This week's top #SocialMedia and #IntlEd news includes future student messaging tips, a pan-Asia guide to social messaging platforms, an essential new book for US international educators, good news for F1 students getting OPT jobs, a market report on Brazil, and questions on the state of the global agent supply chain.
- Do ISSS offices on US college campuses have an obligation to discuss proper usage of ChatGPT with new international students? This University Business article suggests the answer is most definitely yes.
- How do you craft your international student messaging? Making decisions based on what future students want to hear? If not, download this TAP survey of 4000+ international prospects on how hearing from current students matters most.
- If you’re searching for a pan-Asia deep-dive on the top messaging platforms in Asia, check out this Sinorbis guide. Whether it’s WhatsApp, WeChat, LINE, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu, this download is a must to move forward.
- Do you need a refresher on what SEO and social media usage look like in 57 countries around the world? If so, download this Webcertain report for the insights you need to better understand your top market’s digital preferences.
- To better understand why Indian students, traditionally a grad-heavy demographic, make the decisions they do, check out this GradRight report to learn why they might also be saying “no” to you.
- There is increasingly a disconnect happening between universities and industry partners when it comes to preparing graduates for the jobs of the future. Are there misalignments in your credential offerings? Time for a change.
- All of us in US international education circles are having a deja vu moment when it comes to this November’s presidential election. But are we worrying too much? A recent Intead survey suggests we may be projecting our 2016 scars forward unnecessarily.
- When it comes to political advocacy on behalf of international students and improving the current visa situation, many have tried, few have succeeded, but the US for Success Coalition has begun a coordinated attempt to seek much-needed change.
- Intensive English Programs in the US continued their climb out of the Covid-19 doldrums this past year. According to the latest IIE Open Doors report on IEPs released at NAFSA last week, 2023 saw a 6% increase. Japan, Brazil and China led the way.
- Intead delivered a report of nearly 1800 respondents that showed that the overwhelming majority (83%) of F-1 students seeking OPT found jobs in the US in four key states. The data in this PIE News story is worth a look.
- In a 3-year longitudinal study with over 11,000 student responses, QS reports that the top three reasons international students choose North American graduate business programs are the welcoming environment, scholarships, and career services.
- Of the Latin American markets, none offers more potential for growth than Brazil. This ICEF Monitor article provides an important snapshot of the 100,000-strong outbound market which skews heavily to Intensive English Programs but increasingly toward higher ed because of the lack of capacity internally.
- A new book released at NAFSA (in which I contributed a chapter on the 6 Ps of SIEM) is a must-read for international educators in the US. With contributions from many of the best practitioners in the field, Entry Points should be shared with senior leadership as well.
- In case you missed it, the international students you are recruiting are applying to more institutions in a greater array of countries than ever before. Does this have implications for how you should be marketing to them? Absolutely!
- Global - If you are seeking a current analysis of the reasons why international students are being scapegoated around the globe in key destination markets, this University World News piece paints a very sobering response.
- Global - Hands up if you believe the agent supply chain is broken. One thing is clear over the past three to five years: aggregators and master agents are having a harder time delivering on their targets to institutions which are increasingly frustrated with returns.
- Australia - Because of rampant stories of abuse in recent years, the Migrant Justice Institute in Australia will be conducting its third survey of how international students are being exploited in the workplace during their studies.
- Canada - For international students living in top communities in Canada, housing is a real challenge. “In the?ten Canadian municipalities with the largest number of international students, 25 to 63 percent of them were living in unsuitable housing.”
- Canada - Recently, CBIE convened a fireside chat with Immigration Minister Marc Miller to express the need for a “whole of government” approach to international education, as well as a continued dialogue on mission-critical topics.
- China - For many Chinese families in the past studying abroad was restricted to the upper class. That is no longer the case. “the growing desire of students from non-elite universities to study abroad hints at the growing competitiveness of China’s graduate job market.”
- China - Is China’s research prowess being overestimated? Yes, according to this report: “Our adjusted ranking places China fourth globally, behind the US, the UK, and Germany, tempering the perception of China’s scientific dominance.”
- New Zealand - Unusually high rates of visa denials are impacting New Zealand institutions that have come to rely on the Indian student market. Visa rejection rates have increased from 28% to 40% for Indian applicants to Kiwi universities.
- Nigeria - Outlets in Nigeria are actively promoting study destinations that do allow dependents to join students during their studies (in response to the UK cutting off those non-doctoral students who had been able to accompany them in the past).
- UK - What’s the enrollment picture like for British universities these days? If you’re elite, it’s smooth sailing ahead. If you’re not: “Universities who have experienced ‘hockey stick’ growth over the past two years, with an over-reliance on recruitment from South Asia and West Africa, are showing to be the most exposed.”
If you’d like a more in-depth analysis of the main news stories each week, check out our?#MidweekRoundup?#intled?#livechat?on Wednesday at 1 pm ET on the SMIE Consulting?Facebook?page,?YouTube?channel,?Twitter feed, and?LinkedIn. A podcast version is available on all major podcast provider platforms.
