Beijing Johannesburg London Rotterdam Shanghai Sydney Tokyo Washington www.i-graduate.org The i-graduate ICEF Agent Barometer 2014 Ian Cann Sales Director, ICEF USA ICEF North America Workshop Montréal May 10-12, 2015
The i-graduate ICEF Agent Barometer Beijing Johannesburg London Rotterdam Shanghai Sydney Tokyo Washington www.i-graduate.org Online survey developed in partnership by i-graduate & ICEF Established in 2007, the ICEF Agent Barometer has tracked the opinions of agents across the world for 8 years The 2014 study ran for 3 weeks during October 1,065 agents responded from 104 countries in this wave.
Agent Barometer 2014: Profile of respondents
Summary of agent demographics 104 nationalities represented in this years survey. India 87 China 84 Russia 69 Brazil 59 Nepal 51 Nigeria 43 Pakistan 40 Vietnam 36 Ukraine 35 UK 29 Spain 26 Canada 23 Australia 21 Italy 21 Saudi Arabia 20 Colombia 20 Turkey 19 Mexico 16 Iran 15 Germany 15
Summary of agent demographics 82% of agents who took part in the survey are in senior positions within the company (59% are Directors/Owners, 23% are Managers). The majority of agents (69%) are in small sized companies, with 10 or fewer agents. 18% of agents placed between 51 and 100 - a further 19% placed between 101 and 200 students annually.
Approximately how many institutions does your company represent? 200 180 184 169 19% of agents represent over 100 institutions 187 160 140 3 of agents represent between 2 and 20 institutions 120 120 100 80 66 84 60 52 40 20 12 26 20 13 32 23 17 0 Slide Base: 61005 1 2-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 61-70 71-80 81-90 91-100 More than 100 Prefer not to say Don't know
Size of agencies Total placements 2 18% 18% 19% 16% 1 12% 1 8% 6% 6% 9% 6% 6% 8% 3% 7% 2% The greatest proportion of agents are placing between 51 and 200 students annually. Slide 7 Base: 912 N.B. The agents that either indicated no placements or who skipped this question have not been included in the above chart
What time of the year do you traditionally place the most students in? Language Courses (n=808) 51% 2 Secondary and High School (n=413) 23% 26% 11% 28% Vocational Diploma/Further Education (n=30) 4 8% 26% All year round University (Foundation/Undergraduate/Postgraduate/MBA) (n=104) 43% 26% 9% 1 Autumn Spring Summer University: Distance education/online learning (n=39) 28% 7% 3% 58% Winter I don't place Work and travel programmes (n=204) 26% 3% 1 49% Work and study programmes (n=18) 39% 1 41% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Do you have contracts in place with the institutions you work with? 2% 2% 23% Don't Know No Yes, always Yes, sometimes 73% Base: 696
Scope of activity
For which types of study do you recruit students? Language Courses University: Undergraduate University: Graduate/Postgraduate 7 68% 68% University: Foundation MBA Programmes Secondary and High School 41% 48% 4 Vocational Diploma/Further Education 33% Work & Study Programmes Work & Travel Programmes 1 18% University: Online learning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Base: 948 Language courses remain the largest market, followed by University UG and PG degrees.
Number of students placed in the last 12 months Language Courses 145.115 University: Graduate/Postgraduate University: Undergraduate Secondary and High School 46.461 42.923 39.419 Work & Travel Programmes Work & Study Programmes Vocational Diploma/Further Education University: Foundation MBA Programmes University: Distance Education/Online Learning 21.861 17.573 16.259 16.080 13.209 1.165
What kind of language courses do you place students in? General language 83% Language for academic purposes 61% IELTS preparation 5 Business/Professional language 41% TOEFL preperation Language plus another subject Cambridge exams preparation Language for teachers Group study tour Language for High School 26% 22% 18% 1 1 11% Base: 588 TOIEC preparation Other 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
In which countries do you place students for Language courses? Top 10 United Kingdom USA Australia Canada Germany Ireland France New Zealand Switzerland Singapore 2 18% 16% 11% 12% 2 2 73% 6 71% 69% 67% 68% 5 6 58% 7 67% 61% 6 58% 59% 56% 43% 47% 4 5 5 4 4 39% 49% 51% 36% 4 4 51% 49% 3 4 43% 3 31% 79% 79% 8 79% 77% 2014 (511) 2013 (591) 2012 (605) 2011 (427) 2010 (483) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
In which countries do you place students for Secondary and High School? Top 10 USA Canada United Kingdom Australia New Zealand Ireland Switzerland Germany France Singapore 36% 39% 4 41% 42% 29% 36% 3 29% 3 2 2 21% 29% 29% 19% 22% 2 31% 28% 2 2 19% 26% 27% 16% 27% 2 16% 12% 48% 5 49% 59% 73% 71% 6 57% 67% 7 63% 6 7 67% 69% 6 77% 2014 (303) 2013 (319) 2012 (352) 2011 (246) 2010 (305) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
In which countries do you place students for Vocational Diploma/Further Education? Top 10 Australia Canada United Kingdom New Zealand USA Ireland Singapore Switzerland Germany France 2 21% 18% 2 2 18% 22% 2 26% 22% 16% 2 19% 18% 17% 12% 1 12% 1 1 1 11% 12% 29% 31% 37% 42% 39% 37% 42% 62% 63% 63% 66% 63% 5 5 46% 56% 61% 57% 63% 68% 58% 52% 47% 47% 49% 76% 76% 2014 (238) 2013 (299) 2012 (367) 2011 (252) 2010 (274) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
In which countries do you place students for University: Undergraduate? Top 10 United Kingdom USA Canada Australia New Zealand Ireland Germany Switzerland Singapore France 22% 2 2 21% 2 19% 21% 22% 22% 2 23% 19% 19% 21% 21% 19% 16% 33% 37% 3 31% 33% 38% 29% 3 28% 4 49% 5 5 5 53% 61% 58% 61% 7 7 71% 76% 72% 76% 72% 7 67% 71% 67% 66% 6 2014 (517) 2013 (563) 2012 (530) 2011 (348) 2010 (398) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
In which countries do you place students for University: Graduate/Postgraduate? Top 10 United Kingdom USA Australia Canada New Zealand Ireland Germany Switzerland France Singapore 32% 33% 3 28% 31% 19% 2 16% 36% 28% 2 22% 2 26% 2 19% 19% 21% 21% 22% 12% 17% 16% 22% 21% 12% 1 18% 4 4 61% 62% 66% 62% 66% 5 51% 58% 6 61% 52% 56% 51% 73% 7 73% 7 77% 73% 7 2014 (513) 2013 (538) 2012 (493) 2011 (343) 2010 (367) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
How many students do agents expect to place in the next 12 months?
Approximately how many students do you expect to place overall in the next 12 month? TRADITIONAL MARKETS USA (n=601) 1 6% 8 United Kingdom (n=586) 16% 1 7 Canada (n=584) 2 7% 73% Australia (n=536) 22% 1 68% New Zealand (n=411) 2 9% 67% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 The same Less than the last 12 months More than the last 12 months
Approximately how many students do you expect to place overall in the next 12 month? EMERGING MARKETS Malaysia (n=153) 2 1 59% India (n=108) 3 12% 58% South Korea (n=90) 36% 9% 56% Singapore (n=164) 3 1 5 China (n=178) 4 11% 48% Japan (n=165) 38% 16% 46% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 The same Less than the last 12 months More than the last 12 months
In the next coming 12 months do you expect to send more/less/the same? University: Undergraduate (636) 1 2% 8 MBA Programmes (420) 1 2% 8 University: Graduate/Postgraduate (636) 16% 3% 81% Vocational Diploma/Further Education (305) 17% 79% Work & Study Programmes (168) 17% 79% University: Foundation (444) 19% 3% 78% University: Distance Education/Online Learning (46) 22% 2% 76% Language Courses (658) 2 76% Secondary and High School (385) 2 2% 73% Work & Travel Programmes (125) 22% 1 69% 2 4 6 8 10 The same Less More
Which country is best? By type of study
Which study destination is best for language study? 3% 12% % of Total 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 United Kingdom 38% 1 1 1 1 1 1 Australia 18% 2 2 2 2 3 2 Canada 16% 3 3 3 4 4 4 USA 12% 4 4 4 3 2 3 38% 16% 18% United Kingdom Australia Canada USA Ireland Other
Which study destinations is best for Secondary and high schools? Ireland New Zealand Other % of Total 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 United Kingdom 27% 1 1 1 1 1 1 USA 26% 2 2 2 2 2 2 Canada 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 Australia 1 4 4 4 4 4 4 New Zealand 5 5 5 5 5 5 Australia United Kingdom Canada USA
Which study destinations is best for Vocational / Further Education? Germany New Zealand Other % of Total 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 Australia 32% 1 1 1 1 1 2 Canada 2 2 2 3 3 4 4 United Kingdom 4 3 2 2 2 1 USA 1 3 4 4 4 3 3 New Zealand 5 5 5 5 5 5 Australia United Kingdom USA Canada
Which study destinations is best for Undergraduate Study? New Zealand Other Germany % of Total 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 USA 33% 1 1 1 1 1 1 United Kingdom 21% 2 2 2 2 2 2 Australia 16% 4 3 4 3 4 3 2009 Canada 18% 3 4 3 4 3 4 USA Australia Canada United Kingdom
Which study destinations is best for Graduate Study? New Zealand Germany Other % of Total 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 USA 37% 1 1 1 1 1 1 United Kingdom 22% 2 2 2 2 2 2 Australia 17% 3 3 4 4 3 3 2009 Canada 1 4 4 3 3 4 4 Canada USA Australia United Kingdom
Overall attractiveness of study destinations
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 USA (n=671) Canada (n=677) United Kingdom (n=666) Australia (n=649) Germany (n=565) New Zealand (n=585) Switzerland (n=497) France (n=526) Ireland (n=533) Spain (n=475) Italy (n=469) Singapore (n=432) China (n=417) Japan (n=422) Malaysia (n=426) UAE (n=368) Russia (n=408) South Korea (n=379) India (n=430) Thailand (n=362) 23, 39,1% 36,8% 35, 30,7% 46,9% 57,9% 57,6% 57,3% 93, 93, 92, 92,1% 87,1% 86, 80,3% 79,8% 79,2% 73,9% 70,8% 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know Traditional markets remain top of attractive list
Trends in overall attractiveness: Traditional markets USA '14 USA '13 USA '12 USA '11 USA '10 USA '09 USA '08 UK '14 UK '13 UK '12 UK '11 UK '10 UK '09 UK '08 Canada '14 Canada '13 Canada '12 Canada '11 Canada '10 Canada '09 Canada '08 Australia '14 Australia '13 Australia '12 Australia '11 Australia '10 Australia '09 Australia '08 New Zealand '14 New Zealand '13 New Zealand '12 New Zealand '11 New Zealand '10 New Zealand '09 New Zealand '08 32% 33%3 28% 33%37% 29% 6 63% 6 63% 69% 72% 71% 6 66% 6 59% 52% 48% 49% 4 47% 48%53%58% 42% 49% 7 72% 73% 73% 77% 68% 73% 46% 41%43% 4 42% 5 5 51% 53% 52% 46% 57% 29% 27% 28% 3 37% 42% 42% 37% 3 2 17% 2 22% 23% 17% 2 28% 29% 27% 29% 2 23% 21% 3% 6% 9% 1 1 1 1 11% 1 1 1% 2% 2% 1% 1% 3% 7% 6%3% 3% 3% 3% 1% 2% 2% 3% 3% 3%3% 6% 7% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 6% 6% 3% 3% 3% Very attractive Very attractive Attractive Attractive
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Africa Asia Europe Latin America and the Caribbean Study Destination Average Base Average Base Average Base Average Base USA 3.66 50 3.58 311 3.73 186 3.66 94 Canada 3.63 51 3.47 309 3.58 191 3.71 92 United Kingdom 3.40 50 3.38 303 3.77 193 3.53 92 Australia 3.37 41 3.41 316 3.44 174 3.64 85 Germany 3.26 43 3.09 244 3.24 172 3.14 79 New Zealand 2.97 37 3.22 281 2.97 158 3.45 82 Ireland 3.05 38 2.81 226 3.13 169 3.28 79 Switzerland 3.00 34 2.90 222 3.20 153 2.99 68 France 2.85 39 2.79 215 3.03 168 3.13 82 Spain 2.71 31 2.59 191 3.09 163 3.11 72 Italy 2.68 31 2.65 191 2.95 153 3.03 75 China 2.68 31 2.65 176 2.64 129 2.41 61 Japan 2.56 27 2.69 200 2.56 114 2.53 62 Singapore 2.38 29 2.80 228 2.37 101 2.13 56 Malaysia 2.95 39 2.64 214 1.99 102 1.93 54 UAE 2.84 37 2.22 165 2.25 101 2.18 49 Russia 2.35 34 2.34 180 2.21 119 1.93 59 Table shows the mean scores calculated from a 4 point scale (4=very attractive, 1= very unattractive)
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Indian Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive Canada (60) 1 8 USA (58) 9% 2% 1 79% New Zealand (59) 2% 3% 36% 59% Australia (61) 8% 2% 3 56% Germany (48) 2% 6 33% United Kingdom (57) 19% 4 33% Singapore (52) 2% 12% 69% 17% Switzerland (41) 2% 2 61% 17% India (32) 3% 3 47% 16% China (26) 8% 42% 3 1 Russia (30) 1 43% 33% Ireland (41) 17% 71% 12% France (37) 3% 19% 68% 11% Malaysia (38) 11% 37% 42% 11% Italy (35) 9% 29% 5 9% Japan (28) 1 46% 32% 7% Thailand (31) 23% 58% South Korea (26) 31% 5 1 Spain (36) 6% 39% 53% UAE (37) 11% 46% 41% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Chinese Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive USA (53) 1 8% 7 United Kingdom (49) 12% 29% 59% Canada (54) 28% 56% Australia (52) 1 2% 38% 4 China (19) 21% 26% 32% 21% New Zealand (44) 7% 68% 2 Germany (36) 8% 6% 72% 1 Switzerland (33) 9% 9% 7 12% France (37) 8% 8% 76% 8% Singapore (35) 6% 9% 8 6% UAE (23) 3 43% 17% Thailand (27) 26% 4 26% Ireland (31) 1 32% 5 3% Italy (32) 9% 16% 72% 3% Japan (33) 6% 2 67% 3% India (27) 33% 4 22% Malaysia (32) 16% 4 41% Russia (28) 18% 5 32% South Korea (33) 6% 4 48% Spain (30) 1 33% 57% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Russian Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive United Kingdom (47) 2% 6% 91% USA (46) 2% 17% 8 Canada (47) 6% 19% 7 Switzerland (46) 2% 2% 43% 52% Australia (43) 2% 49% 49% Germany (46) 2% 5 48% Ireland (46) 2% 17% 48% 33% Spain (44) 2% 77% 16% New Zealand (38) 8% 66% France (46) 1 7 11% Russia (19) 42% 47% 11% Italy (43) 2% 1 77% 7% China (35) 37% 57% 6% UAE (28) 5 43% India (31) 32% 68% Japan (28) 5 46% Malaysia (29) 21% 59% 21% South Korea (27) 11% 67% 22% Singapore (31) 3% 29% 68% Thailand (26) 23% 6 12% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Brazilian Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive Canada (41) 2% 12% 8 Australia (40) 3% 8 USA (41) 2% 1 83% New Zealand (40) 3% 3 68% Ireland (38) 3 66% United Kingdom (41) 2% 39% 59% Spain (34) 1 59% 26% Switzerland (28) 32% 46% 21% Italy (32) 19% 63% 19% Germany (33) 21% 61% 18% France (34) 21% 6 1 Singapore (25) 28% 4 2 12% Thailand (24) 38% 46% 8% 8% South Korea (25) 4 48% 8% Japan (27) 67% 22% 7% UAE (21) 29% 43% 2 Malaysia (23) 3 57% 9% Russia (28) 36% 5 11% India (29) 3 48% 1 China (24) 21% 58% 21% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Nigerian Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive Canada (26) 8% 92% USA (25) 8% 12% 8 United Kingdom (27) 11% 3 59% Australia (21) 19% 43% 38% Germany (21) 1 48% 38% UAE (22) 9% 59% 27% New Zealand (19) 11% 32% 32% 26% Ireland (22) 1 59% 23% Malaysia (22) 1 59% 23% France (21) 1 2 48% 19% Switzerland (16) 6% 6% 69% 19% Russia (20) 2 3 2 1 Japan (14) 21% 5 1 1 China (15) 7% 4 4 South Korea (15) 2 6 7% Italy (16) 4 31% Singapore (16) 38% 38% Spain (16) 31% 4 India (21) 19% 19% 52% Thailand (15) 27% 47% 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2014 Vietnamese Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive USA (21) 1 86% Australia (21) 33% 67% Canada (18) 6% 33% 61% United Kingdom (20) 4 6 Singapore (16) 6% 56% 2 Switzerland (13) 1 69% 1 China (10) 5 3 2 France (10) 5 5 Germany (11) 36% 6 India (11) 9% 91% Ireland (10) 1 5 4 Italy (10) 1 5 4 Japan (11) 9% 91% Malaysia (11) 27% 73% New Zealand (17) 12% 88% Russia (9) 33% 56% 11% South Korea (12) 42% 58% Spain (9) 11% 67% 22% Thailand (9) 89% 11% UAE (8) 2 7 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Overall attractiveness of Study Destinations in 2013 Ukrainian Agents Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive Canada (27) 93% USA (26) 8% 88% United Kingdom (25) 8% 88% Germany (27) 41% 56% Switzerland (24) 46% 5 Ireland (19) 11% 47% 42% Australia (21) 1 62% 2 Italy (21) 1 71% 1 France (22) 82% 1 Spain (23) 83% UAE (17) 6% 53% 29% 12% New Zealand (21) 33% 57% 1 Singapore (13) 8% 46% 38% 8% China (20) 3 6 India (17) 3 53% 12% Japan (13) 8% 62% 31% Malaysia (14) 1 79% 7% Russia (17) 71% 2 6% South Korea (15) 2 73% 7% Thailand (13) 31% 69% 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note: Excludes respondents that indicated they Do not know
Student mobility concerns/difficulties in 2014
Main concerns students and parents have BEFORE departing for international study: 7 6 5 6 46% 57% 48% 4 3 2 2 2 1 n=706
Main concerns students and parents have BEFORE AND AFTER departing for international study: 7 6 6 5 57% 57% 5 46% 48% 4 3 2 26% 2 3 3 2 3 17% 1 3% n=706
Canada USA United Kingdom Australia New Zealand Germany Ireland Malaysia Italy France Spain China Other Switzerland Japan UAE Thailand Singapore South Korea Russia India Base: 110 In which countries did you experience these concerns/difficulties? 7% 6% 3% 2% 2% 2% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 1% 12% Study Visa 27% 4 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 51%
In which countries did you experience these concerns/difficulties? Work Visa USA 56% Canada 5 United Kingdom 41% Australia 28% Singapore 9% New Zealand 9% Switzerland 6% Malaysia 6% Japan 6% Italy 6% Germany 6% UAE 3% Thailand 3% Spain 3% South Korea 3% Russia 3% Ireland 3% India 3% France 3% China 3% Base: 32 1 2 3 4 5 6 Note very small base number
In which countries did you experience these concerns/difficulties? Financial Australia 52% United Kingdom 5 USA 3 Canada 27% New Zealand 2 Switzerland 16% Ireland Germany France 11% Other 7% Spain 7% Singapore 7% Malaysia Italy South Korea Russia China UAE 2% Thailand 2% Japan 2% India 2% Base: 56 1 2 3 4 5 6 Note very small base number
In which countries did you experience these concerns/difficulties? Global Political Situation USA 8 United Kingdom 6 Canada Russia Australia Germany 2 2 16% 12% Thailand New Zealand 8% 8% Switzerland Spain India France Base: 25 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Note very small base number
Marketing
Main ingredients in a successful school/agent partnership: Quick response times to enquiries and applications and regular communication updates n=672 Agent manual with fees and information Regular visits to education institution by you or your staff Information seminars for parents and prospective students Financial support schemes, including scholarship/bursary schemes Having guaranteed entry to specific education institution programmes Agent training organised in the destination country Individual institution brochures Marketing and visits to local schools/colleges Making packaged offers which include English language plus institution entry Participation in education exhibitions in your country Student leads provided to you by institutions Agent training courses via the internet School profiles in your own agency brochure or handbook Regular visits to your office/s by representatives A local representative office to provide support to your recruitment activities Regular e-newsletters or e-zines sent to students Institution profiles on commercial websites/websites available in your native languages Editorial or Advertorial in local newspapers or magazines Authority from institution for you to sign letters of offer Marketing and Recruitment staff who speak the local language Giveaways 67% 6 61% 73% 73% 71% 77% 81% 9 93% 9 9 9 9 9 9 89% 87% 86% 86% 8 8 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 9
Effective marketing for institutions: Promotional materials and campaigns Information seminars for parents and prospective students (658) 41% 49% Marketing and visits to local schools/colleges (648) 49% 4 Giveaways (641) 39% 22% Regular e-newsletters or e-zines sent to students (634) 49% 2 Participation in education exhibitions in your country (664) 43% 43% Institution profiles on commercial websites/websites available in your native languages (648) 43% 3 Editorial or Advertorial in local newspapers or magazines (646) 4 27% School profiles in your own agency brochure or handbook (652) 42% 42% Individual institution brochures (670) 37% 53% 2 4 6 8 10 Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive
Effective marketing for institutions: Services Agent manual with fees and information (653) 29% 6 Quick response times to enquiries and applications and regular communication updates (659) 17% 78% Agent training courses via the internet (654) 46% 38% Agent training organised in the destination country (653) 37% 52% Regular visits to education institution by you or your staff (672) 43% 48% 2 4 6 8 10 Very unattractive Unattractive Attractive Very attractive
What is your biggest operational challenge? Beijing Johannesburg London Rotterdam Shanghai Sydney Tokyo Washington www.i-graduate.org Creating forms (e.g. enrolments forms) 3% Creating quotes & invoices Other 7% Payments and exchange rates Communicating with schools 17% Managing clients, student information and leads 5
Beijing Johannesburg London Rotterdam Shanghai Sydney Tokyo Washington www.i-graduate.org Thank you! Please leave your card for a copy of these slides. This will also be posted on the ICEF event page. Ian Cann Director of Sales, USA +1 305 600 2309