Page 27 - StudyTravel Magazine July 2014 Issue

tertiary

tertiary FoCuS EURoPEAn UniVERSiTiES

european

Universities

While the UK has adopted a stricter policy towards international students, universities in continental Europe
offer cheaper tuition fees for quality, often English-taught, programmes. Claire Twyman finds out more.

nternational students embarking on “The number of applications from potential of degrees are taught in other languages,
university studies are increasingly drawn students from [less traditional markets] mainly English and French, but also the
to Europe due to factors including continue to rise and we foresee that this Spanish university system has matured
i quality programmes and English-taught group will claim a larger proportion of and is very well prepared for the global
degrees. Although the UK has removed enrolments in the years to come.” education market,” Merí de la Maza says.
post-study work rights for non-EU students Gjørling highlights that the largest “There will be a government policy change
and hiked up the cost of tuition fees for EU source country outside of Europe is China about the recognition of high school studies
students, The Netherlands, with cheaper fees, and adds that this country, alongside [for internationals entering the Spanish
has introduced a new policy to encourage Germany, is allocated the most funds for university system] that should make it
students to stay and work upon graduation. marketing. Since the Danish government easy for students from countries with no
This is according to Arnold Persoon from awards institutions financially that have educational bilateral agreement to enter.”
Study Group’s www.studygroup.com Merí de la Maza states that the
International Study Centre www.hollandisc. “We have transformed university’s main international student
our courses for interna-
com (ISC) in The Netherlands. nationalities are French, Chinese, Italian
“While the Dutch government had
previously acknowledged the wider benefits tional demand” and British. “We have both expanded
and transformed some of our courses for
to the country’s economy and society of international demand, mainly with the
‘knowledge migrants’, they are now taking students passing exams in a timely fashion, revision of the curricula.” Institut Français
an active approach,” Persoon explains. AU has launched a summer-only university De La Mode www.ifm-paris.com – a French
Launched in 2012, he says that the ISC has that is continually expanding. graduate school specialising in fashion and
introduced its university partners, including At IBA, Ildikó Antal reveals that luxury management – has also seen growth
University of Groningen and Nyenrode marketing, business and multimedia are the in international enrolments which Philip
New Business School, to the concept of the most attractive programmes to international Cacouris, Head of International Education,
pathway programme, which has been very students, adding, “The top-up bachelor says is, in part, due to two new English-
successful. “Already we’re expecting our programmes are attractive to students who taught programmes being introduced.
enrolment numbers to increase somewhere wish to spend a year abroad and at the same Internationals make up around 40
between 60 and 100 new students this year,” time obtain a degree. During the next years per cent of the student body at Institut
he says, adding, “We put these figures down we will recruit more students from elsewhere Français De La Mode. “The aura of Paris
to the fact that the overall awareness of than Europe, especially Latin America.” is particularly relevant to our sector of
the ISC has increased considerably within The Spanish institution CEU expertise, but I am rather surprised by the
the agent network of Study Group in the Cardinal Herrera University www.uchceu. real level of interest of our international
past year.” Business related courses are es is another on the continent that has candidates,” says Cacouris. “I speculate that
particularly popular, he explains, adding that experienced an influx of international the economic recession in Europe is having
the ISC currently sees the most enrolments students. Ricardo Merí de la Maza, Director an impact, with more students inclined to
from China, Korea and Azerbaijan. of International Relations, attributes this to pursue Master’s-level qualifications… There
In Denmark, meanwhile, Aarhus the university’s internationalisation efforts, is perhaps an ‘economic refugee’ aspect of
University (AU) www.au.dk and and says that the institution is actually students coming from Southern Europe.”
International Business Academy (IBA) a pioneer in this area. “A major number claire@hothousemedia.com
www.iba.dk see a large proportion of
international enrolments from the European
Agent usage
Union (EU), due to the fact that students agents play a major role in the recruitment of international students at many european universities, with
PHotoS: aarHuS univerSity , denMarK from this region are allowed to study for ships with agents and in other cases, we combine both,” says ricardo Merí de la Maza.
ildikó antal from international Business academy in denmark explaining, “We started to develop the
free in the country. Denmark launched
agent network two-to-three years ago and it definitely increased the number of international enrol-
a strategy this year to attract and retain
ments.” in Spain, meanwhile, Ceu Cardinal Herrera university uses agents to recruit students from
certain markets. “in some countries, we only attend student fairs and in others we only have partner-
talented fee-paying students, which includes
a scholarship scheme for non-EU students
according to arnold Persoon, Study group’s international Study Centre in the netherlands relies
and easier access to residence permits.
heavily on agents. “the majority of our students come to us through the extensive agent network,”
he says. “they can support every step of a student’s application process. the promise of this level of
Commenting that AU has seen a “profound
expertise in the recruitment process, along with Study group’s focus on providing quality courses that
increase” in degree-seeking students from
enable high levels of student progression, played an important part in securing our partnerships with the
overseas over the last five-to-six years,
top universities in the netherlands.”
Ulla Gjørling, International Director, says,
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