Canada- the new hot destination for international students.

“The students are the best immigrants for any country.” Canada has finally accepted and now moving towards two-step immigration policy, like Australia and others have, that will bring international students who later on will apply for permanent residence and thereafter become Canadian citizens.

Canada plans to double the number of international students in the next 10 years in order to combat the labour shortage due to ageing population.

A recent government-commissioned report on Canada's international education strategy called boosting the number of full-time international students from about 239,000 last year to more than 450,000 by 2022 a "realistic goal." The report emphasized that Canada should focus on markets in China, India, Brazil, Vietnam, Mexico and countries in the Middle East and North Africa which carry a huge potential in terms of quality and quantity to send students to Canada. Even if students don't stay in Canada after their studies, they can cultivate commercial and political relationships between Canada and their home country thereby playing the roles of powerful ambassadors to market study opportunities in Canada for prospective students.

The Student Partners Program (SPP) commonly termed as Students Partnership Program by the students and study abroad consultants in India was implemented in partnership between the Canadian High Commission and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) in the year 2009 and has been attracting a good number of students from all over India and has helped Canada emerge as a preferred destination for higher education for overseas students not only from India but from the entire globe.

Suneetha Qureshi, Director of International Office of Kampus Landing- Study Abroad Consultants with offices in India, USA & Canada is worried about the latest trend of rejection of study permit applications at the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi and says, “January visa approval success rate was high, suddenly it has dropped in September; few of our very good students with 7.0 band IELTS score and sound financial background have been rejected. We have got their GCMS reports and will file for January 2013 intakes.” But, Suneetha is overall optimistic that this is a temporary phase and January 2013 will be good for the students filing Canada study permits under Student Partners Program in Canadian High Commission in New Delhi.

More students head to Canada due to liberal SPP visa norms

Until April 2009, there was a big concern among Canadian colleges and universities of not getting students from India as most of the visas were being rejected by the Canadian High Commission, New Delhi. The Student Partners Program (SPP) commonly termed as Students Partnership Program by the students and study abroad consultants in India was implemented in partnership between the Canadian High Commission and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) and is attracting a good number of students from all over India and is fast emerging as a preferred destination for higher education for overseas students not only from India but from the entire globe.

The number of Indian students enrolled in Canadian universities and educational institutions has steadily grown from 3,000 in 2008 to 18,500 in 2010, according to the Canadian High Commissioner, Stewart G Beck. Primarily, Indian students used to choose places like Vancouver in Canada because of its favourable nature, mild climate and the Indian community stronghold. But, now Indian students are breaking grounds and heading to colleges in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and other cold provinces. Also, Canada’s progressive immigration policies and employment opportunities is turning it into a favourable destination choice for Indian students. Canadian universities offer diverse programmes that range from Commerce to Astronomy, Biology to Fine Art, Media Studies to Theology. Currently, universities and educational institutions in Canada offer more than a 1000 undergraduate and graduate programmes.

The students are cautioned to submit applications on time by 01 August for September intake and by 01 December for January intake while applying under SPP (Student Partners Program). It needs to be noted that SPP students apply to the participating college rather than the program.

To elaborate, SPP was started as a pilot project with plans to test a model for expediting the student visa process and delivering higher approval rates while maintaining program integrity. All Study Permit application checklists have been revised and improved as a result of the SPP framework to help students make simpler applications and Canadian High Commission informed decisions.

Tejal Laul, Director of Kampus Landing a leading overseas education consultant from Gujarat says, “There is a northward trend on the number of Indian students showing interest in studying in Canada. SPP requires students to have IELTS scores only. TOEFL is not valid for filing student visa under SPP though the students are eligible to file under general category. Strangely, even the Canadian colleges and universities prefer IELTS and students with TOEFL score find very few choices. We have experienced almost 100% success rate with IELTS but somehow students filing under general category with TOEFL scores have been scrutinized closely by Canadian High Commission and even the brightest of the students have faced rejection. You are strongly advised to file under Student Partners Program and avoid filing with TOEFL scores under general category.”

Further, Tejal Laul says, “The quality of education is very good in all community colleges and one should not rush just to Toronto or Vancouver, there’s a lot of advantages studying at provinces in Quebec and Manitoba. The students’ Canada PR application is fast tracked if filed under Provincial Nominee Program. Colleges offer unique “co-operative education programmes” that allow students to work while studying. Apart from regular courses such as a Bachelor’s in Business Administration (Accounting/ Financial services) and Bachelor’s in Sciences, a few even offer new-age courses — Animal Health Technology, Geology, Financial Services Management, Office Administration Certificates, Basic Musicianship, Intercultural and International Studies, Professional Writing, Stagecraft, Performing and Fine Arts, Associate of Arts degree — to name a few. Students studying under government-funded institutions can get up to a three-year work permit, leading to permanent residency. Finance, banking and investment are the emerging fields in Canada and present a promising future in the country. Jobs in Computer Science offer good pay and there is ample job opportunity for talented and skilled professionals. Aerospace, Urban Transport, Microelectronics, Advanced Software, Hydroelectric and Nuclear Power, Lasers and Opto-electronics, Biotechnology, Food and Beverage Processing, Geomatics, Ocean and Environmental Industries are other lucrative courses on offer. Typically, most universities offer four-year undergraduate programmes. The degree awarded is general or specialised. An Honours (bacca-laureate) programme may be harder as more courses have to be completed in the same period of time, compared to a regular Bachelor’s programme in the same discipline. Community colleges and technical institutes in Canada offer programmes that enable students to get a job by meeting the needs of employers or industry.”

Regarding mature students applying under SPP, Tejal Laul says, “Canada welcomes mature students’ applications, one can file at the age of 35 but should have a genuine reason to study at this age in Canada. If the mature student is not able to provide ample of evidence, the application is more likely to be rejected. We have had several applications between 30 and 35 which have successfully received Canada student visas under SPP and are presently studying in Canada.”

On the question on ethics of study abroad consultants in India, Tejal Laul says, “The study abroad consulting industry in India is not regulated like China and UAE where study abroad consultant needs a license by the Ministry of Education to operate. The Indian Government needs to regulate the study abroad consulting industry and save hundreds from being duped by unscrupulous agents.”

She adds, “After successfully experimenting SPP in India, Canadian government has initiated the Student Partners program SPP in China. There are already 50,000 students from China studying in Canada and the number is expected to grow tremendously.”

International students bring to Florida universities a global view — and pay full-freight tuition prices.

Florida universities will be looking more to foreign students such as Yue Wang, who graduated from FIU in May, to make up for cuts in state support. [Photo: Donna Victor]

In 2009, as Yue Wang, a young college graduate in the Chinese coastal city of Tianjin, contemplated where she would like to study abroad for her master's, her attention turned to a billboard in the city advertising Florida International University.

Other signs began to point to Florida. Her uncle knew a student in FIU's hospitality program who liked it. A 2007 film adaptation of "Miami Vice," featuring Chinese actress Gong Li, left a favorable impression of Miami. Wang went to her college teacher. "I still remember his words. 'If you could get the admission letter from the university, it will change your life.' "

Wang, 25, graduated in May from FIU with a master's in Asian studies. She says living in the United States indeed changed her life.

By The Numbers

29,708 Number of foreigners studying at Florida colleges and universities in 2009-10

$827 million Amount spent in tuition, fees, room and board by foreigners at Florida's public and private universities

6th Florida's rank nationally in number of foreign students, with India, China, Venezuela, South Korea and Colombia sending the most

Source: Institute of International Education and the Association of International Educators

Florida universities are looking for foreign students to change theirs. All the universities are quick to say foreign students bring a global viewpoint that enhances the education of Florida students. Foreign students also tend to be the best of their country's lot — hardworking, smart, excelling in math, engineering and the sciences, a good resource for Florida in the global talent wars.

But the schools also aren't shy about pursuing the incremental dollars that foreign students bring. Revenue from out-of-staters has fallen by some $16 million since 2007-08, but Florida's universities are aiming to reverse that trend. By 2015, FIU wants to increase its share of out-of-state and international students to 12%. A back-of-the-envelope calculation, taking into account FIU's plans for significant overall enrollment growth, puts the incremental revenue around $24 million a year. That buys a lot of professors.

Florida has a 10% systemwide cap on non-Florida students. In recent years, the number of non-Florida students has been dropping. Currently about 8.7% of public university students are from outside Florida. The difference between 8.7% and 10% works out to $43 million in missed incremental revenue, assuming non-Floridians pay $10,000 more per year than in-state students.

Revenue From Out-Of-State Students
(Including both U.S. and international students at Florida's public universities)
2006-07	$190.3 million
2007-08	192.2 million
2008-09	188.3 million
2009-10	188.5 million
2010-11	176.5 million
Source: Florida Board of Governors

At the University of South Florida, for instance, only 6% of the student body is from outside Florida. It wants more foreign students. But it lacks the international reputation and recruiting network of older universities and would prefer not to spend the time and resources to build those in-house. So last year the school spent $250,000 from its foundation to partner with INTO University Partnerships, a U.K.-based outfit that recruits talented international students whose English proficiency isn't sufficient for regular admission.

"USF, as we speak, is getting promoted 24/7 in 75 countries all around the world," says David Stremba, INTO's managing director for North America. INTO spends $12 million on marketing and for in-country recruiters for 10 universities in the U.K. and USF and Oregon State University.

In fall 2010, 460 students enrolled in INTO USF, beating projections by 39%. In a semester-long, INTO USF program run by USF, students improve their English while taking "pathway" academic classes and receive mentoring in studies and the transition to life in the States. (International students, for example, have to learn that it's fine here to raise a hand to interrupt a professor in mid-lecture to get a point clarified.)

Some 93% of the students in the 2010 class were eligible to progress to the university, paying full freight. The program has created more than 50 jobs. More than 700 more students begin the program in August. "It's been immensely successful," says USF provost Ralph Wilcox. "The early returns have far exceeded our most ambitious projections. We expect it will yield some pretty significant revenues."

After USF recovers the cost of educating the students in the program, it splits the surplus with INTO and, of course, gets all the revenue from students who matriculate into the university.

The program widens the pool of available international students, for which "competition is incredibly fierce," Stremba says. And satisfied students build word-of-mouth marketing in their home countries. "It's worth it to spend that money at the University of South Florida," says Hao Wang, a 24-year-old from Nanning, China, who successfully completed the INTO program and now is pursuing a master's in finance. He says he is gaining the American perspective and exposure to American culture he thinks will benefit his career.

Pandu Swaraga, 25, of Indonesia, says his employer, PT Petrokimia Gresik, fulfilled his lifelong wish of seeing American when it sent him to the program. "It really is a dream come true." He's now pursuing a master's in finance.

Yue Wang, meanwhile, is getting another kind of education: Trying to find a job for the year her visa allows her to work in the United States.

Source: Florida Trend

International students enjoy tour of farm

Samee Rashid and Hozan Noori, two UW-Madison students who arrived in Madison three weeks ago from Kurdistan, jumped up on a tractor Sunday during an event for international students on a family farm here.

The men are taking classes in English as a second language and hope to pursue master’s degrees in law. They are from Erbil, the fourth largest Iraqi city, and the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

Rashid, 28, wanted to make sure Americans know that farms in Kurdistan are more beautiful than in Wisconsin.

“It’s one of the best areas for wheat,” he said.

Rashid and Noori, 26, were among about 140 international students to visit the farm of Steve and Martha Querin-Schultz, who for the third year in a row opened their third-generation farm to the students. Five international students from Madison Area Technical College also took part in the event.

Martha Querin-Schultz is office manager for the UW-Madison’s International Student Services, and her husband, Steve, who regularly attends university events with her, thought it would be a good idea to get the students out to their farm.

“I have always felt that the international students at UW feel isolated in the sense that they are in an urban area and never really get outside the city,” Martha Querin-Schultz said. “This was just an opportunity to get students off the Isthmus, off campus, and out into the country.”

Students and their families took horse-drawn wagon rides, learned to drive a tractor, toured the family’s home and surrounding land, played outdoor games, ate lunch courtesy of the Cottage Grove Historical Society and listened to a bluegrass group.

The event took nearly 50 volunteers to put on.

The 250-acre farm used to be a dairy and cattle farm. Now they raise corn and soybeans.

Farhana Raja, 29, from Malaysia, who is studying agriculture, said she was particularly interested in seeing a working Wisconsin farm.

Raja said farming is similar in her country, but that the crops are different.

“In Malaysia there is less soybeans,” she said. “We use a lot of palm oil instead of vegetable oil.”

Steve Querin-Schultz said the yearly farm visits give the students a rural experience.

“Most of these kids are from the city and they live in Madison so they don’t get a chance to see the rural lifestyle,” he said.

Noori said he’s already homesick and misses everything about his country, but was glad he came out to the farm.

“I think I’ll get used to living here,” he said. “Wisconsin is beautiful and very friendly.”

Source: Madison News

Harvard admits more women but sticks on international

The figures just released by Harvard Business School for the class that will enter the MBA programme in 2011, show that it has increased the number of women on its programme this year from 36 per cent to 39 per cent, but continues to admit just 34 per cent of the class from outside the US.

With 918 MBA students in the class of 2013, there will be an additional 35 women admitted at Harvard this year. An increase in the class size from 903 last year, means there will be an additional five overseas students, assuming that all accepted students begin the programme.

Of the international students, 10 per cent are from Europe and 13 per cent from Asia and the South Pacific. Just 4 per cent - 37 students - are from Central and South America.

More striking, however, are the data for where students work now. In particular, just 21 per cent of students work in consulting and 12 per cent in financial services - the two industries most associated with business school. Some eight per cent of students work in not-for-profit organisations.

Source: The Financial Times

UK slashes number of trusted English language testers

Overhaul of English language exams recognised for UK visas favours providers with international availability and tighter security measures.Cream of the crop stay at home ... students in China, like these ones enrolling at an elite Beijing college, could eschew foreign study. Photograph: STR/AFP/Getty Images

UK immigration authorities have drastically cut the number of language assessment providers they deem suitable to offer tests to demonstrate the English skills of visa applicants.

Last month the UK Border Agency, which controls visa processing, unveiled its revised list of English language tests that will be accepted as part of visa applications to come to the UK to live, work and study.

The new list will come into effect by July for applicants for work visas under the "highly skilled" Tier 1 or "general worker" Tier 2 categories and spouses or civil partners who are applying to join a partner in the UK. The list already applies to students who require visas under the Tier 4 category.

More than 12 providers included since language testing was introduced four years ago as part of the points based visa system have been dropped, with just six remaining. The deleted providers include the Academy of Oriental Cuisine, in Leeds, and the College of Excellence, north-west London.

All categories of visa applicants will use the new list, which indicates the scores required in each of 26 tests that can be used to demonstrate the range of language proficiency levels required under different visa categories.

The UKBA uses language levels defined by the Common European Framework of Reference scales. Spouses or civil partners applying to join partners in the UK will need to demonstrate they have achieved the beginner level A1 in speaking and listening, while students aiming for degree-level study will need to attain an intermediate B2 score.

The UKBA's criteria for selecting test providers for the new list included a requirement that the tests were available in a minimum of 40 countries and they were taken by no fewer than 2,400 candidates per year.

UKBA also asked for evidence of test validity, frequently updated test items and anti-fraud and anti-cheating measures.

But according to a US-based education consultant, the number of international students qualified to apply for study visas to the UK and to other English language higher education destinations could be lower than previously estimated.

Daniel Guhr, of the Illuminate Consulting Group, has developed a forecasting model that he says provides a more detailed prediction of international student movement.

The model assesses 128 variables, including English language test scores and measures of aptitude.

"You start to realise that the pool of students who are academically and linguistically qualified to study at an advanced level of English is actually a lot smaller than most people think," Dr Guhr told The Australian newspaper.

"It's becoming painfully clear that we have a substantial issue with English language capabilities among international students."

Guhr said that more students were using a "pidgin academic English" and that questions about the level of fraud in English language tests, and the academic significance of genuinely good scores, were complicating attempts to forecast student flows.

"If you say there are close to 500,000 students leaving China to study abroad, my question is, how many are truly academically talented," he said.

His team estimate that just over 600,000 Chinese 18-year-olds would have the aptitude and English skills for degree-level study in countries such as Canada, Australia and the UK. While 170,000 were already enrolled abroad, the remainder would be unavailable to recruiters for a range of reasons.

Source: The Guardian

Studying abroad: the foreign offers

As the cost of higher education in the UK spirals, Paul Bray investigates the option of studying for a degree overseas.

Many foreign universities are determined to attract British students

With two-thirds of English universities planning to charge the full £9,000-a-year tuition fee from 2012, it might be years before the undergraduates of tomorrow can afford to leave home — should they secure a place at all. In 2010 more than 200,000 missed out, and thousands more faced the uncertainty of Clearing.

If all this makes you wonder whether it’s worth the effort, you’re not alone. More than 20,000 British students each year are taking their chances abroad. In addition, around 17,000 study or work abroad as part of their degree at a British institution.

According to a study published last year for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), the primary reason for studying abroad was to attend a top-class university. Sixteen of the world’s top 20 universities are in North America, according to the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2010-11.

Three of the remaining four are British, while Hong Kong is at 21, and Tokyo, Singapore and Melbourne rank above Edinburgh. In Europe, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Göttingen and Munich universities, the Karolinska Institute (Sweden) and two of France’s grandes écoles all outrank Bristol University. Trinity College Dublin is above York and Durham, while Zurich and Lund are on a par with or surpass Southampton.

“If you want to study a subject such as medicine, veterinary science or architecture, for which places in the UK are particularly competitive, an overseas opportunity becomes even more attractive,” says Prof Allan Findlay, the BIS report’s co-author.

Almost any subject may now be oversubscribed at top British universities, and even three As at A-level may not be enough to guarantee a place.

From 2012, money will become another major driver. Although a degree at an Ivy League university in the States will set you back more than £20,000 a year, studying at many European universities remains virtually free — one of the benefits of EU membership.

»JOB SATISFACTION

Those who have studied abroad tend to get better degrees and earn higher salaries, and their experience gives them a leg up the career ladder. According to the Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE), many British students don’t appreciate how the world of global graduate recruiting has changed. Multinational businesses want globally aware graduates. On every level, from planning and problem-solving to assertiveness and initiative, international students outshine their stay-at-home cousins, says the CIHE.

“People blossom when they study abroad,” confirms Beatrice Merrick, director of services and research at the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA). “It’s more challenging than going to a local university and you experience new ways of studying, as well as a different working culture.”

Many foreign universities are determined to attract British students, with American, German and Dutch institutions mounting high-profile recruitment drives. “Increasing diversity in the classroom improves the learning experience for all students, and there is an element of ‘soft diplomacy’: people who know your country and become informal ambassadors for you,” says Merrick.

Courses are often taught in English — not so much for the benefit of Britons as for students from the Far East — and universities may feel that English-speaking students act as an informal seal of approval.

Britons who study abroad are usually satisfied with the quality of tuition they receive, although there can be more emphasis on rote-learning and less on independent thought. The so-called Bologna Process has helped to standardise degrees across Europe, meaning that a foreign degree is more likely to be accepted and understood by UK employers.

»TAKE THE INITIATIVE

Anyone wanting to do their entire degree abroad must show initiative and approach universities individually as there is no equivalent of the UCAS system. The Times Higher Education rankings are a good starting point for creating a shortlist.

“We’re a kind of ‘FTSE 100’ for universities, and we use 13 indicators to give a really strong indication of each university in the round,” says Phil Baty, the rankings’ editor. Indicators range from published research, citations and reputation among other academics, to teaching excellence, student/staff ratios and the proportion of international students.

The alternative is to spend time abroad (usually half of or one academic year) while studying at a UK university. The most popular route is through the EU-funded Erasmus programme, which embraces all the EU member states, plus Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Croatia and Turkey. Students can study or do a work placement, such as teaching English in a school. Study must be related to their degree and counts as part of their course.

“When undergraduates study for part of their degree abroad, it’s usually through an existing relationship between institutions, so it’s something students should think about before applying to university,” says David Hibler, Erasmus programme manager at the British Council, which administers the scheme in the UK.

"While studying abroad may be an exciting proposition for students, it can be a wrench for parents. Thankfully, the internet and Skype are making it increasingly easy to stay in touch.

As Beatrice Merrick concludes, “Students could be getting better-value education and a qualification that really makes them stand out. And they’ll be too far away to bring their washing home.”

Student checklist

It’s easy to get carried away with the idea of an exciting new life in a different country. If you’re heading abroad, consider the following:

• Does your degree count here? It sounds obvious, but, especially for vocational subjects such as law or medicine, find out if your course counts in the UK.

• Triple-check the budget: count hidden extras such as trips home from Italy, local council taxes or the price of beer in Norway. A pound may buy you less next year, so if you’re funded in sterling make the necessary allowances.

• Look into health insurance: few countries offer free healthcare, like the NHS, so you may need to buy private health insurance, especially in the US.

• Immigration issues: sort out your visa — even within the EU there may be formalities, such as having a passport with two years’ validity remaining.

• Where to stay? Where you stay in the first year, and how much it costs, will have an impact on how happy you are, so explore options early on.

• Sort out currency: for most, a bank account in the country of study is the easiest choice, but you may need proof of address to open one, so a sterling account could be a stop-gap. Check charges for international card payments and transfers.

• Prepare for red tape: make sure you have documents such as birth certificates, keep multiple copies of everything and get plenty of passport photos.

• Stay in touch: sign up for Skype and upgrade roaming on your mobile. In the long run, however, it will work out cheaper to get a local contract.

This article was taken from the Daily Telegraph's Studying Abroad supplement, published on May 14 2011