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Showing 10 of 1954 results for NARSC 2016 conference registration fees student pre advance late July 2016

• Meet MoE’s new Director, International Emily Fabling
  The new Director role leads the Ministry’s wider international education engagement strategies, international education policy development, and key country-to-country and multilateral education engagements.  The Director is in front of Ministers on a regular basis, and works closely with other parts of the Ministry, other government education agencies such as NZQA and TEC, ENZ, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade (MFAT) and Immigration New Zealand to develop and support international education.  Having strong working relationships with education and research professionals, education providers and sector & community groups is also essential to Emily in working effectively in her role as Director.

  You can meet Emily at the New Zealand International Education Conference in Hamilton this week, but in the meantime, E-News caught up with the Ministry’s busy new Director and asked her a few introductory questions.

  You’ve been in the job three months now – tell me about the path that led you to your new role as Director, International Education at MoE.

  I grew up in Waipukurau, central Hawke’s Bay.  I studied the only foreign language available to me, French, and hung out with the only ‘international students’ at the time – Rotary Exchange students from Australia.  I actually started my government policy career in the Ministry of Education back in 2001 (when there were 79,000 international students in New Zealand), after having worked at Parliament and for MFAT in the APEC Taskforce, and some typical Kiwi overseas experience in the UK and through Asia.  I moved into Immigration Policy in the then-Department of Labour (DOL) in 2004, where I was responsible, among other things, for developing the licensing regime and legislation for immigration advisers and agents. 

  

  I became Deputy Director, International for DOL in 2009 and focussed my international engagement efforts there on the International Labour Organisation and bilateral labour agreements with Thailand, the Philippines and China, before taking on the role of National Manager, Recognised Seasonal Employment for almost three years (bringing Pacific Island workers to New Zealand’s horticulture & viticulture sectors for temporary seasonal work).  This role was an amazing opportunity, where I travelled to far-flung developing countries like Tuvalu and Kiribati, and experienced, first-hand, the life-changing impacts of time spent in New Zealand on individuals and communities back in the Pacific Islands.  I then spent six months back at MFAT (in the Asia Pacific Regional Division), before returning to the immigration fold and the Immigration New Zealand leadership team, as Executive Director in the Office of the Deputy Chief Executive for two years.  And now I am here!

  What study/work/life experiences do you bring to the role?

  At Victoria University, I studied Politics and Modern Languages (French & Japanese), and then combined these into an Honours degree in International Relations.  My public service career has followed an underlying thread of “international people mobility” – be it through skills and knowledge, or work and the labour market.  I’ve grown into broader public sector leadership roles from jobs in pure policy analysis and development.  I’m an extrovert, so enjoy presenting policy ideas or strategies to others – I’m also an eldest child and heavily results-focussed, so I like getting things done and working with others on the challenge of turning policy ideas or problems into pragmatic, sensible solutions.

  Outside of work, I live in Wellington’s northern suburbs with two cricket and PlayStation-mad sons (aged 10 and 7), two Labradors (aged 12 ½) and a husband (age undisclosed), a large garden and similarly-sized mortgage!

   

  What’s on your ‘to do’ list for your next three months?

  In no particular order – supporting Ministerial engagements overseas and the International Education Senior Officials’ Group; giving practical effect to the Ministry’s own International Engagement Framework (which helps prioritise MOE’s international activities); finishing consultation on the new Code of Practice for the Pastoral Care of International Students (submissions close on 30 August!) and developing the new International Student Contracts Dispute Resolution Scheme; completing the Annual Report on the Export Education Levy; working with sector bodies to think about how to better enable New Zealand students to study overseas and New Zealand providers to deliver programmes offshore; looking at ways to commercialise New Zealand education agency know-how and intellectual property; two weeks in China on the ANZSOG China Reciprocal Program hosted by the Chinese Government... and participating in the NZIEC 2015 in Hamilton on 20-21 August, of course!

• China – NZ TVET relationship strengthened

  The Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, Steven Joyce, opened the event on behalf of the New Zealand government. The symposium was embedded within the International Forum on Vocational Education at the China Annual Conference for International Education, 2015 (CACIE 2015) where New Zealand featured as the country of honour for 2015. This was an achievement secured by ENZ’s China Team and underpins its strong relationship with organising body, the China Education Association for International Exchange.

  The symposium was part of three days of activities that included a joint universities’ alumni event for New Zealand students; a business to business session between New Zealand ITPs and their Chinese counterparts; the CACIE gala dinner, featuring an opening speech by Minister Joyce; the 4th New Zealand – China Higher Education Forum; the opening of the New Zealand Country of Honour Pavilion at the China Education Exhibition (also a part of CACIE) and the full-day symposium itself, on 24 October. Representatives from the Chinese Ministry of Education, the China Education Association for International Exchange and senior representatives from Chinese vocational institutions worked closely with the New Zealand representatives over the three days.

  The symposium featured sessions from New Zealand and Chinese speakers on topics including: the reform of TVET in China, student centric approaches to teaching, producing work ready graduates and a roundtable session on the opportunities and challenges of joint programme development between China and New Zealand. The Chief Executives of Unitec, Wintec and Waiariki Institute of Technology, the Director of Business Development and Partnerships at WelTec and the National Director for Ako Aotearoa were among the impressive array of speakers.

  The symposium was preceded on 23 October by a session with New Zealand ITPs and over ten Chinese counterparts in a business to business activity to match institutions with potential partners. The opportunity provided by the symposium and the business to business session allowed for new relationships and agreements to be formed and an affirmation of existing relationships.

  The Beijing Symposium will be followed by the China – NZ Modern Vocational Education Development Forum to be held at Wintec on 25 and 26 November.  The Hamilton forum will discuss how our institutions can satisfy the Chinese and New Zealand authorities that their transnational education programmes meet appropriate quality standards. They will also explore the issue of how to accelerate the development and approval of such programmes. 

• Evolution of ThinkNew

  Almost four years after the launch of the New Zealand Education story, there is a need to further sharpen our value proposition for growth and impact.

  ENZ Director – Student Experience Kaylee Butters said that while ThinkNew continues to be recognised as a brand leader in the education destination field, the brand awareness of New Zealand education is still low in many of our target markets.

  “It is important that we communicate the distinctive and credible position New Zealand holds as a study abroad destination and Education New Zealand has invested over the past two years in brand research that has helped us to better understand this. 

  “It was a great opportunity to share this research journey with conference delegates at NZIEC and to get feedback on our direction for ThinkNew. We discussed the importance of ensuring we don’t undersell the New Zealand experience, especially for partners such as the English language sector.

  “We also discussed the need to ensure our education story works both here in New Zealand and for partners focussed on offshore delivery.”

  The next step will be the development of a revised brand strategy which will help us move to a distinctive position in the market that reflects our high quality education offering and New Zealand experience. 

• ENZ India’s jam-packed season

  ENZRA fairs

  ENZ supported three ENZRA fairs organised by agents in Chennai (Place Me Consultants), Mumbai (Global Opportunities) and New Delhi (Edwise). Together, the fairs attracted more than 20 institutions, and more than 1000 students.

  Guest Lecture Series

  ENZ concluded the second season of its successful guest lecture series (GLS), featuring nine academics from six New Zealand universities. GLS 2017 involved 27 lectures at prestigious Indian institutions across five cities, showcasing New Zealand’s excellence in such areas as smart power and renewable energy, gut microbiota, drone usage in geographic information systems (GIS). The lectures offered New Zealand universities an opportunity to profile New Zealand research excellence, as well as explore collaboration opportunities in research and exchange.

  New Zealand Excellence Awards

  The New Zealand Excellence Awards (NZEA) 2017 went live on 1 September, offering 35 partial scholarships jointly funded by ENZ and all eight New Zealand universities to high calibre, ambitious Indian students studying STEM-related courses in New Zealand.

  New Zealand India Sustainability Challenge

  The New Zealand India Sustainability Challenge (NZISC), an innovative competition profiling New Zealand’s expertise in areas of sustainability, completed its first phase last month. The competition went live on World Environment Day, attracting 90 team entries from around India. The shortlisted teams participated in regional auditions in Mumbai, Bangalore and New Delhi which was juried by New Zealand and Indian experts.

  In the second phase of the challenge, finalists will work alongside their New Zealand student partners from the University of Waikato, University of Otago and University of Canterbury to compete at the finale scheduled later this year.

  ENZ’s new India influencer

  Bollywood actor, Kriti Sanon, a qualified engineer turned actress, was announced as ENZ’s India influencer. In her new role, Kriti launched ENZ’s new ‘Be a Global Citizen’ campaign at a media conference in Mumbai last month. The announcement garnered more than 200 media stories in India. Kriti has a massive social media following, with her initial posts for ENZ reaching over nine million followers.

• Brazil’s untapped potential

  Brazil is New Zealand’s largest source of international students in Latin America. Last year, almost 3,600 Brazilians studied in New Zealand and Ana Azevedo, ENZ’s Senior Market Development Manager for Brazil, says there is more room for growth. 

  “For institutions seeking quality students and diversity, Brazil may be the answer. According to the Brazilian Educational and Language Travel Association, more than 300,000 Brazilians studied abroad in 2017, so there is huge untapped potential in this market to be explored,” said Ana. 

  As country of honour, Brazil featured in two NZIEC breakout sessions. 

  In From Zero to Hero: How to lead a successful education strategy in Latin America Professor Kerry Taylor from Massey University shared his experience in developing links with Brazilian universities, jumping from zero to 10 agreements in only three years. Taylor emphasised that “nothing substantial will come from one single visit” and highlighted the importance of a proposition that meets your partner institution’s needs, saying “the best relations are mutually beneficial.”   

  The second session, Spotlight on Brazil: Finding your place in the sun, featured a panel of representatives from New Zealand secondary and tertiary institutions about their own success in the Brazilian market. Key recommendations included maintaining a consistent presence with the market, building and maintaining a personal relationship with local education agents and institutions and investing in digital marketing so Brazilian students can find you – Brazilians spend an average of three hours a day on social media platforms, mainly YouTube, Facebook and WhatsApp. 

  Delegates also  enjoyed delicious Brazilian appetizers, drinks and live Brazilian music at an energetic conference dinner. The Brazilian Ambassador to New Zealand, HE Mr Paulo Cesar de Camargo, also attended and spoke about bilateral relations between our countries in the education space.

  "Education is a very important aspect of the relationship between Brazil and New Zealand. As some 3,600 Brazilians choose New Zealand to study, we have also seen a growing interest in Kiwi students travelling to Brazil. This exchange builds foundations and pushes Brazil-New Zealand partnerships closer, and in future will create ties in various other fields.” 

  If you want to know more about the Brazilian market, check out the BELTA SEAL Market Survey 2018 here.  

   

  

• China and New Zealand discuss vocational collaboration

  New Zealand ITPs, PTEs and a delegation of 51 senior leaders from Chinese vocational education institutions attended the 6^th Annual Sino New Zealand Model Programme Symposium to share research and discuss collaboration in vocational education. 

  The symposium theme was fostering innovation and entrepreneurship skills in students at vocational and training institutions.

  The head of the Chinese delegation, Mr Chen Qiaming, Chair of Council at Szenshen Polytechnic, said innovation and entrepreneurship skills are vital to China’s Made in China 2025 strategy and that Chinese TVET institutions must cultivate these skills in its students. For this reason, many Chinese institutions are looking to collaborate with New Zealand institutions for teacher and student exchanges and assistance with curriculum development.

  It was apparent in discussions that Chinese delegates value New Zealand’s “integrated” multi-disciplinary approach and are keen to embed such approaches in their own education programmes. Besides an ongoing interest in vocational teacher training, there also seemed to be growing interest in work-readiness and English-language courses to help create an “internationalised” and employable workforce in China.

  China’s appetite for establishing its credentials as a provider of international education also continues to grow – a number of Chinese representatives said hosting international students from New Zealand was a key priority for them.

  ENZ’s Regional Director – China & North Asia, Adele Bryant, said the scale of Chinese representation there reflected the appeal of partnering with New Zealand.

  “China’s interest in pursuing new opportunities with our vocational institutions is a testament to our reputation for creating creative and innovative thinkers and developing soft skills required for the modern workforce – as evidenced by New Zealand’s ranking first in the world for preparing students for the future.”

  “It makes a lot of sense for our two countries to work together to leverage each other’s strengths.”

  Tony O’Brien, Sino NZ Model Programme Director, said it was very unusual to get such a large group of senior leaders from China in New Zealand for such an event. It was therefore excellent to have so many New Zealand providers represented at the conference to network and form relationships with their peers in China.

  ENZ Chief Executive Grant McPherson spoke at the forum, which was also attended by representatives from 11 New Zealand ITPs (NMIT, Weltec/Whitireia, SIT, WINTEC, UNITEC, Toi Ohomai, Otago Polytechnic, MIT, EIT, UCOL and NorthTec), four PTES (ACG, New Zealand Institute of Education, Tasman International Academies and Skills International), and delegates from the Industry Training Federation and New Zealand Council for Educational Research.

  The Sino NZ Model Programme is part of the Strategic Education Partnership Agreement between New Zealand and China. It is a vehicle for deeper and broader collaboration between the two countries’ professional and vocational education and training sectors.

• What Kiwi employers value in New Zealand-educated international graduates

  A new research report published by ENZ looks into Kiwi employers from small to medium-sized (SME) businesses to show what they most value in New Zealand-educated international graduates.

  The report, Employer Perceptions of Hiring International Graduates, was launched today at the Global Internship Conference, hosted by the University of Auckland.

  The research looked into the hiring practices, pressures and opportunities for employers from SME businesses, which make up 97 percent of enterprise in New Zealand.

  ENZ Chief Executive Grant McPherson said the research identified two key areas of New Zealand-educated international graduates’ value to Kiwi SMEs.

  “One was the keen attitude of international graduates, which is defined as positively contributing to work outputs; and the graduates’ multicultural energy, which is seen as positively contributing to workplace morale,” McPherson said.

  Characteristics associated with a keen attitude include perseverance, earned success, drive and willingness to take on tasks, while those associated with multi-cultural energy include an energising effect and the fostering of creativity and innovation.

  “Research we have commissioned previously highlighted the importance that international students place on post-study work and career opportunities and outcomes, and how central this is to a successful overall student experience.

  “This research showed that some students find New Zealand poses some challenges in this area,” McPherson said. 

  The research involved in-depth interviews with SME employers from a range of industries across New Zealand from Whangarei to Dunedin, and a further half-day workshop. The focus was on international graduates who have a post-study work rights visa within current immigration settings.

  “There are clearly opportunities to improve employment outcomes for New Zealand-educated international graduates,” he said.

  “ENZ is planning to re-define the perceived value of New Zealand-educated international graduates in the eyes of New Zealand employers, based on the research findings.”

  Employability is a theme that sits across all three of the goals in the New Zealand International Education Strategy 2018-2030, launched in August last year.

  For a full version of the report – see here: Employer Perceptions of Hiring International Graduates.

• Ōtautahi Christchurch announced as host city for ICEF ANZA 2024

   

   

  ICEF ANZA gives education providers from Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia the opportunity to meet with top international student recruitment agents from around the world who have a focus on these two study destinations.  

  Education New Zealand Manapou ki te Ao’s International Event Manager, Janine Huxford said that these conferences are such important events in our sector to bring everyone together and share industry insights, attend workshops and network with our international education peers from all over the world. 

   “We’re delighted that Ōtautahi Christchurch has been announced as the host city for the next ICEF ANZA conference in 2024. This is such a fantastic opportunity to shine a light on our new city and Aotearoa New Zealand as a study destination with world-class study options and unique travel and living abroad experiences", she added.  

  This in-person event will run from 22 – 24 April 2024 at the Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre. You can register your interest for the event here: ICEF ANZA - education event focused on Australia and New Zealand 

  We look forward to seeing you there!  

• From the CE: Building the momentum at NAFSA 2023

  Kia ora koutou, 

  I’m writing this in an airport lounge in Vancouver, Canada as I wait for my flight back to New Zealand. I’ve spent the past two weeks in North America with several of our tertiary education providers at NAFSA, the world’s biggest international conference and exhibition, and here in Canada. In last month’s column I reflected on the delegation I led to India.

  These trips involve lots of hard work from many people – time, effort, money and being away from whānau. They are always valuable and this one was no different.

  Two things stood out from me on this journey.

  We must continue all our efforts to ensure people know we are open, and we are welcoming of students into New Zealand. A lot of good work is occurring across the sector and ENZ but we need to keep going.

  The last time I looked Immigration had received close to 50,000 student visa applications since August from both outside and within New Zealand. It’s a good start considering our borders have not been open for a year yet and it’s wonderful to have international students back at our education providers and in our communities. But we need to keep telling New Zealand’s education story and reestablish our partnerships and relationships.

  I was again reminded how intense the competition is to attract students to New Zealand as we all continue to rebuild. There were nearly 10,000 attendees, 400 exhibitors and over 50 countries represented at NAFSA. New Zealand has a very good story to tell based on the quality of our education, the experience the students have when they study here, and the excellent people that work in this sector. 

  Rebuilding is not an easy task. I don’t think any of us thought it was going to be. There are plenty of articles and news stories identifying challenges being faced by other countries. New Zealand is in an excellent position to attract great students who receive a leading education and have a life changing experience. 

  India. The United States. Canada. No matter the geography. The message is the same. Ten months in we’ve made a good start, but we have work to do.

  Whāia te iti kahurangi; ki te tuohu koe, me he maunga teitei

  Aim for the highest cloud, so that if you miss it, you will hit a lofty mountain.

  Ngā mihi nui,

  Grant McPherson

• Agents get a taste of ENZ’s ‘Future of Sustainable Food’ pilot at ICEF ANZA 2024

  Over 50 international education agents at the ICEF ANZA workshop held in Ōtautahi Christchurch from 22 to 24 April experienced Education New Zealand Manapou ki te Ao's (ENZ) education pathways prototype (Stage 1). The prototype was designed to introduce students to the huge global opportunity around sustainable food design and production, and the world-leading education pathways from New Zealand institutions that can open employment doors into a wide range of exciting careers. 

  “In New Zealand, you can learn from top experts and study in the heart of where food is grown, technology is advanced, and industry opportunities abound." 

  This pilot came about in response to agents’ demand for more information about what expertise sets New Zealand apart from other destinations and makes a New Zealand education unique.  

  

  An education agent from Australia trials the ‘Future of Sustainable Food’ prototype at the ICEF ANZA conference held in Ōtautahi Christchurch last month.

  To develop the pilot, ENZ worked with Jix Reality – a Christchurch-based tech company headed up by an ex-international student to New Zealand – using virtual reality to provide an immersive and engaging experience, including examples of real New Zealand study environments. The user journey involved a visualisation of the full breadth of the food production value chain, illustrating how this goes well beyond agriculture to encompass other domains and careers such as food engineering, value chain management and marketing. The experience went on to highlight New Zealand’s credentials as one of the world’s top food developers and exporters, and allowed the user to browse relevant study programmes and consider which one could lead them to their desired future career.  

  

  Jix Reality Founder, Sakthi Ranganathan, (right) is seen here demonstrating the sustainable food production narrative on an interactive table with an education agent from Kenya.

  ENZ’s General Manager Sector Engagement and Innovation, Wendy Kerr, was on hand at the workshop to talk to the agents and collect feedback via a survey. Wendy said that the results were very clear – agents agreed almost unanimously that the prototype provided new and useful information about New Zealand’s strengths, study pathways for students and future employment opportunities in this field. 

  “92% also confirmed that this experience made it more likely that they would recommend New Zealand as a study destination. 

  “One agent said that they think it is a great tool to market New Zealand as students can see their future and make informed decisions while another told me that it was a great experience and the tech and approach is ahead of its time,” added Wendy. 

  

  ICEF ANZA Chief Executive, Markus Badde, trialled the VR experience and is pictured here providing his feedback to Jix Reality Founder, Sakthi Ranganathan, and ENZ’s GM Sector Engagement and Innovation, Wendy Kerr.

  Attending education providers also had the opportunity to try the prototype, one describing it as “a wonderful virtual reality marketing tool which is of enormous value to agents, schools and service providers. A great investment and even better you have used a Christchurch based company to develop it.” 

  This pilot forms part of ENZ’s Innovation and Growth programme, seeking new ways to support the diversification and growth of the international education sector. The next stage for the pilot will be for ENZ’s Innovation and Growth team to use the feedback collected to develop the prototype further. It will then be turned into a marketing tool that is more accessible, informative and scalable for agents to use with students.  

  If you’d like to help us with beta testing or contribute content to future stages please register your interest with tim.brown@enz.govt.nz.