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• From the CE: Telling the world New Zealand is open for business

  Our purpose was to promote New Zealand’s world-class education and share the message that New Zealand is open again for international students. Travelling with the Minister opened many doors for us and led to useful media coverage in all three partner countries.

  In Denver, USA, Minister Hipkins spoke at the plenary session to open NAFSA, the world’s largest international education conference. Te Pūkenga used the NAFSA event to launch its international education strategy, and ENZ launched the sector’s I AM NEW global marketing campaign. We met with senior officials to reaffirm New Zealand’s partnership commitment to the Gilman scholarships, which enable students of limited financial means to study abroad. We also met with NZ EdTech companies, including ImmerseMe, which uses virtual reality to teach languages. The company signed a 7-year partnership agreement with schools in the area during our visit.  

  The next stage of the trip was Brazil. In São Paulo we explored the possibility of English language study in New Zealand for school students with government Ministers; met with the São Paulo Research Foundation to support the growing NZ- São Paulo research engagement; and met with key education stakeholders from three São Paulo Universities: USP, UNESP and UNICAMP. 

  New Zealand is celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relations with Chile this year, and our visit to Santiago included meeting with Chile’s Minister of Science, Technology, Knowledge, and Innovation, and with Kiwi alumni. We signed two separate Education Cooperation Agreements – with Chile’s Minister of Education, and with the Council of Rectors of Chilean Universities. We also visited Universidad Diego Portales, which has a long history of collaboration with NZ EdTech company, ADInstruments, whose technology has been implemented as part of the university’s educational model. 

  We were warmly received everywhere, and there was a high level of interest in New Zealand. It was great to reconnect with Kiwis offshore, and with alumni, agents and others who have a genuine interest in building relationships with New Zealand – and to be able to support their efforts in person at a wide range of events.  

  In other news, the recipients of the recent round of Prime Minister’s Scholarships to Asia and to Latin America are close to being finalised. That round of scholarships, which was solely open for group applications, will soon be followed by the opening of a second round of awards, this time focussed solely on individual applicants. Again, we will be seeking to encourage applicants from a wide range of backgrounds particularly Māori and Pasifika applicants. In anticipation of the next round, we encourage everyone to check out the alumni stories and other useful information on our scholarships website here.

  Whāia te mātauranga hei oranga mō koutou – Seek after learning for the sake of your wellbeing. 

  Grant McPherson

• New Zealand highlights global education links at major Indian conference

  As the International Academic Partner, ENZ helped showcase New Zealand as a trusted education partner and destination. The event brought together education leaders, policymakers, and experts to discuss the future of learning, skills, and global collaboration. 
  

  

  Jugnu Roy (pictured centre) representing ENZ at the SEPC roundtable on Global Academic Mobility.

  ENZ’s Director of Engagement for India and East Asia, Jugnu Roy, joined panel discussions and roundtables on global academic mobility and faculty exchange. These sessions were a chance to share New Zealand’s approach to student-focused, future-ready education and explore new opportunities for partnerships with India. 

  Director of Engagement for India and East Asia, Jugnu Roy, said India is a key strategic partner for New Zealand’s international education sector, and that continued engagement is essential to strengthening that relationship.  

  “Participating in forums like this allows us to engage deeply on shared goals and support India’s ambitions through meaningful academic cooperation,” she said. 

• NauMai NZ is 2

  Since launch, NauMai NZ has had half a million page views and just under 300,000 users accessing practical resources on topics such as Visas and immigration, Personal wellbeing, Housing, and Working, not to mention learning about Māori culture, improving English language skills, making friends, living like a local or getting a part time job.

  The platform has a bounce rate of just 15% and 11,500 students have joined the NauMai NZ database.  ENZ’s AI chatbot Tohu sits on the platform, and the NauMai NZ WeChat mini programme launched late last year, ensures resources are delivered to the platform of choice for Chinese students.

  One focus in 2020 was obviously how to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. An official COVID-19 page was launched, collating and curating trusted and relevant government information particular to international students. To accompany this page, a ‘Stay Well, Stay Connected’ page was launched, recognising the particular challenges that the pandemic brings around health and wellbeing. These pages have to date received over 90,000 views.

  Throughout 2020, content that wasn’t COVID-19 specific was also developed. Through research, we identified and developed new topics including Managing your money, Sexual healthcare and Dating, relationships and sex.

  As the 2020 academic year ended and borders remained closed, the ‘Summer in NZ’ microsite was launched, remaining live until April this year. The purpose was to inform and support students remaining in New Zealand over summer when they would normally return to their families and home country. The Student Experience team at ENZ was very aware that an unexpected summer in New Zealand may put stress on some students.

  We pulled together information from multiple sources, including from tourism operators and regional development agencies. Summer partnerships with LinkedIn and AFS New Zealand were also promoted to proactively engage students with their skill development resources.  

  NauMai NZ is still growing and as 2021 moves at pace, ongoing content development continues alongside user journey review and improvement.

  “NauMai NZ is a valuable resource enabling ENZ to communicate with and support international students – particularly during the pandemic,” ENZ Director – Student Experience & Global Citizens, Sahinde Pala, says.

  “We look forward to evolving it to better serve students’ needs, both in New Zealand and offshore, in 2021 and beyond.”

  2021 brings a complexity of challenges for students.  The challenge for NauMai NZ is to meet and address those challenges - better supporting the many students who remain studying in New Zealand and the increasing numbers of those studying offshore with a New Zealand provider, and of course being ready to welcome students when they are able to travel here in the future.

  But for now, happy birthday NauMai NZ, and a big thank you from us to everyone who has supported its development and use.

• Overall September 2015 regional visa dashboard final 0

• NZ ITP ISB 2015 Sector Presentation

• What’s next for ENZ events?

  The trial of the EventsAIR OnAIR platform began in September with the Japan New Zealand Education Virtual Showcase and Agent Seminar, and will continue over the next few months for events like agent seminars in-market, the Viet Nam Student Showcase, and the Summer Retention Showcase.

  Over and above a video-conferencing application like Zoom, the EventsAIR OnAIR platform has functions like a virtual exhibition, live Q & A, and gamification features, where users can compete to win points.

  ENZ recently hosted our inaugural India New Zealand Education Week on the EventsAIR OnAIR platform. To have a look at the platform and how it works, you can register and view recordings of the event here.

  ENZ has an established relationship with EventsAIR, having previously partnered with them for lead capture at in-person events.

  ENZ Director – Channel Services and Partnerships, Dan Smidt, says what really clinched this new collaboration was the wide range of functionality EventsAIR had developed.

  “We didn’t want a platform that would simply recreate what you’d expect from an in-person event. We wanted something that would use digital features in a creative way, to really capture the attention and imagination of our attendees.”

  Participants are currently limited to providers who registered with ENZ for in-person events in-market before they were cancelled due to COVID-19. At the moment, ENZ is able to offer participation in these events at no cost to the sector.

  “In the results of a survey out to New Zealand providers earlier this year, the cost of developing or participating in digital events was one of the most important factors for those considering their event options,” Dan says.

  Even before COVID-19 caused global travel disruption and the widespread cancellation of in-person events, ENZ was looking into ways to host more events virtually.

  “We know that education providers and students are becoming more conscious of the sustainability of long-haul air travel,” Dan says. “COVID-19 simply accelerated our work in the online event space.”

  “This dynamic virtual events platform is the next logical step in the growth of the ENZ digital eco-system. We’re now able to think about how we do events in a whole new way.”

  Dan and the ENZ Events Team hope to develop a virtual and hybrid calendar of events for 2021 with OnAIR. Please watch out for more updates on our events work in E-News on our website.

• ‘Apply four months in advance of travel’ - INZ Update

  Visa processing update 

  As at 7 October 2023, the average processing timeframe for an international student visa application submitted from outside of New Zealand is six weeks (29 working days). This is counted from the time the student submits their application, until the time the visa is declined, or the visa granted. Whilst the average processing time is six weeks, Immigration New Zealand continues to strongly recommend that students apply for their visas around four months ahead of their intended travel date, especially as we are entering the main student processing peak combined with summer, which sees high numbers of visitor visas. We cannot prioritise processing for late applications and are unable to prioritise based on travel bookings. Students should not finalise travel plans until they have their visa granted.  

  The approval rate for offshore student visa applications received (1 Aug 2022 – 7 Oct 2023) is 84% 

  Tertiary student in-study work rights  

  Tertiary students’ in-study work rights have typically been linked to whether the qualification being studied gains points under the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC). As of 9 October 2023, only qualifications at Bachelor’s degree Level 7 or above qualify for points.  

   To maintain work rights for tertiary students, references to the SMC in the in-study work instructions have been removed. Eligible qualifications, programme level and type will be shown instead, to carry over the eligibility of many students studying below a Bachelor degree.  

  Since 9 October, all students studying a full-time programme that directly results in a New Zealand qualification at Level 4 or above on the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) are eligible for in-study work rights of 20 hours per week. Training schemes and micro-credentials are not qualifications and remain ineligible for in-study work rights. 

• Empowering early career scientists through New Zealand-Germany research collaboration

  The third funding round of the New Zealand-German academic exchange programme, known as the Programmes for Project-Related Personal Exchange (PPP programme), has enabled five New Zealand research projects to undertake research with academic partners from Germany.

  The following universities have formed partnerships:

  • University of Auckland and University of Paderborn
    Topic: Preparing students for a data science future using innovative teaching  
    
    
  • University of Auckland and the Technical University of Dortmund
    Topic: The development of contextual visual processing in the Ebbinghaus: illusion in children and its underlying neuronal basis (EBBI-KIDS) 
    
    
  • University of Auckland and University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf
    Topic: Perspectives of equitable medical education: a comparison between Aotearoa New Zealand and Germany
    
    
  • University of Canterbury and Westcoast University of Applied Sciences
    Topic: Younger generations as reflexive agents of change: Motivating Generation (Gen) Z to participate in the voluntary sector
    
    
  • University of Otago and Helmholtz Munich
    Topic: Modulation of central GIPR signalling to increase health during ageing

  The programme invited researchers to think of a project that would particularly benefit from working with German academic counterparts. Research projects will run from 2025 to 2026, with work taking place in both New Zealand and Germany. 

  Acting Regional Director, Americas & Europe, Natalie Lulia, said the programme aims to strengthen the relationships between New Zealand and German academics and institutions.   

  “It opens up New Zealand researchers to a global network of academics.  

  “Since the programme’s beginning, we’ve seen awardees think forward and explore possibilities of further collaboration with their research partners” she said. 

  The PPP programme was established in 2021, when ENZ and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding.   

  The bilateral agreement between ENZ and the DAAD enables young academics to further their careers and expand their international research links. ENZ contributes funding to support New Zealand researchers, while the DAAD supports German researchers to travel to New Zealand.  

  Find out more about the PPP programme by visiting the dedicated page on our website. 

  You can also contact Olga Elli, Associate Director of Engagement, Europe at europe@enz.govt.nz. 

• Letter from the CE: Updating ENZ's business model

  Since its launch in August by Minister Chris Hipkins, ENZ has been reviewing our operational structure and approach to ensure they’re consistent with both the Strategy’s objectives as well as the Minister’s Letter of Expectations.

  Our review has also been informed by industry surveys and discussions with staff.

  We’re working to maximise international education’s benefit to New Zealand. We need to optimise current opportunities to build a sustainable future for the sector and to create new opportunities for growth.

  Coming out of the review, we have established some new and revised roles at ENZ. We are recruiting (internally and externally) for the following senior positions – please go to ENZ’s Careers page for more information on the roles and how to apply:

  • General Manager Strategy, Insight and Planning – this senior leadership role will be responsible for all strategic projects related to future-focused thinking and implementation, business intelligence and insights, and ENZ planning and performance.

  • General Manager Industry and Students – this senior leadership role will be responsible for strengthening the connections between education providers and international students by bringing together ENZ’s international marketing, brand development, industry development and channels teams.

  • Director, Industry – this role will be responsible for leading and managing initiatives to build the capability and capacity of New Zealand’s international education industry.

  • Director, Greater China – this China-based role will be responsible for managing, leading and supporting ENZ’s China teams and leveraging opportunities with other NZ Inc agencies both in-market and New Zealand to promote New Zealand education.

  With the approach of Christmas and New Zealand’s summer holiday period, we have decided to leave the application period open till 9am, Tuesday 22 January 2019.

  This change process will be ongoing over the next few months and we will keep you informed throughout.

   

  Grant McPherson

  Chief Executive, Education New Zealand

  

   

   

   

   

   

• Around the world in five

  Canada

  Why international students could be a critical factor in bolstering Canada’s economic resilience

  As Canada navigates strained relations and an escalating trade war with its largest economic partner, international education could be a critical factor in bolstering Canada’s resilience.

  China

  Push to speed up open-source AI adoption by universities

  The government is intent on speeding up development and adoption of open-source AI by higher education institutions, including setting up a government-led open-source collaboration platform, according to new plans shared by the Ministry of Education.

  Australia

  International student policy in the spotlight during Australian election

  Immigration will figure prominently as an issue in this election cycle, including policies related to international students.

  United States of America

  Sector leaders step up legal pressure on US government

  The President’s Alliance, along with 86 US institutions, has submitted a statement supporting the American Association of University Professors’ legal challenge against the administration’s student visa revocations and detentions.

  United Kingdom

  UK staff and course cuts ‘putting off prospective students’

  News of constant job losses and course closures across the UK sector is causing lasting damage to universities’ reputations and may inflict further financial harm by hitting student recruitment numbers, academics have warned.