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• International students awarded for ICT excellence

  Ruslan Levenets, who originally studied law in Russia, came to study in New Zealand in preparation of a career change. 

  “I had some practical skills and interest in IT, but my main motivation for study was to have a strong theoretical background,” said Levenets.

  Ruslan was awarded most outstanding student for the Graduate Diploma in Information Assurance and Security. The award was sponsored by ISACA, an international professional association for IT governance.

  Mike Binkhorst, president of the Wellington chapter of ISACA, believes supporting top students is an important part of building the future of their industry. 

  “We're keen to encourage people into the profession to make a difference in the field. ISACA promotes frameworks and standards in IT to improve governance and security. Education and supporting the next generation is a big part of that,” said Binkhorst.

  

  Alexander Sokolov with Alisdair McKenzie

  Also achieving excellence in IT was Alexander Sokolov who was awarded most outstanding student for the Graduate Diploma in Information Technology. He received his award from Alisdair McKenzie, a member of WelTec’s IT Industry Partnership Committee. 

  “WelTec’s Industry Partnership Committee offers guest lectures, takes interns and reviews WelTec's IT programmes – all so that they deliver what the industry is needing,” said McKenzie. 

  “We work to ensure that the tertiary education sector is harmonised with business and industry requirements.”

  Ian Hunter from WelTec’s School of Business & IT said the involvement of industry associations makes a significant difference to the way WelTec students are taught. 

  “Our students are working on real scenarios and real problems as part of their academic programme,” said Hunter.

• iStudent Complaints update

  The iStudent Complaints scheme was set up by the Government to resolve contractual and financial disputes between international students and their education providers. It replaced the International Education Appeal Authority (IEAA).

  All 16 complaints to date have involved Private Training Establishments (PTEs) with the majority referring to providers that are declining course fee refunds after the students withdrew from their study courses. Four cases have been settled, while another two were adjudicated in favour of the education provider. The remaining cases are still going through the resolution process.

  iStudent Scheme Director, Derek Pullen, said the small number could indicate there is little cause for dispute or many students are not yet aware of the scheme.

  He noted that the scheme has highlighted gaps in providers’ internal complaints processes.

  “Under the Education (Pastoral Care of International Students) Code of Practice 2016, providers must ensure they have an effective internal process for addressing grievances, and that international students are informed about the process,” explained Pullen.

  “Providers must also make students aware of the iStudent Complaints scheme and other relevant authorities if the student can't access the internal process or is dissatisfied with the outcome.

  “Yet many of the providers we’ve dealt with don't have a documented complaints process. We urge all providers to ensure they have a clearly documented, up-to-date and easily accessible complaints process.”

  For more information see www.istudent.org.nz.

• 2016 Code of Practice resources now available

  A key piece of the collateral is a special PDF that has been designed to make the Code of Practice more accessible to the sector – specifically signatories, agents, international students and their families, and relevant agencies.

  Alongside this, NZQA has created a brochure that summarises the Code and provides important information for international students (at both a secondary and tertiary level), and their families and caregivers.

  The pdfs and brochure are available in English as well as Arabic, German, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, simplified Chinese, Spanish, Thai and Vietnamese.

  After widespread consultation across the sector, NZQA has also developed a Code of Practice toolbox, with the intention of helping signatories meet their obligations. The toolbox includes examples of good practice collected from around the sector that can be tailored and applied to different organisations.

  These resources are available here on the NZQA website.

  The Code of Practice toolbox can also be found on the NZQA website. It will develop over time, reflecting the material submitted by the sector.

• ACG expands its New Zealand vocational group

  ACG Group Chief Executive, John Williamson, said that acquisitions are part of ACG’s plan to broaden its portfolio of high-quality educational services.

  “With ongoing demand for recognised, quality educational qualifications, we are well positioned to grow, either through developing new offerings ourselves or acquiring providers whose philosophies and standards match ours,” said Williamson.

  ACG’s vocational diplomas, degrees and courses are offered in a range of creative industries such as IT, tourism and hospitality, trades and services, health, and early childhood. The acquisitions will now see ACG delivering education to over 12,000 students through its 35 campuses across three countries.

  ACG’s other institutions include Yoobee School of Design, New Zealand Management Academies, New Zealand School of Tourism and New Zealand Career College.

  Animation College is New Zealand's leading character animation college, delivering both traditional and 3D animation courses. AMES is one of New Zealand’s top IT education providers, while South Seas Film & Television School is a leading film, television, screen acting, animation and photography training institution.

• Korean students: “I want to study in New Zealand”

  Launched in October, the competition aims to mobilise Korean agents to promote New Zealand education and attract students to enrol with New Zealand providers (participating students must use the service of an agent). 

  The promotion of the competition attracted a record number of Korean agents to the ENZ agent seminar in Seoul and the ENZ team received very positive feedback about the initiative. While the winning students stand to gain a significant contribution towards their costs of studying in New Zealand, the highest performing agents will also be rewarded with a familiarisation trip to New Zealand (or flights between Korea and New Zealand).

  The entry for the short video is open until 31 January 2017. ENZ’s Regional Lead, North Asia, Cecily Lin said this is an excellent opportunity for New Zealand providers.

  “The competition is an invaluable opportunity to promote your school or institution and your region – you can maximise this by directly supporting your agents with information and resources,” said Cecily.

  All video entries from the competition are publically accessible and will promote the student’s sector and/or provider of choice until the competition closes. ENZ will also profile quality entries and the winning Korean students through our social media channels in January and beyond the competition.  

  Recently joining the ENZ team is Dahee Sohn, a talented Korean international student skilled in social media, who will be working to boost our ENZ Naver blog and Facebook posts. We’ll be active in these platforms so please follow our posts and make sure you direct your agents to them too.

  ENZ has also provided resources to agents to promote New Zealand – including an open poster artwork they can adapt to include their branding to reach out to potential students. 

• New Minister announced

  First elected as a National Party list MP in 2011, Paul Goldsmith served as the Chair of the Parliamentary Finance and Expenditure Select Committee. Following the 2014 General Election he was appointed Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and Associate Minister for ACC.

  Before entering Parliament, Paul Goldsmith was an historian and biographer focusing on New Zealand’s history and economic development. Between 2007 and 2010 he served as an Auckland City Councillor.

  ENZ has prepared a briefing for Minister Goldsmith as incoming Minister, and will aim to ensure a smooth transition to support our busy work programme.

• New Zealand headlines Saudi Arabian vocational conference

  The Saudi Technical Conference and Exhibition on 14-15 December in Riyadh was organised by the government’s Technical and Vocational Training Corporation and focused on the skills and training solutions required to support the country’s 2030 Vision.

  Saudi Arabia’s 2030 Vision aims to raise the percentage of vocationally qualified Saudis, and to increase the connections and alignment between their school and vocational education systems.

  Dr Ede opened the final day of the conference with a presentation on Jobs of the Future: Increasing Job Opportunities & Productivity. The presentation explored how technology is disrupting employment and skills ecosystems, and showcased where New Zealand is meeting these challenges through world-leading education solutions such as The Mind Lab and Tech Futures Lab.

  John Laxon, ENZ’s Regional Director for South/South East Asia & the Middle East, said New Zealand is now well placed to stand out in the market for this education industry.

  “The conference provided an invaluable opportunity to showcase New Zealand’s expertise, at a time when Saudi Arabia is reforming its education system and looking for international partners” said John.

  Dr. Rick Ede presenting to the Conference on 'Jobs of the Future'

  “We’re grateful to Rick and the Corporation for making the most of this opportunity. New Zealand’s successful integration of TVET and higher education means that we’re uniquely placed to support the Saudi Government in their vocational reform initiatives.”

  The conference was the first to be held under the sponsorship of the Minister of Education, signalling a shift in oversight for Saudi’s vocational education system from the Ministry of Labour.

  Further partnership opportunities between Saudi and international operators were also signaled during the conference.

• Cricket great bats for NMIT

  NMIT chief executive Tony Gray said the cricketer is a household name in Sri Lanka and India.  These are both important markets for overseas student recruitment, making Jayawardena an influential asset for NMIT.

  "We’re fortunate to have such a superstar batting for NMIT. He has been a regular visitor to NMIT and genuinely believes in the opportunities that NMIT can give fellow Sri Lankans,” said Tony.

  "Having Mahela as brand ambassador will help us show Sri Lankan students that Nelson and Marlborough are the places to come to study and enjoy life at the same time."

  The arrangement will see Jayawardena promoting the educational attractions of NMIT in Sri Lanka, appearing on banners, posters, videos and social media for the institute.

  Tony Gray says NMIT wants to build its Sri Lanka numbers, especially students attracted to accountancy and business programmes. Currently, less than 20 per cent of Sri Lankan students who want to attend university in Sri Lanka are able to gain a place due to high demand and limited spaces - making overseas education very attractive.

  "We already have more than 30 Sri Lankans studying at NMIT and living in Nelson. They fit in very well, speak very good English and work hard,” said Tony.

• Educational publishing showcases New Zealand strengths

  Over the last three years, ENZ has supported the offshore activities of educational publishers under the Educational Publishing Export Programme, managed by the Publishers Association of New Zealand (PANZ).  

  ENZ’s Business Development Manager, Adele Bryant, said New Zealand has a proud history of educational publishing, from Dame Marie Clay’s development of reading recovery to Dame Wendy Pye’s mission to teach the world to read.

  “New Zealand educational publishing builds on the quality of New Zealand teachers, the progressive nature of our education system and our innovative and responsive publishing sector,” said Bryant.

  “Our industry’s digital publishing capability is also capturing the attention of new markets in Asia.”

  Earlier this month, a senior delegation from China’s Higher Education Press (HEP) visited New Zealand to meet four New Zealand publishers in Wellington. HEP is the largest publisher in China of university and college-level textbooks, and also publishes Chinese language learning resources. China’s publishing market is the second largest in the world. 

  The New Zealand publishers took the opportunity to showcase their capability: Lift Education’s multi-media CSI Literacy resources for 8-13 year olds, Cognition Education’s range of customised resources and New Zealand Council for Educational Research’s academic, testing and assessment services.

  The President of PANZ, Melanie Laville-Moore, provided an overview of educational publishing in New Zealand while ENZ’s Adele Bryant set the scene with an introduction to the New Zealand educational system.

  New Zealand publishers are making inroads into China led by companies like Wendy Pye Publishing. Wendy Pye’s Key Words, written by one of New Zealand’s favourite children’s writers, Joy Cowley, is now being used in Chinese schools to teach English. 

• NZIEC 2017: Call for speakers open

  ENZ warmly welcomes presentation proposals from across the New Zealand and global international education industry. Presentations can relate to any aspect of the industry.

  Check out the NZIEC 2017 Call for Presenters document and presenter guidance on the NZIEC website.

  Presentation submissions close on 28 February 2017.

  A new partnership

  ENZ is pleased to welcome ISANA International Education Association New Zealand as an official conference partner for NZIEC 2017. The partnership will see ISANA design and deliver a full breakout stream focused on enhancing the international student experience during the two-day conference.

  ENZ Chief Executive Grant McPherson said the partnership was a natural fit.

  “ISANA has a track record of helping education providers to better support international students through the adoption of strategies, models and evidence for teaching, learning and support.

  “ISANA’s involvement in NZIEC 2017 will mean that hundreds of international education professionals attending the conference can access that capability.”

  Check out all the details here.

  Exploring leadership in international education

  At NZIEC 2016 we celebrated the journey our industry has taken from small beginnings to becoming New Zealand’s fourth largest export earner.

  At NZIEC 2017 we will explore the leadership required to raise our vibrant and successful industry to further heights in years to come.

  Whether we are forging positive student experiences, developing cutting edge products and services, taking our international relationships to the next level, or delivering innovative education offerings offshore, leadership matters. 

  Find out more about our conference theme here.

  About NZIEC 2017

  The 26^th New Zealand International Education Conference is expected to attract up to 700 delegates. Registrations will open in April 2017. For more information, check out www.nziec.co.nz.

  We hope to see you at NZIEC 2017!