Australia
Ranking Measures Universities’ International Standing, ANU Wins Out
Breaking a tie for the top spot in last year’s Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research standings [1], Australia National University [2] edged out the University of Melbourne [3] as the Australian university with the best international standing. The University of Sydney [4] ranked third, with the University of Queensland [5] and the University of North South Wales [6] making up the top five.
The index, compiled by Ross Williams from Melbourne University, also for the first time ranked Australian universities from the most specialized to the least. The University of the Sunshine Coast [7] had the narrowest focus, with all its academics in science, commerce and creative arts and no staff in information technology, engineering, architecture, environment, health, education or society and culture. Swinburne University of Technology [8] was ranked the next most specialized institution, followed closely by Australian Catholic University, [9]Flinders University [10] and the University of Canberra [11]. At the other end of the scale, James Cook University [12] was the least specialized institution, along with Curtin University of Technology [13] and Monash University [14].
– The Australian [15]
October 24, 2007
Pricey Dollar Cause for Concern in Education Export Industry
The Australian dollar has been appreciating strongly in recent months and years, and now some are worried that cost-conscious international students might now be looking at other options where their Rupee or Yuan might stretch a little further. The strong dollar is especially worrisome for second-tier universities that do not figure prominently in international rankings. Currency prices currently favor Australia’s number one competitor, the United States, where the dollar has been losing value precipitously in recent months and steadily for years (see associated piece under United States, in Americas section).
According to commentators interviewed by The Australian newspaper the strong Australian dollar is going to make the development of new markets, especially in the oil-rich Middle East, ever more important. Latin America is also seen as an important new market that Australian institutions are hoping to tap into in coming years.
After a post-2002 collapse in the New Zealand international student market, the strong NZ dollar was widely cited as contributing to falling enrollments. According to director of Strategy Policy and Research in Education at a Hong Kong-based consultancy, the currency effect would take 18 months to make itself felt. And several commentators said the currency effect should not be overstated since education exports had enjoyed strong growth during the past few years despite the steadily rising Australian dollar. Mr. Olsen said his research showed just three student markets — Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea — included cost in the top three factors of their decision-making process. “For the rest of the world, it [Australia] is safe, it is an English-speaking destination and students like to experience a different culture,” he said.
– The Australian [16]
November 7, 2007
China
New York-based University Opens Campus in China
The New York Institute of Technology [17] (NYIT) opened an American-style university in collaboration with Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications [18] (NUPT) in October. The school will focus exclusively on undergraduate education modeled on the U.S. system.
The Jiangsu provincial government in China was instrumental in laying the groundwork for the collaboration, while the ministry of education will be financing it and building an expansive ultramodern campus for NUPT, an elite Chinese scientific institute, with a dedicated, separate yet contiguous complex for NYIT where it will initially offer four academic degree programs. NYIT plans to grow enrollment to 6,000 students, from an inaugural roll of 321 who, upon completion of their English-taught programs, will be awarded an American bachelor’s degree. Graduates have an option to earn “parallel degrees” from NYIT and NUPT or, if they choose, just the NYIT degree. Students can study in Nanjing or can opt to take some of their courses at NYIT campuses in New York if they are able to obtain visas.
Prior to establishing the Nanjing campus, NYIT was operating an M.B.A. program at Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics [19] in the cities of Nanchang and Shenzhen, and more recently a double-degree master’s program in human resource management at Tongji University [20] in Shanghai. In addition to China, NYIT has campuses in Amman [21], Jordan; Manama, Bahrain; and Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, with a total of 3,200 students enrolled.
– NYIT news release [22]
October 17, 2007
List of First Class Graduate Schools Published
The China Academy of Management Science recently published a list of Chinese university graduate schools and research institutes that have been ranked as first class in 2007.
– AEI [23]
October 24, 2007
China Deal First Step Toward UK University Reinventing Itself as “Globalized” Institution
The University of Surrey [24] in the southeast of England is planning to offer degrees in which students would move each year between partner universities in three countries. This could include universities in the US, China and elsewhere in Asia. Already confirmed as a partner in the plan is Dongbei University in China. The partnership with Dongbei University of Finance and Economics [25], in the Chinese city of Dalian, has resulted in the creation of the Surrey International Institute [26]. Almost 140 undergraduates are enrolled and the institute has permission to take up to 2,000 students. The new institute is part of a 10-year plan by the Guildford-based university to become an “international institution”.
The partnership will create undergraduate and postgraduate programs in management, computing and entrepreneurship – with the aim of allowing Chinese students to study in Surrey and for UK-based students to spend part of their program at Dongbei. All courses will be taught in English and will replicate those taught at the University of Surrey. Surrey, which aims to increase student numbers by 40 percent to 18,000 within a decade, plans to establish relations with other universities around the world in addition to setting up a series of international branch institutes, including in China, to allow students to switch between overseas partner universities. The university is also targeting a 150 percent increase in revenue over the same 10-year period to US$1 billion.
– BBC News [27]
November 6, 2007
Chinese Universities Make a Comparatively Huge Leap Forward
Although the US can still legitimately lay claim to the world’s best higher education system, with a majority of the world’s top-ranked universities, China will soon be knocking it off the top spot if current trends continue; or so said presenters in London at the Worldwide Universities Network [28] conference in November.
Consider some of the facts. China now has the largest higher education system in the world (logically, considering the size of its population): it awards more university degrees than the US and India combined, with university enrollments in China rising from under 10 percent of young people in 1999 to over 21 percent in 2006, a phenomenally fast expansion.
At the PhD level, numbers have risen from 5,000 graduates in 1996 (half the number in the UK, Japan or India) to 34,000 in 2006 (more than any other country, except the US). Based on current trends, this will surge past 50,000 a year in just three or four years, at which point it would overtake the US. This has been achieved through a policy of investment in higher education. According to Dr John Turek, Director of IBM’s China Technology Institute, China was spending just one percent of GDP on higher education in 1998. Now the target figure for 2007 is four percent.
– The BBC [29]
November 17, 2007
Kaplan Increases China Presence
Kaplan, Inc. [30] announced in November a major expansion in China. The test-prep and tertiary provider is buying a majority stake in a company that trains students across China to prepare for entrance to British universities and a majority stake in the Sino-British College of Shanghai. In addition, Kaplan signed an agreement to provide training in finance and economics to students at the Southwest University of Finance and Economics [31] in western China. The expansion is the latest of Kaplan’s ventures in Asia, where the company provides professional training and higher education opportunities in Hong Kong and Singapore.
– Kaplan news release [32]
November 27, 2007
Former Head of Nottingham’s China Campus Urges Caution when Collaborating with the Chinese
British universities need to exercise caution when looking at potential China collaboration projects the former head of Nottingham University’s Chinese campus warned in December. In fact they need to start seeing China as a threat, professor Ian Gow said in a report from the higher education think tank Agora [33]. The founding provost of Nottingham-Ningbo University [34] claimed China wants to profit from the UK’s strengths in science and technology by absorbing the talent and intellectual property of its partners.
When it comes to higher education, China may be more of a threat than an opportunity, Gow said. “British institutions must stop viewing this aggressively ambitious country through rose-tinted spectacles. Make no mistake, China wants to be the leading power in higher education, and it will extract what it can from the UK.”
He predicts that institutions negotiating entry to China would gain it only on Chinese terms, with the country staying very much in control. The report, British universities in China: The reality beyond the rhetoric [35], outlines the views of six key academics with personal experience of higher education partnerships in China and other countries. Dr David Pilsbury, chief executive of the Worldwide Universities Network [28] said, “There is a lot of excitement about overseas campuses, but I do not think people should underestimate how difficult it is to make these ventures a success.”
Only Nottingham and Liverpool universities have set up campuses in China so far. The University of Nottingham Ningbo is sponsored by the city of Ningbo and run by Nottingham with cooperation from Zhejiang Wanli University. While the Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University [36] (XJTLU) is a partnership between both universities. Both ventures are the first Sino-foreign universities in China to have the Chinese ministry of education’s approval. City [37] and Westminster [38] universities in London were negotiating to establish campuses in China, but both are believed to have now pulled out. Imperial [39], King’s [40] and University College London [41] are all also thought to be looking at the possibility of setting up outposts in the country. Several UK universities have established links and joint degrees with the 5,000 institutions in China.
– The Guardian [42]
December 6, 2007
India
Five-Year Targets Formalized
The Indian Government and vice-chancellors met in October to finalize a five-year plan for universities. Minister for Human Resource Development Shri Arjun Singh, Science and Technology Minister Shri Kapil Sibal, state higher education officials and university representatives discussed ways to implement the targets. The initiative aims to increase enrollment by setting up new universities and colleges, strengthening existing institutions, removing barriers to education and ensuring the quality of education.
– The Times Higher Education Supplement [43]
October 19, 2007
MIT to Partner with Indian Government in Building new Health Institute
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology [44] and the government of India’s Department of Biotechnology have launched a partnership that will result in the creation of a new Translational Health Science and Technology Institute in India, according to a November news release from MIT.
The new institute will be modeled after the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology [45] and will include faculty from multiple disciplines and professions, offer degrees through multidisciplinary programs, and develop strong ties with other institutions. Funded by the Indian government, the Indian HST will be a multidisciplinary research and training center. The institute will increase India’s capacity for translating scientific and technological advancements into medical innovations that have the potential to improve health care both in India and around the world.
– MIT News [46]
November 19, 2007
London College to Commercialize Indian Intellectual Property
Imperial College London [39] founded Imperial Innovations [47] as a means of commercializing the inventions of its academics, and now it is in the process of developing a branch in India, i2india, in which it has a 25 percent stake. i2india will develop Indian intellectual property arising from Indian research institutes, universities, research organizations and corporations.
– Imperial news release [48]
November 22, 2007
Japan
Waseda Announces Plans to Quadruple Foreign Enrollments within 5 Years
Waseda University [49], one of Japan’s top-ranking private universities, has announced plans to increase its international enrollments to 8,000 from its current 2,200 within five years. According to an announcement by university president Katsuhiko Shirai, the university wants the flow of students to be reciprocal. The university aims to send just as many students to foreign educational institutions. Currently there are just 1,000 Waseda students studying overseas. If the institution’s internationalization goals are realized, foreign students will account for approximately 10 percent of all undergraduate enrollments.
In addition, the university plans to double the percentage of foreign teachers to 20 percent and increase the number of classes conducted in English. As of May 1, 2006, 2,190 foreign students were studying at Waseda, second only to 2,197 at the University of Tokyo [50], according to the Japan Student Services [51].
– Asahi Shimbun [52]
October 18, 2007
New Zealand
Foreign Students Granted Extension to Seek Employment
International students in New Zealand are now allowed to stay in country for an extra six months after graduation to seek work under changes announced in October. Immigration Minister David Cunliffe said the changes would allow many international students to stay in New Zealand on a job search permit for up to a year, instead of six months, while they looked for skilled work. The move was made in a bid to encourage talented graduates to live and work in New Zealand, a strategy being employed increasingly around the world.
Architecture and accounting graduates, who needed three years practical work to achieve professional registration, would be able to stay for three years without applying for a new permit. A third change would allow English-language students to work in New Zealand while they studied. Mr Cunliffe said research indicated a significant number of international students were choosing to stay in New Zealand after studying there. A study has indicated that between 1999 and 2001, 27 percent of foreign students remained in the country after graduation.
– New Zealand Press Association [53]
October 24, 2007
International Enrollment Numbers Show Signs of Life
Recent figures [54] suggest that international enrollments in New Zealand are on the rebound after almost five years in the doldrums. The ability to attract students from countries other than China – including Europe, South America and the Middle East – has helped stabilize the industry. The number of students from Saudi Arabia has leapt from none in 1999 to just over 300 last year, while the number coming from India surged from 87 to 1,721 in the same time period, according to the latest figures from Education New Zealand [55].
The number of first-time visas for Chinese students has also been rising. Nearly 3,000 visas were approved last year, up from 2,530 in 2004/2005. However, the figures are still very low compared to the 2002 peak of more than 19,000. The China boom brought problems in its wake such as issues around quality and the high risk that came with dependence on one market. Approximately 90,000 international students studied in New Zealand last year.
The changes outlined in the piece above are designed to consolidate enrollment numbers, especially among skilled graduates in high-demand fields.
– The Press [56]
October 25, 2007
Malaysia
Foreign Students Adding $450 Million to National Economy
The Malaysian government estimates that the 50,000 foreign students studying at the nation’s institutions of education contribute over US$450 million to the economy. Director-General of the Higher Education Management Department in the Ministry of Higher Education [57], Prof Datuk Dr Hassan told the Bernama News Agency that the estimate was based on an annual average expenditure of $9,000 per foreign student, including study and living costs.
In a bid to meet the ministry’s goal of having 100,000 foreign students enrolled at Malaysian institutions by 2010, Mr. Hassan said his department would extend its recruiting efforts more vigorously in Africa and other developing markets.
– Bernama [58]
October 28, 2007
South Korea
U.S. Institute to Explore Possibility of Establishing University City
The Stevens Institute of Technology [59] and the South Korean city of Pyeongtaek have agreed to explore the possibility of establishing a University City and High Tech Park in Pyeongtaek. According to a Stevens’ news release, both sides spoke at a signing ceremony of a promising scenario that would feature the creation of inventive new technologies and result in a large number of business and employment opportunities throughout both South Korea and the United States.
Under the agreement the New Jersey-based institute agrees to explore the establishment of a graduate school and research centers in the Pyeongtaek University City. In addition, Stevens is agreeing to work to attract other universities to this site along with other high-tech companies. The new venture is expected to open in two or three years.
– Stevens Institute of Technology news release [60]
October 19, 2007
Foreign Student, Professor Numbers on the Rise
The number of foreign professors in South Korea has more than doubled over the last seven years. According to the Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development [61], a total of 2,919 professors were working at Korean colleges this year. This figure represents 4.1 percent of the total faculty body of 70,957, and an increase of 379 from last year and 1,606 from 2000.
Among the student body, there are 32,056 internationals in Korea, an increase of 9,432 from last year and an almost 10-fold increase from 2000. Among them, 72.1 percent are from China, 4.7 percent from Vietnam, 3.9 from Japan and 2.8 percent from Mongolia.
– The Korea Times [62]
November 11, 2007
POSTECH Tops Rankings
Pohang University of Science and Technology [63] (POSTECH) was ranked as South Korea’s number one institution of higher education by the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper. In its annual National College Review, the daily ranked Korea Advanced Institute for Science and Technology [64] (KAIST) and Seoul National University [65] second and third respectively. Tied for fourth were Korea [66] and Yonsei [67] universities.
The same five schools were ranked in the top five last year as well, but in slightly different orders. Last year, the highest ranking institution was KAIST, followed by POSTECH and Seoul National University tied for second, Korea University in fourth, and Yonsei University in fifth.
This year, POSTECH outranked KAIST and Seoul University largely due to its research activity, outnumbering 122 competing institutions in the areas of research funds from outside sources, and published theses in the Science Citation Index and the Social Sciences Citation Index. Institutions that showed great improvement from last year’s rankings were Hankuk University of Foreign Studies [68], which jumped from 22nd to 10th place; Handong Global University [69], from 30th to 18th; and Hongik University [70], improving from 30th to 19th.
The annual college review conducted by JoongAng Ilbo was first published in 1994. Institutions are ranked across four broad categories: professors and research, financial and environmental condition for education, globalization, and reputation and advancement into society. The four categories are equally weighted.
– KAIST Herald [71]
October 2007
Vietnam
Government Approves First non-State University
Bac Ha International University will become Vietnam’s first non-state internationally focused university, after receiving approval from the government in November. The university has been licensed to set up in northern Bac Ninh province, 25km northeast of Ha Noi. International partner institutions have been named as Australia’s Griffith University [72], Boston-based Cambridge College [73] and Northwestern Polytechnic University [74], a private university based in Fremont, California. According to administrators, the university will recruit teaching staff domestically and from abroad. The university will offer programs with an IT and business focus, and plans initially to enroll 500 students with a view to full enrollment of 3,000-4,000 students. A permanent campus is scheduled for completion by 2012, until which time students will study at a temporary location.
– Mathaba News Agency [75]
November 5, 2007