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FEATURE STORY: Globalisation of Education
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Globalisation of Education

By Stephen Healy, Senior Vice President, Global Initiatives and Asia, INTO University Partnerships


BT 201503 34 Feature storyAs in the previous few years there is an overwhelming amount of choice available for students and increasing competition from national, regional and international providers of education. Students are more empowered with choice of higher education programmes, institutions and destinations than ever before. The growth towards 8 million globally mobile students worldwide by 2025 remains unabated, with current figures just below 4.5 million as reported by an OECD Education Indicators in Focus report into student mobility. For INTO, we have enrolled over 12,000 international students in 2014 across our network of university partners.


In the last year, we have seen growth strongest in the USA and are pleased with the growth we have seen at our pioneering partners in China. In the UK, our student numbers have grown but amidst a general slowdown owing to a shift in UK government migration policies. Australia and Canada have also seen significant growth in student numbers as a result of positive Government policies to attract international students, which has impacted on UK international student numbers.


China is now the third most popular study destination worldwide after the USA and UK with nearly 350,000 international students studying here each year. Although the majority, over 70 percent are short-term Chinese language students, growth is rapid at around 9 percent from between 2012 and 2013.


BT 201503 35 Feature story 2Historically, leading study destinations in the world have reflected the economic and social influence a particular nation has in the world and the heart of a nation's global influence is the strength of their Universities. Increasingly China is spreading economic and cultural influence on a global scale from Asia to Africa to Latin America. This growing economic and cultural influence together with growing international reputation and strength of her leading Universities are at the heart of the burgeoning international interest in studying in China. For example, we have seen strong growth this year from Zimbabwe with some of the brightest high school graduates in the country choosing programmes at Nankai University. You only have to arrive in Harare Airport in Zimbabwe, where all signage is bilingual in English and Chinese, to begin to understand the economic influence of China. The airport's construction was funded by Chinese investment. This naturally has an influence on study choices made by students when they are investing a lifetime of family savings into a choice where future economic and career opportunities are priority decision-making criteria.


The growth in demand has been welcomed by both Chinese Universities and the Chinese Government. However demand is growing and becoming increasingly more differentiated presenting some challenges in fulfilling international student expectations whether it is in their academic, social or expectations about the programmes itself. Certainly, offering more undergraduate and postgraduate programmes delivered in English, such as through the Nankai University and INTO partnership. This means that more students are able to pursue academic studies in China, as previously the biggest attraction was also one of the biggest barriers to study in China i.e. Chinese language. English medium programmes enable students to learn Chinese whilst they continue to pursue their academic studies in the chosen field turning China into a long-term rather short-term destination option. In addition to programme innovation, the INTO partnership with Nankai is an example of how some Universities are seeking to accommodate the growth in demand whilst ensuring their capacity to meet non-academic expectations is fulfilled. The partnership with INTO enables Nankai to focus entirely on the academic delivery and to ensure it meets students' expectations and future employability aspirations. INTO focuses on identifying and nurturing student demand globally and delivering world class student support services on campus for a first class student experience to complement Nankai academic excellence in the classroom.


Increasingly Chinese Universities are adapting their programmes and offering more English Medium Programmes to make education in China more accessible for students from all parts of the globe.

BT 201503 33 Feature story hlThe implications of international education for employment and business are also considerable. International students bring first and foremost a global mind-set to companies operating in China. Whether they are an MNC or Chinese company, the reality of the global marketplace and the global knowledge economy is that it requires a workforce with global knowledge. Students seeking to enrich their academic and cultural experiences by embarking on the adventure of international education, and specifically an experience in Chinese higher education, come with a mind-set that immediately enables them to add value to businesses. Coupled with the academic subject excellence of their study focus, this gives the students we are bringing to China a wonderful first step on the career ladder as well as supporting the commercial aspirations of companies in China and Tianjin, from a multitude of industry sectors. We have already seen significant interest in speaking to international students on academic programmes at Nankai among local and global businesses based in Tianjin. INTO has already begun to support businesses to develop internship programmes to take advantage of this global-minded student's base in Tianjin.


The contribution international education and international students bring to the local and national economy alone cannot be underestimated. For example, in the USA international students in 2014 contributed three times more to the US economy than they did in 15 years ago - from 9 billion USD to 27 billion USD when tuition, room, board and associated costs are accounted for.


BT 201503 36 Feature story 42015 will see an increase in choice and competition for students between institutions and nations. The USA will remain the dominant choice for international students with continued growth in China and also Australia and Canada registering high with students because of positive migration policies. The UK will continue to slow but remain a leading choice for high quality students. There will be increasing global provision of online courses but fundamentally students will look for quality and recognized brands that will credibly fulfil their employability aspirations at undergraduate level. For Postgraduate education, more flexible forms of delivery will drive demand alongside choice between the leading study destinations. China will continue to see growth but this will be strongest in the undergraduate programme sector until students in Western Europe and North America are able to get national loans to study for postgraduate studies. Until this happens, growth in self-funded studies on a large scale in postgraduate education remains limited. We were pleased to see a 350% growth in applications for our programmes in China this year. Our programmes are somewhat niche as they are not Chinese language focused so what we are seeing is just the edge of a larger growth story.


Even a brief period of study in China is certain to be of value to a career in many fields. As China has become a magnet for global business, career opportunities are becoming more abundant and diversified year on year. As more and more students seek career centric study abroad options, China is increasingly recognised as a destination to achieve this. For more information on INTO China's partnership with Nankai University please visit www.into-corporate.com.


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