WHO MANAGES YOUR APPLICATION PROCESS YOU OR YOUR

WHO MANAGES YOUR APPLICATION PROCESS - YOU OR YOUR AGENTS? Simon Read, Uni-Pay www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

SESSION OVERVIEW 1 - Some background market context/trends 2 - What is important to agents? 3 - What is it really like? - the communication dynamic 4 - Panel input on using agents within their own sectors / experiences 5 -Q&A www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 2

MARKET CONTEXT & TRENDS BIS International Education Strategy 2013 • 2011/12 = £ 10. 2 bn income in UK from overseas students • Estimated further growth of 15 – 20% over 5 years Use of agents to recruit students is growing • Nearly 1/3 rd of all overseas students for HE (OBHE) • More like 50% + for language schools 3, 836 completed the British Council’s Foundation Training programme for Agents Now a truly global market worth many billions of dollars www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 3

WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO AGENTS? Main ingredient for successful educator-agent partnerships ICEF i-graduate Agent Barometer 2013 www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 4

MOST EFFECTIVE MARKETING STRATEGIES ICEF i-graduate Agent Barometer 2013 www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 5

SO WHAT IS THE REALITY OF THE COMMUNICATION DYNAMIC? v Complex Communication Dynamic v Highly Competitive Environment v Open to Abuse v Quasi-regulated v Not standardised / controlled www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 6

SO WHO OWNS THIS COMPLEX PROCESS? www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 7

USING INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT AGENTS: RISKS AND REGULATION? Richard Brabner University of Hertfordshire www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

THE USE OF AGENTS IN UK HIGHER EDUCATION • Widespread use of agents in UK higher education → 100 UK universities enrolled 51, 027 students via processes involving agents in 2010 -11 → 29. 3% of all 174, 225 non-European Union students • Conflict of interest → “multi-task agency problem” and “trilateral dilemma” • Lack of studies or focus on this issue in the UK • Ethical debate conducted in the US → National Association for College Admission Counselling against using agents → But many colleges in the US ignore NACAC www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

RECRUITMENT AGENTS IN THE NEWS www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

QUALITATIVE STUDY Small qualitative study → 8 semi-structured interviews Helping the students with the process, that’s another key aspect of it, it’s that very practical support as it’s a complex process going through different stages of the application The scale of the activities is so great that I think most international departments would not be able to do without agents → Content analysis on press articles in UK and US → Results presented in 5 themes 1. Why universities use agents → Scale → Competitive advantage Sonja Cox, a Chinese student writing in the Aberdeen Press and Journal: “The agent was the only source I could use to seek more information about Aberdeen Business School and Aberdeen itself → Local knowledge 2. How agents benefit students → Support through the application process → Cultural norms www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

QUALITATIVE STUDY 3. Ethical Concerns That Arise From Using Agents → Bias/conflict of interest → Misrepresentation and Misinformation → Standards There are cases of straightforward lying → Fraud and other serious cases of criminality 4. How universities manage their agents → Selection procedures → Contracts → Communication and information → Training www. britishcouncil. org/siem We look at their experience, their legal status we do check, their network of contacts, the size the shape, etc. And we also get references from institutions that are already represented by the agent © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. A lot of the agents sold something very different to what the students [were] receiving

QUALITATIVE STUDY 5. Views on regulation → Responsibility of institutions → Transparency → Power dynamics → Codes of conduct We [the university] are responsible for making ourselves aware of how they [the agents] are behaving and where there are problems, we withdraw our contract I think the key really is that if there’s a dual payment then both the university needs to know that’s how the business model works and the student needs to know that’s how the business model works → License to practice Conclusions from the qualitative study → Banning agents not in the interest of universities or international students → But ethical issues persist → Role for regulation www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. How many times have we seen voluntary arrangements, peer supervision, just not work? So we probably need to have a system of licensing practice for the agent

REGULATION APPROACHES Regulation of agents in higher education limited → Code of conducts • American International Recruitment Council • Australian National Code Financial services industry → Self-regulatory organisations • Positives: Better able to address complicated issues and cheaper and quicker than courts • Criticisms: Benefit of sector; inadequate incentives, dampen competition; free –riding • Problems can be overcome → Arbitration → Transparency www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

REGULATORY OPTIONS FOR UK HIGHER EDUCATION • Universities continue to adopt control measures • But needs to be a sector-wide approach to regulation 1. License to practice SRO → Interviewees recognise the responsibility of universities → Mix of the AIRC and Australian system to ensure rigor → Define ethical principles, license reputable agents, adjudicate complaints 2. Arbitration 3. Transparency www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

THANK YOU Richard Brabner, Head of Policy, University of Hertfordshire http: //www. lfhe. ac. uk/en/research-resources/publications/index. cfm/ST%20 -%2012 www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

JUSTIN QUINN Managing Director Centre of English Studies www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

6 YEAR-ROUND SCHOOLS Over 30 years in International Education ü ü ü London Oxford Leeds Worthing Dublin Taipei www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

OVER 15, 000 STUDENTS IN 2013 ü From 66 countries ü Average 20. 35 www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 20

HOW DO WE RECRUIT OUR STUDENTS ? www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

HOW DO WE RECRUIT OUR AGENTS ? ü Studyworld ü ICEF Workshops ü ALPHE Workshops Sales calls ü Facebook ü Referrals www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 22

WHAT DO THE AGENTS DO FOR CES ? ü Recruit & council students ü Promote CES in their brochures, websites, student fairs, Facebook www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

üCommissions üAgent agreements üVetting of agents üBC Training ü 20% - 25% on the tuition fees www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

PAYMENTS ü Deducted from gross fee at source ü Gross fee and commissions paid retrospectively www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

AFSHAN BAKSH Head of International Development Harrow College www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

HARROW COLLEGE – THE FE EXPERIENCE In the beginning… www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 28

WHERE ARE WE NOW? www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 29

WORKING ‘WITH’ AGENTS Price Communication Rules / Process / Penalty Due Diligence / Quality www. britishcouncil. org/siem Partner Agent © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. Motivation / Commitment 30

CREATING A BALANCE www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 31

DAWOOD FARD Managing Director Centurus www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

MY EXPERIENCE Institution dynamic – HE/ FE / Language School / Public / Private Diverse systems and process Managing applicant communication Lack of common approach Student often disengaged throughout the application process Agent Quality www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 33

PROCESSES USED Communication Marketing materials Applicant communication Internal notes History and records Outsourced services – Students and Organisations www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 34

IN SUMMARY www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

COMMON THEMES Agents are an important part of the recruitment process Communication is Key Abuse does exist Agents are high in the power dynamic Institutions must own the process www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 36

FROM THIS…. v Complex Communication Dynamic v Highly Competitive Environment v Open to Abuse v Quasi-regulated v Not standardised / controlled www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 37

TO THIS……. . ü Common Approach ü Structure ü Reduces Risk and Abuse www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.

THANK YOU Simon Read Uni-Pay info@uni-pay. net Please visit our stand for further information on our services www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission. 39

This presentation contains information sourced either by the British Council itself or in collaboration with its research partners and is of a general nature. While the British Council makes every effort to ensure that the information provided in the presentation is accurate and up to date, the British Council makes no warranty (whether express or implied) and accepts no responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the presentation. The British Council does not assume any legal liability, whether direct or indirect, arising in relation to reliance on the presentation. Any references to third party organisations in this presentation are not an endorsement by British Council of those organisations. www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council The British Council is the United Kingdom’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. www. britishcouncil. org/siem © 2013 British Council. All rights reserved. This document may not be amended, copied or distributed without express written permission.