Message from the CEO
With the release of the 2009 Full Year Levy Statistics, we are finally able to quantify how the industry fared in what was the most challenging year for worldwide economies since the great depression.
I’m happy to report that we not only survived the recession, but we grew New Zealand’s international tuition revenues by an impressive ten percent! This amounts to an additional $61 million in tuition revenues for New Zealand institutions.
We as an industry should be incredibly proud of this growth. It is thanks to the hard work of institutions around the country that we were able to achieve this.
In 2010, we hope to be able to achieve the same lofty goal of ten per cent growth in the industry. The competition is as fierce as ever for students, so growth cannot be taken for granted. Working with the industry, government, and overseas stakeholders, we are confident that ten per cent growth is within our reach again this year.
Introducing - Cluster Events
If you have a great idea for a marketing event which involves a subset of the Export Education industry, Education New Zealand would like to help you organise a “Cluster Event.”
ENZ Cluster Events are aimed at groups of institutions that have ideas for group marketing initiatives that are not covered by the PACE plan, and these will not be a replacement for PACE events.
To find out more about Cluster Events, and how to get the ball rolling on your ideas, please read through the complete description HERE. For further information you can contact our Cluster Events Manager Prabha Ravi.
Offshore Report – Vietnam
Xin Chao! My name is Katy Ward. I represent Education New Zealand’s interests in Vietnam, working out of the New Zealand Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City. Having personally benefited from the New Zealand Education System it is a pleasure to work in an area that I feel so passionately about.
With Vietnam currently going through significant economic growth and the vast majority of the population being under 30 years of age, it is an exciting and rewarding time to be active in this market.
New Zealand is competing with Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States for international students, and it is encouraging to see that student visa numbers to New Zealand have increased by over 30% in the past five years. We expect this upward trend to continue over the next few years which is evident in the fact that the Ho Chi Minh City Branch of INZ will be relocating to larger premises later this year.
In March this year we ran two New Zealand Specialist Agent Training days in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi which were well received. The list of Specialist Agents will be available online shortly. I have been blown away by the interest in New Zealand as a study destination from agents.
We have a number of activities taking place over the next couple of months. A ‘Study in New Zealand’ billboard will be erected this month in the Domestic Departure area of the Ho Chi Minh City Tan Son Nhat Airportand will be on display for twelve months.A generic ‘Study in New Zealand’ brochure is also now available to students and agents.
In addition to these promotional activities, from 4 – 7 June the New Zealand Education Fairs and Agent Seminars in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City will also raise the profile of New Zealand Education in Vietnam.
My time in Vietnam is coming to an end next week as my husband and I are expecting a little addition to our family shortly. It has been an absolute pleasure working with so many of you over the last seven months and I hope that your relationship with Vietnam continues to grow and prosper.
PACE 2010 Update
New Zealand Education Fairs, Malaysia, 1 – 8 August
Registrations for the second round of New Zealand Education Fairs in Malaysia are open with fairs scheduled in both East and West Malaysia including Kota Kinabalu, Penang and Petaling Jaya. While fair expenses such as costs relating to venue hire and promotion have risen recently, we have managed to avoid an increase in the participation fee.
Marketing in Malaysia is particularly relevant for the tertiary sector. Universities, ITPs, Foundation Providers and Private Training Establishments are encouraged to participate. Approximately 1,200 visitors attended the New Zealand Education Fairs held in March 2010, an increase from 2009, participants commented on how serious the enquiries were. The number of Malaysian students coming to study in New Zealand is steadily increasing with March 2010 Immigration New Zealand statistics trending upwards. Participants of the New Zealand Education Fairs in March 2010 commented that:
"the venue worked well, the event was well advertised and detailed enquires were received", "there was a very good turn out".
For more information on these events please visit HERE or contact Laurette.
CCIEE Fairs, China, 16 – 30 October
The CCIEE China Fairs are commercial fairs approved by the Chinese Government. The fairs offer New Zealand an opportunity to showcase and promote our country, education system and institutions alongside our competitors. The fair cities are set as Beijing, Dalian, Xi’an, Shanghai, Chengdu and Kunming. A New Zealand only Agent Seminar is being planned for Xi’an in conjunction with the CCIEE Fair there.
The Chinese registration deadline is Friday 28th May so early planning from New Zealand is vital for this event, and will enable us to make decisions around the level of promotion in each of the cities.
For further information including registering for the events, please click HERE or for the post event reports and other information please click HERE - you will need to be logged in to the site to view this page or please contact Rahael.
New Zealand Education Fair, Seoul, Korea, 30 & 31 October
The New Zealand Education Fair in Korea is a flagship New Zealand event. The event provides an opportunity for marketers to raise their profile, recruit students, maintain relationships and meet with active agents in the market.
In 2009 1,681 visitors pre-registered their attendance through the official fair website, and a similar number visited the fair over the two days. Korea is still our second biggest market for international students, click HERE for the latest statistics showing the trends in numbers of students studying in New Zealand from Korea.
The 2009 New Zealand Education Fair in Seoul was a huge success and we look forward to building on that outcome in 2010, click HERE to view the special E-news report on last year’s event.
For further information including registering for the events, please click HERE or for the post event report and market information please click HERE - you will need to be logged in to the site to view this page contact or please contact Rahael.
North Asia Mission - Report
Taipei Student Workshop
In late March 2010 the second annual North Asia Mission featured New Zealand focused events in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei, Kaohsiung and Taichiung. The Mission was primarily made up of Agent Seminars, with Student Workshops also added on in Taipei and Kaohsiung. Participants travelled together as a group with an ENZ staff member and the itinerary included group dinners and lunches along the way.
The events in Taiwan, which were open to the public, recorded much increased visitor numbers compared to the same events in 2009. A very strong number of interested agents attended the Agent only events.
In Taipei and Tokyo cocktail functions included the awarding of certificates to newly appointed New Zealand Specialist Agents for Taiwan and Japan. Agents were thrilled to be recognised by New Zealand officials in front of participating New Zealand industry representatives and fellow agents.
The following comments were received from participants:
“Well organised, excellent venue, good number of agents”, “Everything was smooth and well planned very NZ style as well”, “Great number of Agents. The turnout was above expectation”
We look forward to welcoming industry to attend the North Asian Mission in March 2011. Online registrations will be open from October 2010. Thanks to representatives from MFAT and INZ for their continued support of PACE events.
Tips and Trends from our Web Wonk
It comes as no surprise that I continually get questions about Search Engine Marketing (or SEM) as an online marketing method. When it comes to low cost marketing methods, SEM is certainly a cost effective proposition. In fact, the SEM campaign we are running for www.newzealandeducated.com has increased traffic by around 20%. Considering that this is very qualified traffic (or hot leads), SEM should certainly be considered among the toolset for online promotions.
There are many Search Engines in the market and many different options to run SEM campaigns across most of them. However, before you start getting the pens and pads out to plan your attack, it is a good idea to see just how big the big players really are when it comes to search.
Although Microsoft’s Bing is slowly climbing the ranks, Google is still by far the most dominant force in Search Engines.
Compete.com’s report for search engine market share at the end of February shows a 0.6 per cent rise for Google’s market share compared to the January 2010 numbers, while Microsoft has grown by 0.5 per cent. Yahoo has lost one percent of its market share.
Here are the total numbers of search engine queries recorded on the top search engines for the month of February 2010
Google : 10.936 billion
Yahoo : 2.445 billion
Microsoft : 1.582 billion
Ask : 286 million
AOL : 149 million
It is important to note, however, that Yahoo is in the process of completely outsourcing its search engine to Microsoft. This will change the game slightly going forward. However, the continued dominance of Google is staggering and highlights why the majority of SEM focuses solely on Google.
To keep updated about online tips and trends, make sure you check out the new section in our Research / Research Community Forum called “Tech Facts and Trends”.
By Vince Warnock, Webmaster for Education New Zealand.
Australia Separates Education from Migration
The federal Labor government has largely decoupled education from migration selection and in the process removed a powerful incentive for foreign students to come to Australia.
A new report says that for vocational education students who enrolled after 8 February, "the carrot of permanent residency" will largely be removed. For new university students, the permanent residency pathway will be far more difficult than it has been.
In part, this is because of the range of eligible occupations will be limited and because a new selection test to be introduced will be much tougher than the existing test.
As a result of the changes to the immigration rules and the rising value of the Australian dollar, applications from foreign students are predicted to fall, with those from China estimated to collapse by up to 50% at some universities. Several vocational colleges have already been forced to close and many more are likely to shut down as the overseas market dries up.
Researchers suggest that many of those affected by the new rules will try to find an employer to sponsor them (for residency). The network of providers, education agents and migration agents that have helped create an enormous expansion in student enrolments "will be out and about looking, on behalf of their clients, for such employers".
But the researchers say few will succeed because applicants must have at least three years full-time experience in the occupation for which they are being sponsored. They claim that for other categories of applicant, unscrupulous employers will take advantage of the students to offer below-award wages and conditions.
Via University World News
Correction
In the Offshore Report from the 20 April edition of E-News, there was an incorrect link provided to the list of New Zealand Specialist Agents in China. The correct link is HERE.
The error has also been corrected in the online version of E-News on the Education New Zealand website.
E-news is a newsletter for the Export Education industry, compiled by Education New Zealand. You can access previous E-news newsletters on our website at www.educationnz.org.nz .
With Regards.
Education New Zealand
www.educationnz.org.nz