Research conducted on behalf of the Department of Education Employment and Workplace Relations

Transcription

1 Understanding and Engaging with International Student Applicants who do not Accept an Offer of Enrolment from an Australian Higher Education Institution Research conducted on behalf of the Department of Education Employment and Workplace Relations Steve Nerlich, Director, Research, Analysis and Europe Unit Mark Puncher, Manager - Strategic Development, Hobsons Australia Alan Olsen, Director, Strategy Policy and Research in Education Limited 1 AIEC 2009 Positioning Australia and enhancing student experience Study in Australia 2010 A $3.5 million initiative on top of existing Australia Education International activity. Enhancing student experience Showcasing excellence in Australian education Positioning Australia as a leading education provider Supporting providers and stakeholders in the sector. The Australian Government made available $90,000 for this investigation into the perceptions of Australia s international education system held by prospective students who decline an offer to study in an Australian university. Copyright IGI Services

2 How is Australia positioned? AIEC 2009 Top 5 country providers of higher education to international students in 2007 United States (595,900) United Kingdom (351,500) France (246,600) Australia (211,500) Germany (206,900). Source: UNESCO Global Education Digest 2009 Note that UNESCO use data from the DEEWR Higher Education Statistics Collection and includes all overseas students (not just students on student visas) to be consistent with other countries data. Copyright IGI Services 2009 AIEC 2009 What do our international students choose to study? Year to date August 2009 Australia Higher Education Sector Broad Field Of Education Enrolments % Contribution Management and Commerce 97, % Information Technology 17, % Engineering and Related Technologies 16, % Health 15, % Society and Culture 15, % Others 38, % Grand Total 200, % Source: AEI International Student Data (students studying in Australia on a student visa only). Copyright IGI Services

3 Project background Where did they go and why? A survey of 1416 international students who had received but not accepted an offer of enrolment from an Australian university. Marketing s crucial Conversion counts! Australian Universities International Directors Forum (37 universities, Alan Olsen): In 2008, 322,900 applications resulted in 229,410 offers and 78,434 commencements. 66% of offers made were not accepted. An important student group about which we know very little Hard to reach but Hobsons had a good starting point Project background Online survey; 25 minutes 25 universities 50,502 prospects (S1 and S2 2008) Profile summary: 1416 students Gender 45.8% female and 54.2% male Qualification level (application): 43.5% UG 49.6% PG 6.9% PG research 80 Nationalities Top 4 (>50% of respondents): India 19% Malaysia 13.1% Singapore 11.9% China 8.5% 36 major fields of study Led by business: 20.7% of total sample 3

4 Initial survey: groups Students who accepted an offer from another university in Australia Students who accepted an offer from a university in their own country Students who accepted an offer from a university in a different country Students who decided not to do a university course Students who remained undecided Initial survey: questions Student demographics (including self-rated academic performance) Where they were and what they were doing when they applied Information pathways Preferences: country, university, field of study Perceived barriers Final destinations Student recommendations 4

5 Initial survey: Final destinations Accepted an offer from another university in Australia Accepted an offer from a university in their own country Accepted an offer from a university in a different country Not doing a university course Still deciding 13.3 Other Final destinations Preferred alternatives to Australia for those studying abroad: UK 24.7% USA 23.9% Canada 8.5% NZ 8.1% Singapore 7.3% 5

6 Influencers When making decisions on overseas study who was the most influential? Family 35.3% Friends 22% Teachers/ career advisers 18.2% Education Agents 12.8% Alumni 11.7% My friends in Australia told me not to study there. Also my agent wasn t clear with me... What information did you want on the university website? Application requirements Course fees Schol arships Detailed course information Work opportunities Accommodation Location/ city information University facil ities % said uni websites were useful Credit exemption Academic staff profiles Visa advice Permanent residency Student testimonials Course information was not easily accessible. 6

7 University response How quickly did you expect the university to respond to your enquiry? Within 24 hours: 45.2% Within 48 hours: 32.5% How satisfied were you with the response time? Satisfied and extremely satisfied: 55.5% Not satisfied: 45.5% 62.5% said information received from unis was useful Speed up the application process. I could not consider X University because by the time I received a response, I had already accepted and received a scholarship for another university. Applications and offers Countries considered by students = 2.7 Applications submitted = 4.6 Offers received = 3.4 Offers that are not accepted = 74% 27.2% accepted the 1st offer received 7

8 Plenty of colourful comments No scholarship or funding is available like other countries such as Canada or the USA. Less formalities with visa, the difficulty involved is putting students off Australia I do not want to go to a uni overcrowded with only international students, especially Asians, I might as well study in my own country Why would I choose your uni when better ranking unis are offering me scholarships? 8