In our day-to-day professional work in international education, we all struggle to manage information flow, identify opportunities, synthesize possible solutions, and act appropriately to better ourselves, our audiences, and our world. To help in this often overwhelming task, Social Media & International Education (SMIE) Consulting offers this free weekly e-news brief to share our perspectives and to provide some wisdom along the way. Happy reading!
- If you needed more evidence to convince leadership that your institution’s social media presence matters for international student recruitment, check out this latest ICEF Monitor article highlight results of a recent QS student survey.
- This ICEF webinar on Tuesday, December 6, is well worth a watch if you are trying to convince your financial aid folks to have scholarships available for prospective international students.
- This Sunrise International webinar (also on Tuesday) takes a look at how recent protests against Covid-19 lockdowns in China will impact overseas universities. Definitely a must see.
- If you’re wanting to better understand the digital transformation of international student recruitment over recent years, have a listen to this podcast from ICEF highlighting the advantages of digital solutions.
- We’ve all heard the stories of Russian bots on social media trying to influence elections and such, but Putin’s minions have been using LinkedIn more vociferously to challenge anti-Russia voices on this professional platform.
- Webinar Wednesday alert: Inside Higher Ed will be hosting an online event this week on how the enrollment management industry has morphed recently, including an examination of direct admissions.
International Education News
- Overall graduate enrollments were up last year at US colleges and universities. What led to that growth? A 94.5% increase in new international graduate students. That trend will only continue for the foreseeable future.
- Are international educators heeding the call to be more green, particularly in student recruitment? Most would say they’re trying but falling short, but what balance must be struck to demonstrate (to eager students) your commitment?
- What role is gun violence playing in international student interest in US study? It depends. In some countries, like China, it can be one of many factors aligning against the US, while for most the low risk of it impacting them are well worth it.
- Could US universities be doing more to help students fleeing persecution from the Global South, absolutely yes we should. Useful perspective from a former student from Myanmar.
- The bravery of Chinese students on campuses in China and abroad in protesting their country’s devastating lockdown policies is to be commended. Increased pressure on the CCP may well be leading to an easing of restrictions.
- How has the World Cup in Qatar shone a light on the US campuses there and their struggles to protect academic freedom? “Universities have tended to promise students and staff in Qatar that they would enjoy the same experience and rights as would be found on their U.S. campuses, but they often quickly discover that this is not possible.”
- Last week’s news about prominent law school deans rising up against US News rankings was refreshing, but is this the beginning of the end of the dominance of these rankings? We can only hope so.
- While I agree with the premise of this opinion piece that our country’s educational visa system (along with our immigration policies) are broken, to lay the evidence at the foot of STEM designation been extended to traditionally non-STEM fields, is simply nonsense.
- We know we need to diversify from where our international students come. Si, claro. This piece from Intead highlight how Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico should be at the top of your list in Latin America to achieve that goal.
- While I hesitate to put this story about Purdue reinstating SAT/ACT requirements for Fall 2024 as a “solution,” the logic being used to justify why “test flexible” no longer works and doesn’t give Purdue the best chance of predicting overall student success is lacking.
- Scholarship databases are always a good thing to have when they’re specific to international students. Kudos to IDP for introducing a scholarship search feature to provide access to 5200 opportunities in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia.
- Australia - This is a government body that cares about its institutions' success internationally. The TEQSA (higher ed regulator) has released a transnational education best practices guide to assist those hoping to expand their reach overseas.
- Australia - When state governments have international students in mind, good things happen. In New South Wales in Australia the state has combined with SEEK to provide an employment initiative specifically for international students.
- Australia - How well each of the major destination markets for overseas students do in responding to the increased need for mental health support for international students in the wake of the pandemic will determine their long-term success.
- Australia - In this week’s “perspective corner” take a look at what the Australian government did recently to promote the country to educational agents: Global Agent Week. They “could use the Study Australia Marketing Toolkit to ‘co-brand’ with the Study Australia brand across social media, email headers, digital display banners, etc.”
- Canada - Interesting to read this international student’s perspective on why the lifting of the 20-hour per week limit should be made permanent. This comment is interesting: “employers will sometimes avoid hiring international students because of all the restrictions they have.”
- Canada - Troubling survey results in New Brunswick, Canada, only 37% of intl student graduates are working in their field, with 64% of employers saying intl students lack “essential skills to work and succeed in New Brunswick."
- China - Encouraging to see Chinese students fighting against the damage done by extended zero Covid measures in the country, but disappointed by the their institutions’ decision to send them home to prevent further disruptions.
- China - The extent of the protests across the country this past week in major Chinese cities against the government’s zero-Covid policies is truly breathtaking with some statements from citizens calling for the president’s removal.
- Iran - What’s happening in Iran with students mobilizing to fight the country’s morality police should not be ignored, many of their universities are implicit in silently supporting the government’s suppression of the protests.
- News on Sunday morning revealed that the Iranian government may be cracking with the dissolution of the morality police. What a potentially huge victory.
- Netherlands - Well this is a different way to handle international students. Apparently members of the Dutch parliament want to stop marketing and advertising the country as a destination for overseas students. Wow.
- New Zealand - On the plus side, student visa processing for New Zealand is relatively quick post-pandemic, the problem is a return to the pre-pandemic highs of about 120K international students is nowhere in sight, with only 12,000 visa applicants in the pipeline.
- United Kingdom - The doomsday predictors are out in the UK over the future of non-elite unis in the country if the government moves ahead with plans to restrict visa for students bringing dependents. Would some unis collapse financially? Maybe so.
- United Kingdom - This view from Africa on the dependent visa changes being considered in the UK shines a light on the financial dependence of many British institutions on international student revenue.
- United Kingdom - The solution to the spike in net migration surges in the UK according to most in the higher ed community would be to simply remove international students from those numbers, as they are students not necessarily migrants.
- United Kingdom - Yet this recent trend in the UK for newly arrived international students to immediately switch to skilled worker visas suggests 1) institutions lose financially if these students don’t enroll and 2) a certain portion of overseas students do plan to be migrants.
- United Kingdom - The UK government’s relationship with China is changing to one of “robust pragmatism” designed to constructively engage with the most populous country in the world. British unis breathe a sigh of relief.
- United Kingdom - While British universities are enjoying the rewards of expanded Chinese student numbers in recent years, the challenge is for those institutions to keep them happy. Apparently, showing kindness can make a difference.
If you’d like a more in-depth analysis of the main news stories each week, check out our Midweek Roundup international education live chat on Wednesday at 1pm ET on the SMIE Consulting Facebook page, YouTube channel, Twitter feed, and LinkedIn. A podcast version is available as well on all major podcast provider platforms.
