Viggo Stacey
The PIE News
United States
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Past articles by Viggo:
UK English language sector buoyant for 2023 after "bounce back year"
Total student weeks were up by 28,000, with the overall student week volume in the last quarter of 2022 reaching around 56% of 2019 levels. Providers in the country are optimistic for the year ahead, despite facing ongoing challenges around accommodation, staffing and the cost of living crisis. The quarterly English UK statistics, produced in collaboration with BONARD, found that of the 235… → Read More
UK International Education Commission set to launch
Led by former Universities minister and chair of Cross Party Universities Group, Chris Skidmore MP, the commission will seek to develop a new International Education Strategy 2.0, as a result of the changes to the geopolitical landscape since the original strategy was launched in 2019. Skidmore – responsible for publishing and devising the first International Education Strategy as Universities… → Read More
London to raise global appeal in "world’s top study destination" bid
In the newly-released International Education Strategy for London, led by London Higher, stakeholders across the UK capital have presented recommendations to “maximise London’s pulling power in the international education market”. It will, in turn, contribute to the growth of the entire UK economy, the partners behind the document say. The lead recommendation is to establish a dedicated… → Read More
Boom in agent commission paid by UK universities in 2021/22
In 2021, the University of Exeter paid education agents £9m to recruit 1,800 postgraduate and 750 undergraduate students. Five years previous, agents had netted £2.5m when recruiting 765 PG and 335 UG students. The University of York – while it did not share how many students had been recruited via agents in the last five years – has also seen a similar growth in commission payments. In 2017/18,… → Read More
Bayswater to open third school in Canada
The centre is a former ELS school in downtown Vancouver, with managing director of ELS Canada, John Becker, joining Bayswater to take on the role of managing director for three schools in Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary. “We are delighted to add Vancouver to our list of destinations,” Stephan Roussounis, MD of Bayswater Education. “Many of our partners have historically sent to Eurocentres… → Read More
135,000 int'l applicants apply via UCAS in competitive year
Almost 135,000 international students have applied, with the 31,400 applicants from China representing an increase of 10% from 2021. Nigerian application numbers have also increased by 58%, while Indian applicants rose 20%. A total of 111,720 non-EU international students applied through UCAS’s process, up from 89,420 two years ago. The 23,160 students from the EU applying through UCAS is a… → Read More
Agent group partners with Quality English to help Thai students
More than 70 agent members of the association in Thailand will collaborate with QE’s almost 60 English language schools in seven countries around the world. The partners are planning various future joint initiatives including face-to-face and online events. “On behalf of TIECA, it is my pleasure to commence the agreement with Quality English in order to strengthen our relationship,” TIECA… → Read More
StraighterLine and IU partner on pathways
The partnership is IU’s first of its kind in Germany and Europe, and will allow US students to access “flexible” study programs in both English and German, as well as the possibility to study a semester in Germany. Students with the platform aiming to expand access to higher education will be able to transfer credits towards IU bachelor’s degree programs. More than 50 customisable study programs… → Read More
EU and UK continue to ignore Horizon campaigners
In a letter to the president, Stick to Science signatories – representing over 5,600 researchers and research organisations across the continent – have appealed for the two countries’ association to be unlocked and negotiators to stop using the program as a bargaining chip. Politicians from EU and the UK are currently at loggerheads over the Northern Ireland protocol, while other political… → Read More
Study abroad organisations launch projects in Ukraine
Founder of GoAbroad, Troy Peden, arrived at the Poland/Ukraine border on March 2 with a mission to help evacuate Ukrainian families from dangerous regions of the country. “We arrived very early and the situation was unpredictable,” he told The PIE. “There was a feeling that Russia could flatten the country by air at any moment. Based on that and the fact that Ukrainian mothers and children were… → Read More
GoAbroad reveals 2022 innovation award winners
Among the winners were SafeAbroad, taking home the Innovation in Crisis Response award for its Russia-Ukraine Early Warning Detection program, and Webster University, awarded the Innovative New Study Abroad prize, for its Indigenous Rights and the Rights of Nature in Ecuador project. Other sustainability projects highlighted included the GREEN Program’s Microgrid Systems for Rural Development… → Read More
International view on UK undergraduate course value bouncing back
The Advance HE/ HEPI Student Academic Experience Survey 2022 found that 35% of the total 10,000 students asked said that they thought their courses were ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money. When broken down into international fee paying students only, this extended to 41% saying the same. Among home fee paying students, which included some EU students, 33% (2,911 students) reported poor value… → Read More
Sector appeals to US lawmakers for increased exchange funding
However, there are various initiatives aimed at helping the sector recover following the pandemic and allies in US government are assisting in a “move in the right direction”. But stakeholders also want more funding for US exchange programs. For inbound J1 visas, there is “lots of frustration”, executive director of the Alliance for International Exchange Ilir Zherka noted. “Visa delays are… → Read More
Domestic pastoral care learnings in NZ schools
In February, RNZ reported that the ministry was considering limiting international students joining classes up to Year 9. The outlet reported that allowing some schools to enrol international students was unfair on those that did not enrol foreign students, added to pressure on the housing market and to teacher supply, and could distract schools from focusing on local students. However, on May… → Read More
Celtic joins ELT group Quality English
The language school expects that collaboration with the organisation, which runs agent workshops among other services, will help the school recover and “thrive again”. Additionally, QE’s logo – which member schools carry – is assurance that students “will have rewarding and enjoyable experiences, whilst improving their English Language skills”. “We are delighted to join Quality English which… → Read More
'Value over volume' heart of New Zealand international strategy
Key to the country’s future international education sector is people-to-people connections and personal relationships, rather than the economic impact of international students, New Zealand’s education minister told The PIE, as he joined a delegation visiting the 2022 NAFSA conference. The country has also launched a new global marketing campaign. “Within the international education sector in… → Read More
Inner Circle MBA consultancy launches
Inner Circle MBA, headed up by former director of Recruitment and Admissions, Leadership Programmes at London Business School, Brett Hunter said there is a “gap in the market for an admissions consultancy that looks beyond the candidate’s resume to understand their motivations and goals”. Inner Circle MBA combines psychometric testing with industry experience to guide candidates through the MBA… → Read More
Africa: Honoris maps success over five years
In its inaugural impact report, the pan-African network of private higher education institutions found that it has transformed over 770,000 lives across Africa by preparing students to pursue “rewarding regional and international careers”. In the five years since its formation in 2017, 80% of graduates of the 15-institution network have gained access to the job market within six months of… → Read More
Canada and Morocco seek to deepen HE links
Universities Canada welcomed leaders from 36 Moroccan and 25 Canadian institutions, in a bid to “facilitate knowledge-sharing and establish a collaborative environment for long-term partnerships”. Also joining the one-day event on May 25, was Nell Stewart, ambassador of Canada to Morocco, Souriya Otmani, ambassador of Morocco to Canada, as well as Arif Virani, parliamentary secretary to the… → Read More
"What if the world forgets us?" pleas to support Afghan girls
Speaking to delegates at the Education World Forum in London this week, Freshta Karim, founder of Charmaghz, appealed to ministers and stakeholders for help. There were fears that when the Taliban took control of the country in August 2021 they would ban girls from accessing education. While primary schools for girls have reopened under the Taliban, girls arriving for lessons at secondary… → Read More