The weblink for the article is as follows: http://www.ahisa.edu.au/independence/current-issue/independence-online/

Abstract from the article:

CHINA is a key target for Australian schools seeking to forge strategic alliances and recruit international students in Asia. To build understanding and success, there are key cultural understandings that Heads must acquire, including an appreciation of households that have been dramatically shaped by the one-child policy.

The decision maker in a Chinese household is typically the father. In regard to education, this is a significant cultural difference from Australia, where it is typically the mother who has greater influence on school choice.

Family reputation and social status are important drivers in school choice for Chinese parents. Providing an overseas school education for one’s (only) child is both a show of wealth and a demonstration that the child has sufficient academic prowess to qualify for a top overseas school.

Because the prestige of the school will enhance the family’s prestige, a Chinese family will typically be interested in:

·Reputation: What is the school most famous for? Are there notable alumni?

·Rankings: How does the school fare in any national or international ‘rankings’? Where does the school stand in comparison with top elite schools in the UK and USA?

· Academic achievement: What is the percentage of students getting into top universities in Australia as well as USA and the UK?

· World class education: What makes the school’s program superior to what is offered in China?

· Age of the school: The older the school, the more prestige it is deemed to have, as it has withstood the test of time.

· Ownership: Privately funded schools are deemed more prestigious.

A waiting list can also add to a school’s prestige, giving the impression that the school is held in high regard and is in high demand. Student exchange programs with other schools around the world and academic links with universities can also lend prestige.

All of the above can be considered by schools in their messaging when promoting their institution to Chinese parents.

Research shows that the decision making of Chinese families will also be influenced by how long a school has been accepting international students and its track record in catering to them. Families also want to know the attitude of the Principal and teachers towards international students. They will be interested in the educational qualifications of the teachers and how many of them have been to or worked in China.

Chinese parents will also be interested in how many nationalities are represented in the school – the more the better, as this is understood as enhancing the diversity of student interactions and student life through a sharing of different cultures. However, it is not considered advantageous if one international nationality is overly represented in the school.

Chinese parents will want to know what sort of English language programs are available to bring their child up to speed; whether there are support systems available for students who are not doing well academically or socially; whether there are additional programs to help prepare their child for university; and if the school has career counsellors who might advise on degree programs and universities to apply to.

Parents will also be interested in the school’s facilities, including for co- curricular activities. When it comes to boarding, Chinese families will typically be interested in:

·Security of facilities

·Type of food served

·Culture (the ethnic diversity of boarding students)

·Community projects/engagements students get involved in

·Availability of and access to the internet and Skype so that parents can keep in touch with their child.

In regards to school representatives visiting China, Chinese families typically want to meet the person at the very top. First impressions are critical in acceptance and reputation of the school, especially for schools (and cities) that parents may be unfamiliar with.

While the Principal is the best person to represent the school in China, this is not always possible, in which case it is recommended that the following school personnel be considered, in this order: Deputy Principal; Boarding Master/ Dean of Student Life; Dean of Students/ Director of Admissions; subject heads.

Chinese parents are definitely impressed by people with a doctorate, and any title should be used in an introduction.

This article, published on Wednesday, May 9, 2012, talks about importance of reputation management as universities transition from being national to international-focused. Dr Holmes stated that one of the essential tactics in achieving a strong international reputation is “an almost ruthless determination not to embark on anything unless it can be done to the highest standards.”

To read the entire article, please refer to The Chronicle Of Higher Education website: http://bit.ly/IZkIuK 

In this article in the Australian Financial Review, Dr Holmes stated that there is a urgent need to inform international students about the quality of teaching at Australian universities and that the survey (consisting of over 3000 students from around the world), conducted by The Knowledge Partnership, served as a wake-up call for Australian universities to provide more sophisticated information to prospective international students. He also used the Singapore market as an example where by the word-of-mouth heavily influences the choices of prospective students.

The article ‘Unis urged to stay on course’, written by Erica Cervini, was published on Monday, March 12 2012.

Read all about this article: http://afr.com/p/national/education/unis_urged_to_stay_on_course_0icuE4sefTsCfx1ktzxzjP

Dr Stephen Holmes was interviewed earlier in the year by the Chronicle of Higher Education on the success of foreign universities in the UAE.

For more information, please kindly refer to: http://bit.ly/uowdubai

If you would like a copy of this article, please kindly email Sam at s.ang@theknowledgepartnership.com.

Interesting facts of Khon Kaen University (http://www.kku.ac.th/eng/main.php):

Khon Kaen University (KKU) was one of four regional universities established in 1964 as part of a decentralized development plan for higher education in Thailand. The campus (which covers approximately 900 hectares) is located in the northwest sector of Khon Kaen, just a few kilometres from the center of the city.

KKU is the largest education and learning center in the Northeast of Thailand, and is recognized as the leader of new innovations in teaching and learning and research in the region. Khon Kaen city is the trade and administrative hub of the Northeast and is on a main transport route between the south and the Mekong Sub-region, and thus KKU is ideally placed to support the development of the Northeast and its neighboring counties.

This conference, organized by The Chronicle of Higher Education, will explore the theory and the practice of managing an institution’s reputation and relating it to research, teaching, and student recruitment. There will be discussions on how to build on an institution’s core academic strengths and differentiate it in a competitive environment as well as how institutions can best use institutional consortia strategically.

Here are the details of the conference:

The workshop highlights included sessions on:

1. The New Education Landscape

2. Positioning, Segmenting & Targeting

3. Social & Mobile Media in Higher Education

4. Integrated Marketing

5. Reputation Management

6. Strategy Planning & Market Intelligience

7. Portfolio Management  & Programme Development

8. Benchmarking & Evaluation

9. Case Study Evaluations & Practice of MaXimizE tool

The workshop in Singapore and Hong Kong also hosted delegates from Australia, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, South Korea, China, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom.

For more information on workshop materials and speaking engagements, please kindly email Sam at s.ang@theknowledgepartnership.com.

Workshop in Hong Kong

We have recently been engaged to speak at the following events:

• 2012 Reputation Management Dubai, UAE, IBN seminar February
• 2012 Pacific Conferences Seminar Series , Hong Kong and Singapore Higher Education Marketing February/March
• 2012 IEAA International Education Association of Australia (Seminar series ‘Effective International marketing and recruitment’) Australia July
• 2012 APAIE Conference Bangkok, April
• 2012 Chronicle of Higher Education Seminar Bangkok, April

The Knowledge Partnership Asia conducting student focus groups in Singapore. This was part of an in-depth reputation and branding analysis for an Australian university across Malaysia and Singapore in September 2011.

The Knowledge Partnership Asia has been commissioned to conduct in country market research by universities seeking to evaluate and develop their international brand reputation. Stakeholders to be researched in these large scale projects include:

• Prospective students
• Current students
• Influencers (careers advisers, teachers, parents, agents)
• Alumni
• Employers and internship providers
• Prospective academic employees
• Local community
• Professional bodies.

These projects involve in-country market research network in:

• China
• Hong Kong
• India
• Saudi Arabia
• Bahrain
• UAE
• Kuwait
• Morocco
• Egypt
• Brazil
• Columbia
• Chile.