AnnuAl REPORT 10/11 - Grow Wellington

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Grow Wellington continues to work with the
education Wellington international Board and
a 50 strong institutional membership in order
to promote Wellington as a world-class study
destination.
According to New Zealand Export Education Levy data,
Wellington experienced 4.5% growth in international
student numbers between 2009 and 2010, with 5,304
international students studying in the region in 2010.
Vietnam continues to be a priority market for Grow
Wellington. In 2010/11 we hosted a familiarisation
tour in Wellington for Vietnamese agents, and
conducted in-market activities in Vietnam in
collaboration with eight Wellington institutions.
As part of activities in Vietnam, Grow Wellington
attended Education New Zealand Fairs and hosted
Wellington-focused functions, including a mini-fair
in Haiphong, and networking events for parents and
agents in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Wellington now has 24% of New Zealand’s total
Vietnamese student population. Grow Wellington will
continue to strengthen agent relationships in Vietnam
and ensure agents are equipped and confident
to promote the Wellington region as a priority
destination for study.
Leveraging the successes in education marketing
activities in Vietnam, Grow Wellington has
subsequently initiated a five year strategic plan
targeting key markets in China. In June 2011
members from 11 Education Wellington International
institutions travelled to Beijing and Guangdong in
order to identify new Chinese education networks
and extend existing ones. The group attended an
agent exhibition in Beijing, where Wellington was
promoted alongside other study destinations. In
Guangdong, Education Wellington International
representatives presented a Wellington Education
seminar which was attended by several newspapers,
television journalists, education counsellors, and
members of the public who were interested in
New Zealand education.
Agent feedback on the seminars was positive and it
was felt that the strength of collaborative education
marketing provided significant ‘punch’ to marketing
activities. The Chinese market also responded
particularly well to presentations concerning study
pathways available through Education Wellington
institutions. Ongoing strategic planning and education
marketing activities in China will be a key focus for
Grow Wellington in 2011/12.
Grow Wellington exhibited at the Australia and New
Zealand Agents (ANZA) event in Australia in April
2011. ANZA is a destination-focused workshop and
was attended by 519 participants representing 357
organisations from 52 countries worldwide. The
workshop provided an opportunity to profile the
Wellington Region with agents from around the world,
and to gather up-to-date information on some of the
latest market trends.
In January 2011, Grow Wellington launched a
marketing activity targeting students already
studying in Wellington. ‘Postcards Home’ provided
an opportunity for international students to create
digital postcards with photos of their favourite
places in Wellington. Each uploaded postcard was
printed and sent to recipients in their home country
as well as being displayed in an online gallery. Prizes
were awarded for the best photograph and for the
institutions that submitted the most entries. 95
students in the region participated in the competition.
“We know how great it
is living and studying in
Wellington and the best
advocates for studying here
are the students themselves.
‘Postcards home’ is a great
way to showcase our region
internationally,”
said Guy Pascoe, Education Sector Manager at
Grow Wellington.
In addition to Grow Wellington’s focus on growing
numbers of inbound international students, it is also
continuing to develop its online teaching and cultural
exchange programme. As part of this programme
New Zealand teachers will be used to deliver real time
English conversation lessons into Korean after-school
programmes using web-based technology. Online
trials of the programme began in late 2010 with nine
Korean Elementary schools, and these continued
into early 2011 with Grow Wellington overseeing all
aspects of the project. The trial lessons were well
received, and there was interest in the programme
expressed by a number of Korean schools. However,
there were significant concerns raised over the
stability of the online delivery platform that was used
during these trials. Grow Wellington has subsequently
partnered with a Wellington-based organisation
with considerable experience in online teaching and
learning in order to establish an IT infrastructure that
will eliminate the risk of future connection problems
between Korea and Wellington.