These lessons, which also apply to schools with an interest in Vietnam, are excerpted from a 21 August 2011 Chronicle of Higher Education article. They are based on conversations with administrators at a number of Australian universities. One of the key points is that international student recruitment must be a part of a broader internationalization strategy. As Simon Evans, pro vice chancellor for international at the University of Melbourne, put it, “The international element of this university is not built around student recruiting. It is built around everything that we do.”
——————————
Diversity. The shopworn slogan of real-estate agents is that the three most important things in selling a home are location, location, location. The word that should probably be repeated three times for institutions interested in international-student recruiting is “diversity.” Universities can find it relatively easy to build a pipeline from a single country, especially a populous one like China, that provides a quick and rich student flow. But many of the students, especially if recruited by the same agent, may be interested in the same areas of study, such as business. “Scale makes you create large funnels into narrow areas,” says Sharon Bell, deputy vice chancellor for research and international at Charles Darwin University, in the Northern Territory. Recruiting agents, she says, are motivated by repetition. It is easier for them to keep sending Chinese students who want to major in accounting than to find one student interested in environmental engineering, and then another one in music.
A strong flow of students from a single country can become a dry gulch after an agent goes out of business or a diplomatic freeze between two countries ices over student visas. Iran was the largest exporter of students to the United States before 1979, when the shah was overthrown and an anti-American government took over.
Diversity in international students, like diversity in financial investments, helps protect institutions in downturns and makes them more likely to have a net out to catch students in the right places at the right times—such as when a country’s government decides to rapidly increase the number of students it sends out on full scholarships. Think Saudi Arabia.
Partnership building. Australian universities with high student diversity attain it by painstakingly building relationships with trustworthy people and institutions, such as secondary schools that graduate well-prepared students—”international schools” located around the world that serve professional families and teach in English are one source. The use of agents has become highly controversial in the United States, in part because of concerns that commissions, not students, are the agents’ highest priority. But Australian institutions say they use agents whom they have carefully vetted. “You need an agent to give you more than names and addresses,” says Chris Robinson, associate dean for international at Victoria University’s faculty of business and law, which serves a student body that is 50 percent international. The agents, he says, help students fill out applications, apply for visas, prepare for travel, and let them know how much money they will need.
Joint-degree programs help institutions generate international students. The University of New South Wales, for example, shares an engineering program with students at Thammasat University, in Thailand. The students study for two years at Thammasat followed by two at New South Wales, paying for only two years of the more-expensive study time in Australia, rather than the four years that it would take them if they started at an Australian institution. Thammasat, already well-regarded within Thailand, gets some international clout for its affiliation with the University of New South Wales. The Australian university gets a steady flow of Thai students. Such niche partnerships are labor-intensive, says Jennie Lang, pro vice chancellor for international programs at New South Wales, but worth it.
Remember your alumni. It’s far from an Australian secret, but alumni are great “brand ambassadors” when they return to their home countries. Australian universities have invested heavily and regularly in surveys of the “student experience,” using feedback from the surveys to make sure students get the information and support they need, from well before they show up at an Australian airport until they land a job. Later, universities can actively prompt alumni to refer potential students back and interview them for admission. “Good word of mouth makes for good repeat business,” says Allison Taylor, executive director of international at Macquarie University.
Invest in student safety. An emphasis on safety when recruiting students can be a red flag to them and their parents. With the exception of subtle photographs of quiet, green campuses, it is hard to actively use safety as a marketing plus. But a reputation for safety is important to the parents of prospective students. An attack on a foreign student gets intense publicity in home countries like China and India in a way that is hard to imagine for many Westerners. The viral way in which bad news spreads can result in sharp downturns in student numbers.
Subject: Still Lucid at 97: General Vo Nguyen Giap Talks Education
29/08/2011Clarification: While the cable notes that “Giap is the hero of Vietnam’s 1954 victory over the French at Dien Bien Phu,” it’s worth pointing out – for the sake of historical accuracy – that he was also instrumental in the defeat of the US in what the Vietnamese call the “American War.” I guess the target audience had something to do with this sin of omission.
Võ Nguyên Giáp celebrated his 100th birthday on 25 August.
—————————————————————
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Hanoi
R 050947Z MAY 08 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7743
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 4667
RUEHZS/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVEUNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 000516
SENSITIVE
TAGS: PHUM ECON PGOV KCOR KPAO SOCI PREL VM
Summary
¶1. (SBU) On April 25, the Ambassador and General Vo Nguyen Giap discussed efforts to increase educational exchanges between the United States and Vietnam. After imploring the Ambassador to work to bring the overall relationship to an even higher level, Giap echoed the Ambassador’s desire to see more Vietnamese study in the United States. Giap also pleaded for the Ambassador’s help in getting a U.S. university to open a branch in Vietnam. While the General repeated himself a few times during the 40 minute conversation, he left no doubt he is a fan of U.S. educational institutions. Giap is the hero of Vietnam’s 1954 victory over the French at Dien Bien Phu and an icon in Vietnam who has remained somewhat politically active despite his 97 years of age. End Summary.
Context
¶2. (SBU) On April 25, the Ambassador met Vietnamese national hero and Ho Chi Minh’s chief military strategist, General Vo Nguyen Giap, at the General’s Hanoi home. Due to his age and frail health, Giap receives visitors only infrequently. In seeking this meeting with the General, our note underscored the Ambassador’s desire to discuss bilateral educational exchanges. Giap has been outspoken about the need for reform of Vietnam’s educational system, most recently last year issuing a public letter calling for systemic reform (Reftel).
¶3. (SBU) When the Ambassador and Poloffs arrived, Giap, his wife and son, and a few Party officials were waiting in a living room of the General’s home. Giap, who did not get up from his seat, was dressed in military uniform. No press representatives were present. On the table in front of where the Ambassador and the General sat was a tape player that recorded the conversation — perhaps indicating Party officials still feel compelled, despite Giap’s advanced age, to keep tabs on what the General tells his foreign interlocutors. (Note: After sidelining Giap, then removing him from the Politburo in 1982, reportedly for his opposition to the invasion of Cambodia, Party rivals continued to monitor the General’s activities and conversations. End Note.)
We Are Now Friends
¶4. (SBU) The General began by noting that the United States and Vietnam are enjoying peaceful relations, with Vietnam now hosting a fourth post-war American ambassador. Giap relayed that he met with most of the Ambassador’s predecessors, who “demonstrated goodwill” towards Vietnam. Giap implored the Ambassador to bring the overall relationship to an even higher level. He said the GVN has achieved a lot of late and is “trying hard” in all areas. The Ambassador responded that he shares the General’s desire for better relations and pointed out that he is committed to doubling the number of Vietnamese students who study in the United States.
Zeroing In On Education
¶5. (SBU) The GVN is focused on improving its educational and scientific capabilities so the country can join the ranks of the developed countries, Giap said. Hanoi has progressed in the education area, but much needs to be done, he added. The increase
in the number of Vietnamese exports heading to the United States is just an “initial development” in the relationship and economic ties are bound to grow, he offered. Giap said the most important thing — pointing his finger in the air for emphasis — is the “human element.” The Communist Party has made improving Vietnam’s educational system its number one priority, he stated.
¶6. (SBU) The United States and Vietnam could talk a lot, but “deeds are more important than words,” the General continued. He asked that the Ambassador pay special attention to education because what has been done so far to get Vietnamese students to study in America “has not been sufficient.” Although a large number of Vietnamese students are enrolled at U.S. educational institutions, this is just a start, he added. He averred that a U.S. university should establish itself in Vietnam. Perhaps it could be a joint U.S.-Vietnamese university, he said.
¶7. (SBU) The Ambassador responded that we have heard that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung also wants a U.S. university to set up in Vietnam. “You must have talked to him about this,” the Ambassador said, which elicited laughter. The General replied that, from time to time, he does talk to the PM about education issues in Vietnam. Giap added that, on many occasions, he has made public his points on science and education.
Comment: Approaching 100 But Still Lucid
¶8. (SBU) Giap repeated himself a few times during the 40 minute meeting, but spoke with clarity about the importance he attaches to education. With a doctorate in economics and as a former high school teacher whose daughter and grandchildren have studied at American universities, the General made clear that he sees U.S. educational institutions as important to Vietnam’s future.
MICHALAK
Categories: Commentary, Documents
Tags: Michael Michalak, US-Vietnam educational exchange, US-Vietnam relations, Vo Nguyen Giap, wikileaks
Comments: 2 Comments