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 The British Boarding Schools Workshop added a new element to proceedings this year with the introduction of an International Marketing Conference that was held on the day before the main workshop.
Suzanne Rowse, Director of S R Events, which organises the workshop, said that the new initiative was introduced in order to help UK boarding schools stay abreast of market trends in new and familiar student provider countries. “Most schools don’t have the resources to have a member of staff on the road all the time so they may not know what is going on in their student markets,” she said, adding, “Our aim is to support collaboration between agents and schools in many different forms.”
In total, four agents gave presentations on their local markets of Russia, Bulgaria, Romania and the Baltic States, while Christopher Greenfield, Principal of Sherborne International College, presented the results of a study that asked agents what they most required from schools to enable them to advise students properly about boarding schools.
The workshop itself was attended by 51 schools and 62 agents representing 70 different countries and held over two days at a venue just outside London. Elizabeth Toncheva from Edlanta in Romania said that she appreciated the fact that only UK boarding schools attended the event. “We offer a range of programmes: English courses, foundation programmes, university placements and internships, but I think it is good that the event is for boarding schools only,” she said. “It is easier to channel your thoughts [to one market] and compare the different schools.”
New study brand in Netherlands
 The Netherlands has launched a new brand to help Dutch universities market themselves to international students. The brand – launched in January – was developed by Nuffic, a non-profit organisation that aims to promote education in the Netherlands to the international community, on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.
Universities can use the new logo in their international marketing campaigns only if they have signed up to a code of conduct, which sets out the minimum standard of care and teaching that institutions must provide to their international students. So far, 30 higher education institutions have registered to use the brand through an online toolkit.
Tom Mulder from the University of Twente in Enschede said that they planned to use the new Study in Holland brand as a co-brand or endorsement to their own brand. “I do think that it is a good thing to market Holland as a destination,” he said. “With most English taught courses outside the English-speaking world and our liberal culture, we are a destination with great potential. It just has to become more visible.”
Ontario extends immigration scheme
The Canadian state of Ontario has expanded a pilot programme to grant permanent residence to foreign graduates of any Canadian college and university. Previously the programme only offered residence permits to graduates of Ontario’s publicly funded colleges and universities.
Under Ontario’s Pilot Provincial Nominee Program, successful migrants will receive permission to work in Ontario and have their application for permanent residency nominated by the provincial government for fast tracking by the federal government. Michael Chan, Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, said, “There is global competition for talent. International students are highly skilled, have Canadian credentials and are familiar with Canadian society. Our province will benefit from their talents for years to come.”
Peggy Nagle at the University of Guelph in Ontario said that she was very pleased with the new opportunities for international students to stay and work in the province. “I expect that students will see this as a great opportunity and recognise that Ontario wants more international students,” she said. “It is especially good for areas like Guelph where international graduates can get work permits for up to two years.”
News in brief
Private donor funds US study exchange
Duke University in Durham, NC in the USA has received US$20 million from a private donor to support financial aid programmes for international undergraduate students. The donation is from trustee Bruce Karsh and his wife and will be used to establish an endowment that will give needs-based grants to international students.
US$2.5 million of the money will be used to fund three summers of research for 20 international students in the Karsh International Scholars Program.
Irish college to fingerprint students
Griffith College in Dublin, Ireland has announced plans to introduce fingerprint readers to monitor the attendance of international students from outside the European Union. The college is the first private college in the country to introduce such an initiative.
The measures have been introduced in order to ensure that international students abide by their visa regulations and attend 80 per cent of their classes. Diarmuid Hegarty, President of Griffith College said that their international students had excellent attendance rates. “We welcome this opportunity for [our students’] high levels of commitment to their studies to be vindicated for the benefit of the Irish immigration authorities,” he said.
Scotland invests in overseas students
A further £300,000 (US$606,061) is to be invested into the Scottish Fresh Talent Initiative in order to encourage international students studying in Scotland to remain in the country after they finish their course. The International Students Challenge Fund will focus on projects aimed at increasing the employability of international students and will be made available to universities and colleges in Scotland to support projects in the 2008-2009 academic year.
Q & A
Full name: The Association of boarding schools
Organisation’s main role: to serve the marketing and professional development needs of college-preparatory boarding schools
Full contact details:
The Association of Boarding Schools
9 SW Pack Square, Suite 201
Asheville, NC, 28801, USA
Tel: +1 828 2585354
Fax: +1 8282586428
Email: tabs@schools.com
Web: www.schools.com
Who are your members and what are the association’s aims?
The Association of Boarding Schools serves the professional development and marketing needs of nearly 300 academic, college-prepatory boarding schools in the USA, Canada and overseas. It is the voice of the industry, an advocate for member schools and the leading destination for families seeking information about the benefits of living and learning in an academic community. The association organises an annual conference as well as a series of professional development workshops for school administrators. TABS also seeks to support its member schools in marketing and recruitment and publishes an annual print directory, maintains a comprehensive website and sponsors a series of overseas admission fairs.
What activities has TABS been involved in over the last year?
The association organised the TABS Asia Travel programme which was held in October and November last year. Over 50 member schools participated in the programme and visited venues in Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Thailand. Now entering its 14th year, the Asia travel programme benefits members by bringing school representatives face-to-face with students and parents. The 2007 annual conference, attracting 920 attendees, was held at the end of November in Boston, USA. The conference featured keynote speakers and workshops on best practice within boarding schools. Several pre-conference sessions allowed boarding school professionals to explore a single topic or administrative discipline in greater depth.
How have international enrolments fared among your members?
International enrolments continue to rise steadily, aided by the weak US dollar and ongoing interest in North American universities. Korea and Taiwan remain the countries with the largest cohorts studying in TABS member schools. On a percentage basis, representation from China is growing fastest. There are roughly four times more students from China in member schools than there were just a few years ago.
What are your plans for the future?
The TABS Asian fairs will take place again in October and November this year, while the annual conference will take place in Baltimore, the USA, between the 3rd and 7th December. TABS will also run its annual summer Admission Academy and a pair of Residential Life Workshops in February and July. The next 12 months also promises several new initiatives – including the launch of a more ambitious and sophisticated communications campaign on behalf of the boarding school sector. A completely new website, updated print materials, use of new media and an expanded menu of outreach activities and events will all figure in the new campaign.
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