Education New Zealand (ENZ) announced this week that the country has set an ambitious goal to grow its international education sector over the next three years. That strategy aims to see the economic impact of the sector grow to NZ$4.4 billion by 2027 (US$2.6 billion), with an emphasis on growing and diversifying the number of foreign students enrolled in New Zealand.
Building from an estimated base economic contribution of NZ$2.2 billion for 2023 (US$1.3 billion), this will mean expanding the international enrolment base in New Zealand from just over 69,000 students last year to 100,000 enrolments by 2027.
“International education has made a good start to its recovery with more than 69,000 enrolments in the first full academic year since borders reopened and universities returning to 86% of pre-pandemic numbers,” said ENZ Acting Chief Executive Dr Linda Sissons. “The government has a goal of doubling the value of export earnings in ten years and international education has its part to play.”
ENZ’s strategy rests in part on additional planned investments in key growth markets, including India, Vietnam, and the Philippines, along with targeted investments in specific market segments in Japan and Thailand. “We need to start now to grow awareness of New Zealand in these markets if we are to achieve our growth targets,” added Dr Sissons. “Moving forward, we will continue to seek growth through diversifying markets while maintaining our strength in traditional markets such as China and India.”
What do students think?
The expansion plan will get a boost from the 2024 edition of the International Student Experience Survey, the results of which were released today. This year’s survey gathered responses from 6,431 foreign students in New Zealand during May and June 2024. Nearly nine in ten (86%) rated their experience of studying in the country positively (up 2% from last year), with 41% saying that they had had an “excellent” experience in New Zealand (a notable 8% increase from the 2023 survey).
Students responded most favourably with respect to the people and connections they experienced in New Zealand (90%), followed by education experience (87%), making study arrangements (87%), arrival and orientation (85%), and living experience (83%).
Students also positively rated their experience using an education agent, particularly their agent’s knowledge of their education provider’s application process (84%), New Zealand application options (81%), and how using an education agent reduced the time taken to complete their application (79%).
“We are delighted to see how positive students are about the people they meet and connections they form in New Zealand. This speaks strongly to the enriching ties these students will have to our country in the long run, and how we will benefit and learn from each other,” said Dr Sissons.
Sharpening a new strategy
Speaking at the New Zealand International Education Conference (NZIEC) in Wellington this week, ENZ officials began to lay out a case – and a plan – for a new strategy that will help New Zealand further build its international enrolment.
“In a sea of [competing destinations], it’s increasingly difficult to stand out for students and for student families,” said ENZ Director, Marketing and Brand Adrian Hirst. “How do we differentiate ourselves? If we don’t differentiate ourselves, we run the risk of being totally ignored. We need something to hang our hat on. We need something that resonates with the core needs and motivations of our audience, and we need to look at differentiating in a way that adds quality and value to our industry.”
ENZ Director of Innovation and Growth Christina Gomes explained that the agency has been through a very deliberate planning process of matching international demand for education with areas of training where New Zealand has deep expertise: “Over the past six months we have developed a future-focused framework that looks at the intersection of demand – what the world wants – and overlays that with what New Zealand can supply. The intersection of supply and demand is where opportunity lies, and the sweet spot is that space where we have a defendable competitive advantage.”
That analysis landed on three focus sectors where ENZ felt that New Zealand has globally recognised expertise: agri-food systems, aerospace technology, and renewable energy.
“One in three people worldwide work in the agri-food sector,” she added. “It is the single largest area of employment in the world. So is this opportunity big enough for us? New Zealand is a leading source of expertise and credibility in this area. We have a global reputation and world-class education pathways leading to global employment opportunities. This is not about working in a field. It encompasses the entire value chain from soil science to food design and development through to supply chain and marketing. This is where the future lies.”
ENZ Manager Innovation and Growth Tim Brown explained that the branding and marketing programme will now enter a new pilot phase for testing and validation in the coming months. This will allow for market testing of a variety of new touchstones for students and families, including case studies and a new virtual open day platform.
That pilot phase kicked off this week with ENZ’s launch of a refreshed “mixed reality” tool that combines virtual reality with interactive displays and other resources. The tool is designed to provide an immersive experience for prospective students with the goal of allowing them to sample the New Zealand study environment, and to learn more about the opportunities across the food production value chain.
Through the final quarter of 2024, ENZ will be doing some further market testing of its new marketing resources, including the mixed reality tool, in China and South Asia and with the goal of driving student interest to the virtual open day later in the year, and generating new student leads for NZ institutions through early 2025.
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