Recruiting Intelligence

As we look forward to wrapping up 2017 and reflect on the year, we are noticing one recurring theme. Throughout 2017, the world of international student recruitment has been hyper-focused on the concerns around a limited recruitment budget.

Many of our colleagues reported that the biggest blow was to their designated funds for travel, and many institutions have endured reductions in staff, limiting their recruitment resources even more. And, as you know, the enrollment expectations from above are as high as ever – if not higher! 

Well, during this holiday season – we’re here to give you some hope (and tips!). 

There are things you can do now, small things, on an even smaller budget, that can make a big impact later. We recommend you consider trying all 10 of our recruitment tips for under $10 and then do them again…and again…and again. Read on to see how you can make a big impact with a little funding...

A quick reminder: we'll be taking a break from the blog next week and you'll see great content here again in January 2018! Odd to write 2018. (There's a joke in there about future sight being 2020, or something like that...). Either way, time flies, doesn't it?

In January, we'll be posting our slides from all of our AIRC and ICEF presentations. Hey, and when you have a moment during the holiday break, check out our International Student Recruitment Bootcamp. Spaces are filling fast -- limted to 100 attendees who will all walk out with a global marketing plan fashioned to their institution with the help of our globally knowledable faculty.

Read on to get your 10 tips all under $10. Happy Holidays from our team to yours. Enjoy the season!

The Intead team has been at AIRC and ICEF Miami this past week meeting with a great set of education industry people from around the world. There is a consensus that 2017 has been a year like no other.

Political upheaval has left the international education community reeling—and now, more than ever, we all need to stay on our A-game.

Wouldn't an analysis of student influences and motivations in 29 countries be just the thing for you and your staff to bring that A-game? Well...

Do you remember our Spring 2017 Know Your Neighborhood report? One finding made big waves, both among our readers and in media like The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times and NPR’s Marketplace.  Along with FPP EDU Media, we gathered survey responses from 40,000+ students from around the globe—and 60% said they would be less likely to study in the U.S. under a Trump presidency.

It was a concerning finding, to say the least. So in the aftermath of the inauguration, we wanted to know: now that the Trump candidacy had turned into a Trump presidency, were global students still equally alarmed? And if so, what would be the best ways to keep them coming to the U.S. regardless?

You’ll find the answers and way more in our newest e-book: Know Your Neighborhood: Influencers, Interests, and Political Reactions in the International Student Population.

Read on for a bit of insight before you download this amazing, data-rich report...

Read all about it!

Hot off the electronic presses: our newest research on global alumni from Intead and Academic Assembly, Inc. Together we analyzed responses from more than 100 U.S. academic professionals about how their institutions manage global alumni.

Ready to up your alumni game, and strengthen your recruitment, fundraising, and more? Read on and dive into out free white paper!

In the meantime, we hope that we will see you at any one of our many presentations during the AIRC and ICEF conferences over the next 7 days. The Intead team will be sharing lecturns with Monmouth University, UCLA Extension, Temple University, Sandy Spring Friends School, Academic Assembly, Sunrise Education and WholeRen.

The Intead team will be offering up fresh data and ideas to help you recruit international students from community colleges (Ben) and private boarding schools (Kellie). We'll be diving deep into Chinese student personas (Patricia). We'll be looking at the importance of internal alignment (Ben) as it relates to the international student experience on your campus. And we'll be presenting for the first time ever: our inaugural research on global alumni (Kate). Spoiler alert: they aren't being used effectively...but you already knew that, right?

We think we'll raise a few eyebrows (that's our version of having a wild time in Florida ;-)

Read on to get the real download on this great new global alumni analysis...

We know that India is weighing heavily on the minds of international recruitment professionals all over the world... especially here in the U.S. How will mobility trends among this growing student population play out? And, where will the U.S. fall in the decision-making process of outbound Indian students? 

While the number of international students and specifically Indian students in the U.S. continue to grow, recent trends indicate that the U.S. is losing ground to Canada and Australia in the competition for Indian students.

Why?  We'll explore that question in this week's blog. And we will explore what you can do about it in greater detail at our International Student Recruitment Bootcamp in San Diego this February. Come learn with us, CGACC and our expert faculty – names from our industry you've known and respected for a very long time. We've limited this hands-on event to 100 attendees, so that the 1.5 days of learning and networking is intense and highly valuable to you.

Read on to see how the U.S. and your institution in particular should be approaching the Indian student market. And we hope to see you at AIRC and then ICEF in Florida starting next week.
Oh! and don't forget to attend our webinar TODAY at 2 p.m. EST on Wielding the Power of Data for International Student Recruitment. 

We’ve had Saudi Arabia on the mind lately—and not just because of the political upheaval that made big headlines this month. Saudi Arabia has long been among the top providers of international students at US universities at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, not to mention language programs. And we’re sure that recent shifts in government scholarship programs have recruitment experts (like you) wondering what future trends may hold.

Over the past two years, we’ve watched the major driver of Saudi students to study abroad, the King’s generous scholarship program take a sharp turn downward. As a result, the number of Saudi students in the US has dropped by 18% in the past year.

How institutions will make up for this loss in anticipated international student growth and revenue is a big question mark. The proactive are already at it. The lethargic are still scratching their heads and losing ground.

It's a big world with many markets. Determining which will resonate with your specific offerings is quite a task.

This week we are exploring the fundamentals of the Saudi scholarship program and its dramatic shift, in order to outline the challenges and opportunities (yes – they are still there for the right institutions) of student recruitment in Saudi Arabia.

Read on to see how and if your institution should be approaching recruitment in Saudi Arabia...

Lately, the numbers thrown around the international student recruiting world can feel disconcerting – even frightening. We look to the Open Doors Data from IIE released this week and we see that the average number of international students studying in the U.S. this fall has declined by 7% among 500 universities, with as many as 45% of institutions reporting a drop in new international student enrollment. That figure is usually about 33% of institutions reporting a drop based on IIE year to year comparisons over the past decade.

We are all seeing more and more alarming numbers and hearing anecdotal evidence emerging as the year progresses. This, while Canada's international student numbers have grown by more than 18%. It can be easy to feel overwhelmed and discouraged here in the US, and we're sure many of our readers are feeling on-edge this week as they formulate plans and reports to their senior administrators.

Let's all take a deep breath and step back. Remember: no matter the national figures, your unique institutional numbers represent strength, resilience and potential. Your intake numbers and data on the overall performance of your marketing efforts is the foundation upon which you will build all future efforts.

Without data, you have nothing. You are operating on guesswork and flying blind.

Based on past surveys, we know that most institutions' international recruitment leaders/staff do not actually check their Google Analytics stats at all, much less at regular intervals to compare performance. We're sure that's not you, but just in case... now is the time to start!

Remind yourself and your colleagues: don't hide from the numbers because they are unfavorable, complicated or intimidating. Look for ways to make the numbers accessible, useful and easy to communicate. (That's where we come in!) 

This month, we invite you to join us for a webinar on the value of your data, Stop Dreading Data: Wielding the Power of Data to Strengthen Your International Student Recruitment Strategy on November 29, 2017 at 2:00 PM EST. This webinar will offer perspective and tools you need to harness the power of your data. We will provide simple guidelines and best practices you can begin implementing at your institution – right now.

Learn how to use data you already have to:

• Inform your recruitment strategy
• Evaluate relative ROI
• Focus your budget on high value activities (which programs, which countries, which marketing channels)
• Tailor your messaging

Read on to register to attend our complimentary webinar and explore the value of your institutional data and simple, effective ways that you can examine your numbers to increase long term performance...

Whether you’re new to the international recruitment game or a veteran traveler, you know that extended international travel can be draining ­– physically and emotionally. This strain is doubled when you are keeping a hectic schedule and meeting many new faces every day. But then again, this process is energizing, too! That’s why you got into the industry, right? To eat all that amazing food...oh, and meet and expand the futures of young people all over the world  ;-)

So, we do encourage you to to take care of yourself as you travel the world and expand the global perspectives of tomorrow's leaders. And as you begin planning your next recruitment trips (as well as a trip to California in January to attend our annual International Student Recruitment Bootcamp!), we hope you will consider implementing some of these tips and tricks that we have compiled from our friends and colleagues over the years. This is an ever-growing list so we hope that you will add your comments and suggestions as well!

Read on to see if your travel acumen includes these five time-tested gems...

Last week, we attended the NAFSA Region X conference in Princeton, NJ, and had the pleasure of meeting many new friends and reconnecting with old acquaintances. 

Perhaps the most memorable conversation for Ben and Patricia was with Dr. John Sexton, president emeritus of NYU and founder of the Catalyst Trust for Universal Education (pictured above). They had a chance to talk following his plenary addressing the value of international education and the importance of the work you do. 

Here at Intead, we often reflect on the value of all of the effort you put into this whole international education thing. This week we wanted to pause and thank each and every one of you for the incredible work you do every day to sustain a volatile industry and encourage students around the world to connect and share experiences across borders. This is, "the life to which you are called," as Dr. Sexton so aptly phrased it. And you do it with such great energy and dedication. We recognize the value of the work you do and hope that you will continue to make leaps forward in the face of today’s challenges, tomorrow’s, and the next.

We are here to say: we see everything that is happening in the world and in global education, and we echo Dr. Sexton's message of staying motivated, encouraging each other and recognizing that, "Your work is so valuable." 

Need some re-energizing? We all do once in a while. Read on to reconnect with your passion and renew your vigor…

As we look forward to our next International Student Recruitment Bootcamp and consider ways to keep you informed about ways to stabilize the effects of today’s environment, we want to bring your attention to the ways that dual and joint degree programs are still picking up steam in the world of international education. For students, these degrees can seem like a bargain and well worth the effort to solidify diverse opportunities in their studies. But, how do they benefit your institution? Why is now the right time to look toward international partnerships? We are exploring these questions (and more) this week!

What are you doing to address today’s volatile global political climate? Is there more you could be doing? Are there ways to stabilize your recruitment channels? Where to turn when navigating the chaos?

In uncertain times, one key factor that can make all the difference for your international recruitment strategy is the strength of a well-informed team. At our second annual International Student Recruitment Bootcamp, we will help you navigate uncertainty in the field and increase the effectiveness of your recruitment strategy.

Our speakers have been selected for the depth and breadth of their expertise in areas including: agent networks, regional analysis, fairs, technology, partnerships and more. Join us and take advantage of their talent and the networking opportunities with your peers. Work through the specific issues facing your institution. This collaborative think-tank opportunity is rare. Many institutions are playing a guessing game – is yours?  Click here to stop guessing and register today.

Please read on for our thoughts on developing university partnerships...

Let's start with a Happy Diwali to all our friends who celebrate! We share wishes for prosperity, wisdom and peace to all. And with those well wishes, we want to consider ideas about student retention this week.

When do you start thinking about student retention? Have you looked at your retention data lately? Our thought: we all need to think about retention from the get go, from the point of the admissions offer.

This week's post offers perspective on the advantages of this approach and some tips you'll want to consider as part of your communications plan. If your retention stats are not where they should be, and those stats will vary by type of institution and program, this post is for you. Frankly, even if your retention stats are where you want them to be, this post is probably still a good one for you.

Want to learn more from us? Intead will be at NAFSA Region X in Princeton, NJ, October 23-25. Two presentations with our latest recruitment insights:

• International Recruiting…From Your Backyard with Bill Mena, Director of Boarding and International Admissions at Sandy Spring Friends School in Maryland, and
• Know Your Chinese Audience: Using Personas to Guide Your Marketing with Ita Hemouet, Director of Admissions, International Research & Strategy from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences University in Boston.

...or set up a time to meet us for coffee! We can always use an excuse for that extra cup of joe! 

Not heading to Princeton this month? How about Florida in December? Our team will be at AIRC (Dec. 6-9) and ICEF (Dec. 11-13). And of course there is AIEA in DC (Feb 18-21). So many opportunities to meet and discuss our latest research (4 new e-books heading your way in the coming months - Shhhh! We are keeping that quiet right now).

But if you REALLY want to learn from the best of the best, check out our faculty at the 2nd Annual International Student Recruitment Bootcamp in San Diego (Feb 11-13). This small, hands on workshop format is for a select set of institutions making a real commitment to improving their international student recruitment program.

Meanwhile, in this week's blog we are considering retention. Retention starts with the offer of acceptance to your institution. That might seem like a bold statement – a shift in perspective, but we like to think that it should be intuitive. When you offer a student a place at your institution, you are committing to the entire process of maintaining that relationship until the point of graduation and beyond.

While it might seem hard to believe that extra effort focused on retention this early in their university process will impact your prospective students’ decisions down the road – we assure you that it can. Build your relationships early and often. Let’s take it from the beginning. Read on...