International Teachers’ and Advisers’ Conference 2020 – CANCELLED

Recruitment heroes or admissions headaches? Agents and their increasing importance to international recruitment and admissions to UK higher education

International recruitment agents have historically had a mixed reputation, and can often be seen very differently by admissions and international recruitment teams. Yet the agent sector is an increasingly important channel for recruitment to the UK, and many agents have developed strong brands, extensive reach across major international markets, and a sophisticated service offer for a fickle and demanding international student audience.

This panel session will consider how far the agent sector has moved beyond its previous reputation, and what challenges remain. It will be an opportunity to discuss and share good practice regarding how to work well with agents, how to overcome any challenges in agent management, and what universities and agents can do to ensure quality in international student recruitment.

Learning outcomes

• Insight into good practice in agent management across the higher education sector.
• Sharing of experience in working with agents to resolve common challenges.
• An understanding of why students choose to work with agents, and how to ensure quality in agent-led recruitment.