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Vocational education
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International student interest in vocational education is booming in most study destinations worldwide, due to more aggressive marketing campaigns by colleges and real benefits for students, says Bethan Norris.
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Demand for vocational education worldwide is on the increase, according to latest statistics, with many colleges reporting growth in particular international student markets.
Chris Wight from Eastern Institute of Technology in New Zealand says, “Our largest ethnic group is from India because this market is hot for New Zealand at the moment and we have tried to work that to our advantage through our marketing efforts. We are hoping China will improve for us in the next two years as we have appointed a Mandarin speaking [member of] staff to market there.”
A glance at the top international student nationalities at colleges in different study destinations worldwide shows that vocational education is popular with certain nationalities wherever the destination. Chinese and Indian come in the top three nationalities for colleges in the UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, while other strong student markets for this worldwide sector are Korea and Japan.
Ayfer Aydin from Hove College in the UK says that their top student nationalities depend on the promotional work being done by the college. “Our largest student nationality is Turkish because I am Turkish myself and I do plenty of promotional activities in Turkey,” she says. “Japanese [is our fastest growing nationality] because of my first and very recent trip to visit 14 agents in Tokyo and Osaka in May 2009.”
While international student numbers at vocational colleges in most study destinations have been increasing in recent years, the UK is notable in that numbers decreased by 14 per cent between the 2006/2007 and 2007/2008 academic years. Diane Mullen from the Association of Colleges in the UK says that the second phase of the UK Prime Minister’s Initiative, to encourage international cooperation between educational institutions in the UK and elsewhere, explains these findings. “Colleges are actively recruiting international students but they are also getting involved in transnational education arrangements,” she says, “where they work with colleges overseas to increase capacity in other countries and also share delivery of courses.”
In New Zealand, where international student numbers at vocational colleges increased by 7.6 per cent between 2007 and 2008, Education New Zealand puts the popularity of vocational education down to a number of factors. “Traditionally university-oriented source countries such as China and Korea are increasing the proportion of students enrolling in vocational training,” says a spokesperson. “Some students and agents have indicated that it is a reaction to the economic downturn and the increased competition for jobs. Institutions offering vocational courses are also becoming more aggressive in their overseas marketing.”
Being able to acclimatise to a new study environment at a smaller college before transferring to university is a definite appeal. Kelly Kester from Whatcom Community College in the USA – where national statistics for international students at community colleges are not available – says that 80 per cent of their student body are studying on university transfer programmes. “Students come to Whatcom because of the location, cost and strong student support services. They then transfer to universities across the USA,” he says.
Cheryl Webber from the College of the Rockies in Canada also points out that smaller class sizes, compared with universities, and a community feel are attractive. She notes, “Most college level courses offered by the College of the Rockies are articulated to follow the same curriculum as universities in BC, transferring easily to other institutions,” she says. “Students also have the choice of completing a two-year diploma programme then obtaining a three-year post-graduate work permit to stay in Canada and work.”
The opportunity to permanently migrate in Australia also led to a boom in its vocational sector, with many Indian students enrolling at private institutions such as hairdressing colleges (and therefore not reflected in public sector statistics below). Dan Mabilia from William Angliss Institute in Australia, which specialises in tourism courses, says that their Vietnamese and Malaysian student markets have notably increased because of marketing activities. “[We market through] word of mouth, attend student exhibitions and [use] an international agent network,” he explains.
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