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• Getting social with Loay Al Shareef

  Loay profiles English-language destinations via Snapchat (30-50k views per video), Twitter (80k+ followers) and his YouTube channel Fallimha (600k subscribers).

  He came here under ENZ’s Visiting Media Familiarisation Programme, and as part of a broader #yoursummerinNZ English-language campaign in Saudi Arabia.  

  Heidi Stedman, Communications Lead hosted the visit in her penultimate week at ENZ, with Sahinde Pala, Regional Programme Manager, taking up the reins for the Auckland leg.

  Together with Loay and videographer Glen, they visited Auckland, Wellington and Queenstown to meet with Saudi students, sample local food and activities, and profile education options.

  Loay's visit, with the #yoursummerinNZ campaign, successfully delivered. Together they generated an extra 13,000 Twitter followers for @nzeducationsa during the three-week campaign, prompted 8,600 tweets, and received more than 3,100 entries in a competition to study English in New Zealand.

  English-language providers also reported enrolments coming directly from ENZ’s Twitter account during the campaign.

  I met Loay for dinner with six Saudi students on his last night in Auckland,” said Peter Bull, ENZ General Manager - International.

  “He talked endlessly about New Zealand, and how impressed he was with the education he'd seen.

  “He connected really well with the students, and they reinforced for him how good their own New Zealand experience was.

  “Ours was a story he clearly enjoyed telling.” 

  

   Above: Loay with Peter Bull

• Agent Activity Fund in Colombia takes off

  The event was organised by Colombian agency Go Study, Work and Travel​ and supported by ENZ’s Colombia team, via their Agent Activity Fund.  In this inaugural round of the Fund, Colombian agencies were invited to “let their imaginations fly” in proposing ways to promote New Zealand and increase Colombian student numbers to New Zealand.

  Five agencies were awarded NZ$2,000 each, with Go Study, Work and Travel​'s information session being the first cab off the rank.

  As an incentive, all participants at the information session went into the draw to receive two 12-week, English-language scholarships donated by EDENZ and New Zealand Language Centres.

  The lucky scholarship winners were announced at the event.

  A guest speaker at the session was Colombian blogger Maggi Mora who studied English in New Zealand last summer via an English New Zealand International Education Growth Fund project, and raved about her experiences here.

  “This was a clear example of the benefits of different agencies working together,” says Lisa Futschek, ENZ Regional Director Americas and Europe.

  “An offshore agent, NZ institutions, a former student and ENZ all working together to promote New Zealand is a powerful thing.” 

  Javiera Visedo, ENZ Market Development Manager in Colombia, says upcoming projects funded by the Agent Activity Fund will focus on promotional activities using social media.

  “It was great to see so many agents interested in partnering with us and submitting projects for consideration.

  We would like to increase the fund next year because running it for the first time in 2016 has resulted in great exposure for New Zealand.”

  
  Note: If you’re interested in promoting your region to Colombian agents, then check out the ‘Networking starts at home’ story for an opportunity to meet with Colombian (and other) agents in Wellington on Friday 27 May.

• Pathway visa pilot update

  That is, an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test (or equivalent test) must be submitted by students who:

  • intend to undertake a study pathway that begins with an English language course leading to a programme of study at levels 5 to 8 on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework, and

  • are from a country that has an annual decline rate of more than 20 per cent for student visa applications.

  These students must demonstrate that they only need an improvement of an IELTS 0.5 band score (or equivalent) to gain entry to their intended level 5 – 8 course. For example, if a level 5 course has an English language entry requirement of IELTS 5.0, an IELTS test (or equivalent) must be submitted with a student’s application with a minimum overall band score of 4.5. 

  The English language course must also be completed within a 16 week period.

  Students from countries with a visa approval rate of above 80 percent no longer need to demonstrate IELTS levels.

  Find out more here.

• Chile announces 500 more ‘penguins’

  In the last edition of International Education News we reported that Chile’s Economy, Development and Tourism Minister, Pablo Longueira, had announced that the pilot scheme for the ‘Penguins without Borders’ scholarship programme that brought 40 Chilean students to New Zealand in January, would be widened to 100 for terms three and four of this year.
  
  Things have progressed since then, with Minister Longueira announcing during his current visit to New Zealand that 500 more ‘penguins’ (so called, due to their distinctive black and white uniforms) are coming to New Zealand.  The first group of 250 ‘penguins’ arrives in July to live and study in towns and cities around New Zealand for two semesters. A further 250 will arrive in January 2014.
  
  New Zealand was the only country chosen to pilot the scholarship programme, but this announcement may help secure New Zealand’s place as a regular destination for these high-achieving students.

• EdTech conference a great success

  Education New Zealand (ENZ) supported the conference, alongside Learning Media and Grow Wellington, as part of ENZ’s wider strategy to build the capacity, capability and scaleability of the international education export industry.
  
  ENZ sees a vibrant and successful EdTech sector as critical to the success of New Zealand’s educational offerings, domestically and offshore.
  
  ENZ Education Business Development Manager Melonie Pitkin says “One of our key goals for the conference was providing an opportunity for a sector to begin to self identify and find opportunities to make business connections that might not ordinarily occur as part of business as usual.
  
  “On that front we would certainly view this inaugural conference as successful. We're pleased that it was so well attended and well received. We're looking forward to feedback from participants that will help inform and shape how Education New Zealand can work with the EdTech sector.”
  
  The EdTech for Export website will become a hub for EdTech news and information. Videos and slides for some keynote speakers and breakout sessions have been posted on the site.

• “Nerds” visit to promote NZ English language schools in Brazil

  During which they will blog about their experiences of New Zealand’s culture and attractions, and promote New Zealand as an English language destination to their large youth audience.

  The Jovem Nerd crew – two presenters, two camera people, a sound technician and a producer – have been brought here by Conversa, an education social media consultancy with Maori Tourism organising the itinerary. Education New Zealand has sponsored the visit.

  “Around 2,500 Brazilian students study in New Zealand annually, but there’s plenty of opportunity for expansion. We see social media as a way of extending our reach into the Brazilian market to capture the attention of young people who want to learn English and have an adventure. New Zealand offers both”, says Kathryn McCarrison, ENZ’s General Manager, Marketing and Channel Development.

  As its name suggests – ‘jovem’ being the Portuguese word for ‘young’ – Jovem Nerd is especially popular with 15-35 year olds, and their podcasts have among the highest audience numbers in Brazil.

  The crew are all huge fans of the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies and are especially interested in visiting ‘Middle-earth’.

  “To be a Nerd is to want to know about things”, says Jovem Nerd producer, Guga Mafra. “A Nerd Tour not only educates, but it also gives our audience real insight into our experience of a place. A Middle-earth experience is an exciting adventure for our audience”.

  A range of English language schools will host the Jovem Nerd crew as they travel around the country. “We’re thrilled to be hosting Jovem Nerd at our schools.  They have a huge following in Brazil, and the Nerd Tour is likely to generate a lot of buzz about New Zealand as a study destination. The last celebrity blogger tour that ENZ organised provided a real boost to our schools’ online marketing efforts,” says Hannah Robinson, Digital Marketing Manager, Languages International.

  New Zealand Maori Tourism (NZMT), which represents over 200 Maori tourism operators, has created an exciting itinerary for the Jovem Nerd crew. “We welcome the opportunity to be involved in this tour and for the chance to share with the people of Brazil the richness of our landscapes, our culture and our people.

  Both Maori and mainstream tourism operators are looking forward to hosting the Nerds on what will be in itself be an epic adventure, worthy of a Rings novel,” says Butch Bradley, Director of Regions and Operations at NZMT.

  The Jovem Nerd crew are in New Zealand from 14 – 30 May.

  You can follow their progress on Twitter #NerdtourNZ

• Get ready for unprecedented profile of NZ education in China

  We also need to make a leap in scale.

  We can’t do that with a business as usual approach.

  This realisation is behind the Dragons in a Distant Land documentary now set to screen before 650 million people in China from August 2013.

  The documentary highlights the experiences of Chinese considering studying in New Zealand and of successful alumni who have returned to China.

  Education New Zealand (ENZ) General Manager of Marketing and Channel Development Kathryn McCarrison says the two-part documentary (renamed from Dragons in the Land of the Long White Cloud) is designed to be a “game changer” for New Zealand’s student attraction marketing in China and will boost referrals to Chinese agents and New Zealand institutions. The documentary seeks to capture parents’ attention; students aged 16-25 will be targeted by a digital campaign.

  “We’ll get unprecedented coverage of New Zealand education in China with the documentary.

  “We all need to get ready – the Chinese networks will only give three days’ notice of the first on-air date.

  “To get full value out of the investments in the documentary, we – that is ENZ and the industry – need to run an integrated campaign leveraging each other’s work.”

  ENZ is developing marketing materials to help institutions plan their marketing in China following the screenings of Dragons in a Distant Land on national and regional television.

  These materials will be made available to institutions.

  ENZ’s production company, the Gibson Group, is negotiating with Chinese networks to have the documentary screened in August. The associated student dragons’ marketing campaign will be ready on 1 August 2013 to support the launch of the documentary.

  Key features of the campaign include:

  • Using alumni and agents on Weibo (the Twitter of China) to post about studying in New Zealand and direct people to the campaign’s website

  • Creating posts for targeted internet forums and bulletin board sites

  • Posting content to Youku, the YouTube of China.

  To directly engage the target audience – parents, prospective international students and education agents - there will be:

  • Video advertising targeting social networking and video sites and  top student portals

  • Performance display advertising.

  ENZ’s current Baidu search campaign will be reconfigured to ensure relevant searches are directed to the student dragon’s campaign website.

  Kathryn says the traffic from the student dragon’s campaign website will go to the New Zealand Educated website. “Your information on it will likely be the first impression of your institution for many Chinese visitors. 

  “We recommend you check out your institution’s page on newzealandeducated.com very soon to ensure your content is up to date.”

  Closer to the launch date ENZ will make available key messages for each episode, press releases, a media question and answer and photography from the documentary. The final media buying plan, showing when and where ENZ will be advertising in China as part of the campaign, will also be available to help institutions with their own media buying.

  A drop-box folder has been set up to access these materials when they become available. Email Deena for details. She will keep you posted on developments through e-news.

• Colombia signs Statement of Intent for greater collaboration

  A Statement of Intent was signed yesterday at a Bilateral Education Consultation meeting held in Wellington. The meeting involved a delegation of senior Colombian government and business representatives along with representatives from Education New Zealand, the Ministry of Education, the New Zealand Qualifications Authority and Immigration New Zealand, as well as some New Zealand education providers.

  The statement reflects a commitment to developing joint initiatives in the internationalisation of higher education, technical and technological education, vocational training and innovation.

  Colombia’s Vice Minister of Education Patricia Martinez Barrios is leading the delegation for talks to build education connections between New Zealand and Colombia.

  The week-long visit, which began on Sunday 26 May, is a significant extension of the relationship between New Zealand and Colombia, strengthened during Prime Minister John Key’s recent trip to Latin America.

  “Education, along with agriculture, is one of two key strands in our bilateral relationship,” Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce says.

  “The number of fee paying Colombian students studying in New Zealand increased from 207 in 2007 to 727 in 2012, which would suggest Colombia has the potential to become a significant international education market for New Zealand.”

  Delegates will visit Auckland and Wellington, tour facilities such as Fonterra in Hamilton, Agricultural Services Ltd in Palmerston North and the National Trade Academy in Christchurch.

  “Tours like this are a great opportunity for New Zealand to showcase to Colombian education officials its skills and expertise in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector, and its links with industry and the labour market,” Mr Joyce says.

  He said the objective of the Bilateral Education Consultation meeting was to “help our education sector build a deeper understanding of Colombia’s education requirements and progress proposals for Colombian PhD students to study in New Zealand.

  “It will also allow Colombian education officials to develop an appreciation of New Zealand’s education system and see how New Zealand, as an excellent place in which to learn English, can support their government’s strategy to make English an official language in Colombia.”

• NZIDRS scholarship students attend valuable workshop

  Apart from being a great opportunity for these students to get to know one another, and see a bit more of New Zealand, it was also a valuable opportunity for us to learn more about what motivated them to come to New Zealand and how the experience has matched up to their expectations. We also were able to provide them with answers to some of their questions, such as work rights and visa queries.
  
  The feedback is being collated and will be available through Universities New Zealand.
  
  ENZ has also unearthed some marketing gold amongst the group and will be keeping in touch with them so that they can tell their great personal stories about our education system in promotional material and at events.
  
  It was a productive and enjoyable day. One of the students surprised everyone with his impromptu viola performance of Bach and then invited all to watch him play in a jazz band in Wellington on Sunday night. Many took the opportunity to stay on for the weekend and some new friendships were made.
  
  ENZ plans to hold similar events every three years or so to ensure each student is contacted once during their tenure in New Zealand.

  

  Above: The group of international PhD students that participated in the NZDRS workshop (absent Justin Horn)

• Code Administrator transfer to take place in August

  On that date NZQA officially becomes the Code Administrator.

  Until 1 August, Code signatories should continue to contact the Code Office at the Ministry of Education for Code related matters. The NZQA will announce future arrangements for Code signatories, ahead of the transfer.

  The Ministry of Education received 44 submissions on the proposal to transfer functions, including 37 from signatory providers (20 schools, 12 private training establishments, 1 ITP, and four universities), plus seven submissions from sector bodies.

  The majority of submissions supported the proposal, but some questions were raised around potential costs, NZQA’s jurisdiction and ongoing support that would be available to providers, especially schools.

  Potential costs associated with the transfer will be covered by the Ministry of Education and NZQA - there will be no cost to the Export Education Levy.

  The transfer will improve alignment between Code quality assurance and other wider quality assurance processes which NZQA has responsibility for in the non-university tertiary sector. Combining this work in one agency will improve efficiency and avoid duplication.

  As the Code Administrator, NZQA will develop relationships with the Education Review Office, and further its existing relationships with schools. Current arrangements with the Education Review Office and Universities New Zealand on Code-related quality assurance will remain the same, unless changes are discussed and agreed collectively by all parties.

  The Ministry of Education and NZQA are working closely to ensure that all Code signatories are well supported and all functions are carried out as usual during the transition period.

  Current arrangements through which students lodge complaints with the International Education Appeal Authority (IEAA) with decisions reached by the IEAA and Review Panel will continue for the time being.

  A formal notice on this change was published in the New Zealand Gazette on 30 May 2013.

  More information can be found at the Ministry of Education’s website here