural and business events; or international students, who come from around the world to study at our learning institutions,” said Steve.
“It’s important that we continue to attract visitors to support and create jobs and amenities that benefit locals and visitors…so that Auckland is better off not just economically, but also socially and environmentally.”
The strategy outlines six strategic imperatives and key focus areas, and a comprehensive list of actions to deliver these, with two directly relating to international education:
- A Captivating Place: A region that entices visitors to stay longer and that locals love more than ever. Actions include developing an international student visitor plan.
- A Skilled Place: A region where more young men and women are choosing globally relevant careers in the visitor economy. Actions include developing a visitor sector training and employment strategy for youth and enhancing standards across the service sector.
Destination AKL 2025 was guided by an industry leadership group, and involved extensive consultation including interviews, workshops and discussions, as well as international benchmarking and surveys.
ENZ Chief Executive Grant McPherson, who was part of the industry leadership group, says that ATEED is showing real leadership in the way it is looking at its visitor plan.
He said this is evident in the way the strategy is based around destination management and not just attraction. This should ensure visitors are acknowledged as an asset to the Auckland region – a perspective that will reflect positively on the experience visitors go on to have in Auckland.
“International students are an important part of the visitor community and we are delighted that the strategy reflects this through the inclusion of an international student visitor plan.”
"The strategy has involved significant cross-industry collaboration to get to this point, and the plan is to keep this going. We are very optimistic about the direction Auckland is heading in and are looking forward to working with Auckland to bring it to life.”
Click here to read or download Destination AKL 2025.
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Around the world in five
EUROPE
Erasmus study abroad programme to extend beyond EU by 2021
As Brexit looms and more countries look to join the international higher education sector, the Erasmus exchange programme, which allows EU students to study within other EU regions, is set to allow other countries to participate.
JAPAN
ID system to track international student workers
Japan will start tracking international residents’ work status via its national ID system, allowing it to better enforce labour rules such as the 28-hour-per-week limit for work by international students.
CANADA
International recruitment keeps growing, but stakeholders concerned
The international student flow to Canada hasn’t slowed down after a record-breaking 51,020 study visas in 2017, but stakeholders are concerned that the sector needs to focus on outward mobility as well.
US
Report: US introduces restrictions for some Chinese visas
The US government is moving to limit the period of validity for visas issued to some Chinese students and researchers in specified technology fields.
NETHERLANDS
Courses and degrees in English are fine as long as standards don’t suffer
Institutions can offer more courses and degrees in English as long as it leads to an improvement in standards and Dutch students are not forced out, the country's education minister said amid concerns over the growing number of international students
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Kiwi finalists shortlisted for PIEoneer awards
The PIEoneer awards celebrate innovation and excellence in international education and are organised by PIE, publishers of the PIE Review magazine.
The New Zealand finalists are:
- ENZ, Study AKL and Niesh employment app (Public/private partnership of the year)
- SIEBA (Association of the Year)
- ENZ 1 million cent scholarship (Marketing campaign of the year)
- Fortune by Chasing Time English (Digital innovation of the year)
ENZ’s 1 million cent scholarship campaign, celebrating Study in New Zealand's social communities reaching 1 million social followers by giving away a scholarship, is a finalist for ‘Marketing campaign of the year’. The campaign generated 1,195 applications, delivered 10,000 new followers and achieved a whopping 20% engagement across our posts (1% is the benchmark for success).
ENZ’s partnership with ATEED and the student-owned services organisation Niesh was also a finalist in the ‘Public/private partnership of the year’ category. Together, we developed the Niesh Jobs Platform, an innovative app that provides international students with job opportunities and advice on how to prepare themselves for employment in New Zealand.
A full list of the finalists can be found here.
Winners will be announced in September.
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Mortal Engines trailer showcases Kiwi creativity
ENZ and the New Zealand Film Commission partnered with Universal Pictures, MRC and Hungry City Limited on the Mortal Engines promotion – recognising the benefits the production will bring to New Zealand including promotion of education.
Kristen Meads, ENZ’s Director Student Engagement, says the film showcases New Zealand’s education strengths in the creative arts which offer graduates global career opportunities.
“Production of this film took place entirely in New Zealand – not for our scenic landscapes but for our world class professionals in the creative industries sector. Some 98% of the crew were New Zealanders!“For international students interested in these fields, this shows New Zealand is a modern and creative country that offers world-leading and practical, creative arts education.”
Kristen says a marketing plan is taking shape to share the stories of recent graduates and industry professionals who worked on Mortal Engines.
"These stories will be shared across our one-million-strong social communities, paid digital advertising programme, worldwide PR, events and other in-market activities.”
The Mortal Engines trailer has been a big hit with our Study in New Zealand Facebook followers. A post on the SiNZ Facebook page this morning has already reached over 13,000 followers, with more than 2,000 video views and a high engagement rate of 7.9% (the benchmark is 1%).
Check out the trailer here.
Mortal Engines opens worldwide December 2018.
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Around the world in five
CANADA
Faster student visa processing for four Asian countries
Canada has launched a Student Direct Stream to make visa processing times faster for eligible students from China, India, Vietnam and the Philippines.
GLOBAL
Let them talk: The power of student reviews
Candid student reviews of study destinations and institutions have a profound impact on prospect engagement, search optimisation, and the overall effectiveness of the recruitment marketing effort.
US
Soft power declines as number of international students shrinks
The decline in international students studying in the US may mean a decline in the US’s soft power, according to two researchers at the University of Pittsburgh.
SOUTH EAST ASIA
Ed-tech start-up raises $8.5 million from Malaysian investors
An education technology start-up has raised $8.5 million as it aims to keep building its platform for hosting massive open online courses. The business has seven Australian universities and 30 Malaysian universities as customers.
UK
UK relaxes visa rules for students from 11 ‘low-risk’ countries
The UK Home Office has announced a revised immigration policy, no longer requiring student applicants from 11 countries to show proof for educational, financial and English requirements. The revised list does not include India, which The National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK has called unfair.
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Future Proof assets on The Brand Lab
The “Future Proof Yourself in New Zealand” celebrates New Zealand’s ranking as best in the world for preparing students for the future, in a report by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Philippa Brown, ENZ’s International Digital Content Manager, said that since the launch of the campaign in March, ENZ’s messaging has reached more than 33 million people around the world.
“Being ranked number one in the world has given us an opportunity to catch people’s attention and highlight the quality of New Zealand’s education offering,” she said.
“It’s a very strong message that resonates in every market. Because of this, we wanted to share the assets with the wider industry to ensure this positive message spreads far and wide.”
Future Proof imagery, videos and other assets are now available for New Zealand education partners to use in their own marketing.
These materials can be found on The Brand Lab by searching “Future Proof”.
The Future Proof campaign focuses on three key messages that outline New Zealand’s strengths in preparing students for the future:
- Develop future skills: In New Zealand, students learn to think for themselves and are supported to develop in-demand skills such as problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity and teamwork.
- New ways to learn: New Zealand combines a robust academic education with hands-on learning and real-world experience, giving students an edge in their future career.
- Open and welcoming: New Zealand’s fair, free and diverse society allows students to be themselves, and helps them develop qualities that can get them ahead in the global workplace.
Find out more about Future Proof.
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Study in New Zealand website delivers greater value
Euan Howden, ENZ’s Student Attraction Director, says prospective students are increasingly using StudyinNewZealand.govt.nz (SiNZ) to search for study options, with new statistics showing use of SiNZ’s search widgets (stand-alone applications) surged 117% from last year.
“The addition of the ‘Find a course’ search widget last year, alongside existing widgets for institutions/schools, scholarships and agents, has considerably improved engagement.
“This shows the site is delivering value to prospective students as well as New Zealand providers who want to attract students to their unique education offerings.”
Those using the new search widgets are finding what they are looking for much quicker and are spending more time reading the results, an average of 4.22 minutes, which combined with a bounce rate (people who leave without reading further) of 5.9% is an outstanding result – the industry bounce rate average is 40%.
“The recent improvements to the search widgets have significantly increased our target audience’s exposure to content about why they should choose New Zealand, and we’re very pleased with results to date,” says Euan.
The SINZ search widgets allow prospective students to search for courses, institutions, scholarships and agents.This improved search performance coincides with a suite of other initiatives designed to improve site performance and deliver greater value to students.
Other updates include:
- Default search results are now randomised if a user has not used any search filters. This is a change from the previous approach of presenting results in alphabetical order and means preference won’t be given to institutions with names beginning with ‘A’.
- The start date refinement filter has been removed due to inconsistencies in the data available from institutions, which led to inconsistent search results.
- Keyword search will be enabled in the search widgets to allow for more intuitive search results for users.
These changes are in addition to the launch of My StudyNZ, which helps to connect students to New Zealand study options.
In the last year, more than one million users visited the SiNZ website. To maximise the potential of SINZ for your institution, ensure your institution’s profile is complete and up-to-date.
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Student visa processing update
In INZ’s future footprint, all student visa processing will be done in Beijing, Mumbai, and Palmerston North offices.
“We are confident that consolidating visa processing into a few key sites, and other changes to make technology and processes simpler, will deliver improved operational performance,” said Celia, who is INZ’s Sector Relationship Manager (Education).
“They will make visa decision-making more accurate, consistent and timely and deliver an improved customer experience.”
"So far this year, INZ offices in Hong Kong, Dubai, Pretoria, and Ho Chi Minh City have transitioned student visa processing to the Beijing and Mumbai INZ offices.
INZ’s management of the changes includes a process for the transfer of local market knowledge, which provides the context of different markets and includes training for staff in the receiving site.
“We will continue to refine and validate this information based on insights gathered as part of the offices’ on-going operational performance measurement.”
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Focus on Viet Nam visa processing
Since April, Mumbai has processed 129 student visa applications from Viet Nam. The approval rate is 72%, which is in line with the approval rates recorded when processing was done in Ho Chi Minh City.
INZ Sector Relationship Manager (Education), Celia Coombes, said that some education providers have expressed concern that INZ processes have changed since Mumbai began processing.
“We would like to take the opportunity to advise that this is not the case.
“The Mumbai office is doing some further work on understanding how particular sub-sectors interact with the Vietnamese market so staff can have the most up-to-date information.
“An INZ staff member will also accompany ENZ’s Agent Manager, Dan Smidt, to Viet Nam early next month so that both agencies can connect directly with education agents in market and nurture those key relationships.”
Celia said that if providers or students have any questions about visa decisions or processes relating to any of the three student visa processing offices (Beijing, Mumbai, or Palmerston North), please contact that office directly to discuss.
She said that declines could be the result of incorrect documentation, or the agent not responding to a request for further information. The relevant processing office was best placed to provide clarity, she said.
New Zealand education providers with general feedback on the INZ system or policies can email this to INZ on IEengagement@mbie.govt.nz.
“At INZ, we realise that for many providers and agents, the closure of a local office can be a daunting time. Please be assured that INZ staff in Mumbai, Beijing and Palmerston North are ready and prepared to take over the work from other markets.
“We value your feedback and look forward to working with you constructively.”
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2017 student enrolments show focus on value
ENZ has today released a summary of international student enrolment information for the full year to 31 December 2017.
New Zealand institutions received 125,392 student enrolments last year, a decline of five percent (6,217 enrolments) on 2016.
The overall decrease was driven by a drop in international student enrolments in private training establishments (PTE), which were down 22 percent on 2016 figures. However, this was partially offset by increases in universities (seven percent), secondary schools (six percent), primary schools (29 percent) and intermediate schools (14 percent).
Further, there was strong growth in many regions and more students coming from a broader mix of countries including Colombia, Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand and Viet Nam.
ENZ Chief Executive Grant McPherson is pleased with the figures which he says reflect the recent work undertaken by government agencies to focus on quality over quantity in the sector.
“Considerable work has gone into rebalancing the sector, with increased emphasis on attracting international students to high-quality courses at New Zealand institutions in all parts of the country.
“This is reflected especially in the enrolment growth at postgraduate level. Since 2013, the number of postgraduate international students has grown consistently, with 63 percent more postgraduate international students in 2017 than in 2013.
“For this reason, despite the decline in student numbers, the 2017 economic value of the sector remained stable.”
He said that ENZ was committed to ensuring that “international students have a high-quality experience while studying here and return home as great advocates for New Zealand”.
The decline in the PTE subsector was due to a 28 percent reduction in students from India. This drove the nine percent decrease (7,661 fewer students) in Auckland from 2016, while growth in the university and secondary school subsectors supported the increased number of international students in other regions of New Zealand.
“While Auckland continues to be an important destination for international students with 60 percent of all enrolments, we want to ensure that the benefits of international education flow into the regions, not just our big cities,” says Grant.
“International students are increasingly aware of the high-quality education offering outside Auckland, with the Waikato region in particular seeing growth of eight percent in 2017. Enrolments in the Manawatu-Whanganui, Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, Otago and Southland regions are growing too.”
The 2017 economic value of the sector is similar to the published 2016 economic value of $4.5 billion. ENZ is currently undertaking a report to calculate the economic value of international students to New Zealand for 2017. This will be published later this year.
An infographic summary of the full-year 2017 international student enrolment data can be found here.
