VT encouraging international students to return
Before Covid, Taranaki was home to more than 1000 international students, but the impact of lockdown saw numbers drop to fewer than 500 in 2022.
This had an economic impact on the region. In 2018, international students contributed $50 million to the Taranaki economy, and supported around 330 jobs.
So, in March and April, Te Puna Umaga Venture Taranaki, the regional development agency, hosted two international delegations looking at Taranaki as a place to study.
The first delegation included eight high school teachers from Japan, a staff member from Air New Zealand, and two staff from Education New Zealand (ENZ).
The teachers were from the Kansai and Kantō regions, and Taranaki was the second stop of a tour which included Auckland, Whanganui and Palmerston North.
“Teachers from Japan have quite a bit of influence on students,” Sean Markham, talent advisor at Venture Taranaki, said.
“Unlike students from other countries, who only rely on advice from international education agents, Japanese students tend to have strong relationships with their teachers, who also lead their international programmes, so it’s great to have them here to showcase the region.”
International students brought a wealth of benefits to Taranaki, Markham said.
“This includes economic benefits, but more importantly, they help create global citizens for our domestic students by bringing cross-cultural learning into our classrooms and lecture theatres.”
A second delegation, which included three agents representing the Brazilian, German, French, Philippine, Vietnamese and Thai, markets, were in Taranaki for two full days.
Both delegations visited New Plymouth Girls’ High School.principal Jacqui Brown said she and her staff always enjoyed showcasing the school.
“We believe that spending time here is the best way to truly understand who we are and what we do. Visits from those who support students with their adventure to New Zealand is the first step."
One of the school’s values was whanaungatanga/relationships, she said.
“Every visit is an opportunity to build or strengthen relationships and share our place in a globally connected world. We enjoy the rich diversity of thought, experience and ideas that come from having students from around the world learning together at our school.”