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INZ working to improve immigration outcomes for international students
In keeping with New Zealand’s International Education Strategy 2018-2030, Immigration New Zealand (INZ) is placing greater emphasis on striking the right balance between facilitating migration and protecting migrants and New Zealand.
Jeannie Melville, Assistant General Manager, Education and Tourism says, “INZ is committed to ensuring the right level of scrutiny is applied to visa applications to ensure the right decisions are made for New Zealand. INZ is processing visa applications as fast as practicable and we generally do a good job; however, processing times will always depend on the complexity of an application.”
Since the start of the peak student visa processing season in November 2018, INZ has seen an increase in applications from students who require a greater level of assessment and verification. These applications take longer to process and, as a result, people have not received visas within the period of time they expected.
In terms of application numbers, there has also been a noticeable increase in the volume of student visa applications. From India alone, there was a 42 per cent increase over the peak period of November 2018-February 2019, compared to the previous year, and applications from China increased by 21 per cent.
INZ has been engaging regularly with education providers, sector peak bodies and Education New Zealand to update them on processing times and the reasons why some student visa applications are taking longer to process than expected.
“INZ is committed to ensuring that education providers have confidence in our systems and processes. We want to support education providers and students to use the immigration system effectively, efficiently and appropriately,” says Jeannie.“We are taking action to address the increased time required to process some applications. INZ’s Mumbai office is the primary hub for first-time student visa applications, and is boosting processing capacity to manage the increase in volume, with additional staff already recruited.”
INZ will continue working with peak bodies to improve guidance for students around the documentation requirements for student visa applications.
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New Zealand students join Sustainability Challenge
Each team had two participants from India and one New Zealand student who, under the guidance of an Indian expert, worked together to identify and solve a sustainability challenge found on Indian campuses.
The winning team from Manipal Institute of Technology won for their project on “Sustainable Lifestyle,” with each student receiving an all-expenses paid internship for three weeks at the University of Canterbury, University of Otago and University of Waikato.
The NZISC was hosted by ENZ in association with New Zealand universities, and with sustainability peak body The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) as knowledge partner.
ENZ’s Country Manager for India, Jugnu Roy, said the NZISC was designed to showcase independent thinking and encourage cross-cultural teamwork and mentorship.
“Having Kiwis involved in the project was a great way for Indian students to see first-hand the practical and inquiry-based style of learning that New Zealand instils in students, which is particularly important in science and technology disciplines.
“The top six teams beat out 90 others in the earlier rounds of the competition and in the finale showcased their work. Projects included an innovative health platform to store vaccination data of children; using biomass as an alternative to firewood; and using garbage to create electricity.
“These students represent the kind of talent we want to attract to New Zealand.”
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Asia comes to Marsden School
With funding from the Asia New Zealand Foundation, Marsden Head of Humanities, Fiona Crawford, organised a full day of activities for students, with the aim to increase their cultural awareness and educate them on a region with increasing ties to New Zealand.
"We want our students to thrive and contribute towards putting New Zealand on the map, so it is our responsibility to equip them for their future relationships with Asia," Crawford said.
Marsden students dressed up for Experience Asia Day.
The day included a range of activities and sessions that represented 11 Asian countries, starting off with a Tai Chi session in the gym, and ending with an inter-house KPop (Korean Pop) dance competition. In between, students broke into groups to take part in Judo, Kung Fu and Bollywood dance classes, sushi, dumpling and curry making, language learning and haiku writing, as well as origami, henna painting, sari dressing, lantern making, calligraphy, kite making – and much more.
“The students really enjoyed themselves, but also gained valuable insights into the many Asian cultures on show. Many commented on how fun it was, and hope to do it again next year,” Crawford said.
Amanda Cundy, a former Marsden student who went on the school’s first exchange to China back in 2010, stopped by Asia Day to share her experience with students. She spoke about the impact that Chinese studies had on her life, and the importance of understanding other cultures in an increasingly globalised world.
Marsden students tried their hand at sushi making, Diwali art and calligraphy.
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Around the world in five
US
More international college graduates staying to work in US
The number of international student graduates staying on to work in the US has risen since 2008, with no signs of stopping.
GLOBAL
Bank of Mum & Dad: Global international student funding gap revealed
A new survey shows international students are turning to part-time work and their parents rely on borrowed funds to contribute to their education.
SOUTH AFRICA
English language schools officially recognised by government
English language schools that are members of Education South Africa will be formally recognised by the government, opening the door for students to study English in South Africa with greater regulatory stability and visa certainty.
GERMANY
Germany leads Europe in student social engagement
Germany leads the way in helping students thrive outside class, followed by the UK, Austria and Ireland, according to the European Student Survey by Times Higher Education.
CANADA
Montreal wants its international students to stay
Montreal International has launched a ‘Je Choisis Montreal’ or ‘I choose Montreal’ campaign to help more international students live, work and immigrate to the city.
- PMSLA 2018 19 Round 2 Website list of awardees Latin America5
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Improved website offers students more
As part of the drive to keep delivering meaningful content to prospective students and their parents that will help them choose New Zealand as a study destination, and drive referrals to your institutions, ENZ’s marketing team have developed the following pages:
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Study options http://www.studyinnewzealand.com/study-options
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Programmes and Courses http://www.studyinnewzealand.com/study-options/programmes
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Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths (STEM) and Business Management programme
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Dedicated pages for parents, graduates and those interested in scholarships.
Check out the screen grabs below to see how they look!
Other great content additions – made possible thanks to contributions from international education providers from around New Zealand – are case studies that enable students and parents to hear straight from the horse’s mouth what it’s like to live and learn in New Zealand.
‘Study options’ pages:
‘Programmes and Courses’ pages
Dedicated pages for parents, graduates and those interested in STEM subjects, business management and scholarships
Case studies, where students can hear from students who have studied in New Zealand…
…and parents can hear from parents whose children have studied here.
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Raising the profile of New Zealand English language offerings in Japan
To maximise the visit’s opportunity, ENZ organised a New Zealand English Language event at the New Zealand Embassy in Tokyo. The event brought together over 40 local education agents, schoolteachers, and government partners face-to-face with the New Zealand providers to learn about their study offerings and explore future collaboration opportunities.
Prospective students and their parents exploring English Language study options at the New Zealand English Language Fair.
The following day, the New Zealand English Language Fair attracted 44 prospective students and families to speak with the English Language schools and gain a better understanding of their study offerings.
Prospective students and their parents exploring English Language study options at the New Zealand English Language Fair.
The wider programme included a series of targeted events, school visits, and stakeholder meetings, all aimed at reconnecting with the market and exploring new partnership opportunities.
English New Zealand Executive Director, Kim Renner, said they were pleased to be back in Japan, marketing as a group.
“Japan is a key market for the English Language School sector. Our member schools have strong connections formed over many years with Japanese education agencies and institutions, and meeting face-to-face in market is invaluable,” she said.
“The events were a great success profiling both the English language sector and New Zealand as a destination for a high-quality study travel experience,” Kim added.
ENZ Business Development Manager Tomomi Kontani giving an update from ENZ and sharing the benefits of studying in New Zealand.
Feedback from participating English Language Schools was also positive. One event participant said: “Agents and students asked focused questions, it was pleasing to see the high levels of interest studying at a New Zealand English Language School”.
The participating schools included: ABC College of English, Auckland Institute of Studies, Christchurch College of English, Languages International, Mount Maunganui Language Centre and Worldwide School of English.
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From the CE: Farewell to 2020
2020 has been both the longest and shortest year of my life. It seems like no time ago we were discussing how we could get large numbers of students into New Zealand in time for semester one. Then we were in the midst of a global pandemic.
New Zealand study providers have been admirable in their response. I applaud the way they have ensured that international students in their care have had the information, care and support they needed, especially through lockdown.
Universities, schools and polytechnics, English language schools and private training providers have all moved incredibly quickly. Lectures, classes and assessments were moved online almost overnight.
We heard of fantastic stories of staff members going above and beyond, like that of assistant principal of Havelock North High School, Jamie Kitchin. Jamie opened his home to student Lucas, who arrived in the country just in time for the first term of the year.
In addition, providers and their peak bodies have been a key part of a sector-wide approach – made up of student associations, private and public providers, government agencies and not-for-profit organisations – to respond to the strategic, operational, and pastoral care issues we have faced. Hours have been spent together on Zoom discussing pragmatic responses, like the $1 million Student Hardship Fund and the pastoral care issues around repatriating international students.
I also want to acknowledge education agents both offshore and onshore, who have been instrumental in supporting students and their families and ensuring they were safe and well.
The challenges of 2020 have demonstrated the high calibre of international education in New Zealand.
At Education New Zealand, we also had to rip up our plans for the year and start again.
The 2018 New Zealand International Education Strategy had signalled that change was needed and the sector had to become more sustainable and diverse. The pandemic has accelerated that.
Now, we are guided not only by the strategy, but by the Recovery Plan for international education, with a focus on keeping the New Zealand education brand alive, seeding innovation within the sector, strengthening the system and building on our international relationships.
To date, the most advanced workstream within the plan is the retention of students. You can read about that elsewhere in this issue of E-News.
Elsewhere, ENZ teams around the globe have been engaging with our offshore stakeholders through virtual events, seminars and workshops in support of our new work plan. While travel remains restricted, we’ve found that maintaining those person-to-person relationships are more important than ever.
We’ve launched two brand campaigns (in the UK, Indonesia, Vietnam and China), to keep New Zealand alive in hearts and minds of prospective students. These campaigns have been our most successful to date. The third campaign, Tū Ngātahi, calls on New Zealanders to support international students currently in the country.
And that’s only the beginning. I would like to echo the Minister in saying that we hope to see increased strength, resilience and innovation within international education going into 2021. The international education sector will not only weather this storm, but build back stronger.
Make sure you take time out to enjoy with your family and friends. See you in the new year.
Ehara taku toa I te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini.
My strength is not that of a single warrior but that of many.
Ngā mihi,
Grant McPherson
Chief Executive Education New Zealand Manapou ki te Ao
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