Fabiola Martínez Mata

Agent Relations Manager, ICEF

ICEF AGENT SERVICES:

ICEF AGENT TRAINING COURSES

THE ICEF AGENCY RECOGNITION PROGRAMME

ICEF Berlin Workshop 2018

November 4 – 6, 2018

Agenda

Agent Training

● Purpose

● Development and status

● The ICEF Agent Training Course (IATC)

● The China Education Agent Course (CEAC)

● Canada Course for Education Agents (CCEA)

● The US Agent Training Course (USATC)

● The Irish Education Agents Course (IEAC)

● Who can take theses course?

● Practical information and benefits for agents

ICEF Agency Status & Recognition

● General information

● Conditions of recognition

● Benefits and usage

● Duration and renewal

ICEF Agent Training

● Practical training courses for agency student counsellors

● Delivered online and free of charge in a self-paced format

● Objectives:

● Support excellence and professional standards in international

education

● Providing student counsellors with essential business skills and

knowledge for working in international education

- An understanding of the international/regional education markets

- The dynamics of dealing with students, education institutions and government

- The skills and research parameters to analyze destination countries, their education products and processes, and compatibility to the students needs

ICEF Professional Courses

ICEF Destination Courses

The ICEF Agent Training Course (IATC)

Course Development

Represent you on a year round basis

Provide you with reliable local market information

Distribute your promotional material regularly

Advertise in targeted local media

Represent you at local fairs and college days

● Developed with the input of 769 agents in 113 countries and 437 education institutions in 78 countries

● An international advisory board reviewed and gave input to final course material (30 agent / educator members in 19 countries)

● Enthusiastic reaction worldwide since launch in 2010, especially from agents wishing to take the course

● To date, over 14034 student counsellors are studying the course and 1271 (in 111 countries) have already successfully passed the test

● The China Education Agent Course (CEAC) is a Chinese version of the IATC – specifically for Chinese agents in the education market

● In cooperation with BOSSA, who hosts testing opportunities, we recognize 436 CITACs (Chinese ICEF Trained Agent Counselors)

IATC - Content

Unit A: The Context of International Education

● Main Destination Countries

● Education Systems

● Regulatory Systems

● Legal Requirements

● Student Visas

Unit B: People in International Education

● Student Client Management

● Student Care Issues

● Student Documents

Unit C: Promoting International Education

● Working Effectively

● Marketing Information

● Ethics

IATC Course Content

● Each lesson starts with an overview of the unit

● “Focus Questions“ at the beginning of each lesson prepare

the student for the information contained in it

● Pages provide the learning material

● “Extension Questions“ assist in applying the knowledge gained

● “Activities“ at the end of each page are learning tools

● “Destination Countries“ are part of the course content, however, due to

a constantly changing environment - are not part of the official testing

The Canada Course for Education Agents (CCEA)Launched in October 2012 at ICEF Berlin Workshop, and was created to support educational agencies in providing the best possible advice to international students planning to study abroad in Canada.

The Canada Course for Education Agents supports professional development for agents specializing in Canada as a study destination. Originally produced by Foreign Affairs and International Trade, (Canada) in collaboration with ICEF, the course is now jointly owned by ICEF, Languages Canada and the Canadian Association of Public Schools International (CAPS-i), with the support of the CCIE.

Ensure that students choosing an agent have access to informed, ethical professionals who have the most current and accurate information on Canadian education institutions and programmes.

Support Canadian educational institutions – spend less time training agencies on Canada and more on institution’s programmes; work with agencies that invest in best practices and are committed to Canada; and, use internally for training staff

Since testing launch May 2013, there are 689 Canada Course Graduates from 71 countries

In total, 11665 people from 90 countries have registered for the course

Canada Course Content

Introduction

Section A: About Canada

Section B: Canada’s Systems of Education

Section C: Elementary and Secondary School (K-12) Education

Section D: Language Programmes

Section E: Universities

Section F: Colleges, Cégeps and Polytechnics

Section G: Costs of Studying in Canada and Scholarships

Section H: Applying to Work, Study and Stay in Canada

Section I: Living in Canada

Section J: Promoting Canada

The US Agent Training Course (USATC)

The US Agent Training Course (USATC) is designed for international education

agents working with American schools, universities, and colleges to recruit

international students, and is aimed at increasing agents’ knowledge and standards

of practice in their work with both institutions and students.

Ensure that education agents worldwide have accurate, up-to-date information

about the US education system.

Provide students and their families with the assurance that the agent they are

talking to is specialized in the US.

Enable US institutions to work with agents who have demonstrated commitment to

the US market by taking the course and passing the test.

Lower US institutions’ burden of agent training, allowing them to focus it on

explaining programs and specific course offerings (also useful for internal staff

training).

The US Agent Training Course (USATC) was launched in the fall of 2015 and

presently has 213 graduates from 41 different countries.

International Advisory Board MembersAdvisory Board Members based in the US

USATC Content

Section 1: About the US

Section 2: The US Education System

Section 3: K-12 Schools in the US

Section 4: Intensive English Programs (IEPs) and Pathway (Bridge) Programs

Section 5: US Professional Education and Training (PET) Schools

Section 6: Community (Two-Year) Colleges

Section 7: Four-Year Colleges and Universities

Section 8: Graduate Schools and Specialized Programs

Section 9: The Culture of American Schools

Section 10: Living in the US – Practical Considerations

Section 11: Student Visa Information

Section 12: Working in the US

Section 13: Ethical Behavior in Recruiting

Section 14: Resources and Appendices

ICEF Destination CoursesNEW - ICEF Destination Course

First of its kind – recognizing the growing

interest in Ireland as a destination for students

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IEAC Advisory Board Members

Lucia Reynolds, Brand Manager Education in Ireland

Enterprise Ireland

Celestine Rowland, Director

Galway Business School

Declan Millar, Managing Director

High Schools International

Debbie Flynn, Founder

Irish Education Partners

Sinead Lucey, International Education Manager

Irish Universities Association

David O'Grady, CEO

Marketing English Ireland (MEI)

Miriam Ryan, Head of International Education

Technological Higher Education Association

In Ireland Outside Ireland

Victor Hugo Baseggio, Director

CI, Brazil

Fernando Lanzagorta Diaz,

Marketing and Sales Director

Estudia en Irlanda, Mexico

Onur Yaldizkaya, Founder

Idealist, Turkey

Noriko Okada, Marketing Director

Ireland Celtic Travel, Japan

Oscar Porras, Director

Midleton School, Spain

Dr. Osamah Majeed Qureshi, Director

Student Counseling Services, Pakistan

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IEAC Course Contents (12 Sections)

Section A: About IrelandSection B: The Irish Education SystemSection C: Secondary Schooling in IrelandSection D: English Language LearningSection E: Institutes of TechnologySection F: UniversitiesSection G: InternshipsSection H: The Higher Education EnvironmentSection I: Living In IrelandSection J: Student Visas Section K: Working in IrelandSection L: Promoting Ireland

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Why the Irish Agent Training Course?

• Provide agents with the most current, accurate information about education in Ireland

• Respond to increased interest in Ireland as a study destination amongst agents worldwide

• Enable Irish educators to work with agents committed to Ireland as a study destination

• Assure students and their families that they are talking to an Eire specialist

• Lower Irish educators’ agent training burden, allowing them to focus on their USP & courses

• Assist Irish education providers’ internal staff training

• Create a comprehensive reference tool on Ireland for the international education community

Who can take ICEF Agent Training courses?

● New agency staff members: excellent training tools for new student

counsellors at agencies, for international or regional destination focus

● Practising student counsellors: all courses provide up-to-date

information about international education principles and processes

● Agency managers / owners are also welcome to take the course

● Educators interested in understanding the fundamental principles of a

working agent relationship

● An English proficiency equivalent to an IELTS score of 5.0 (or TOEFL

PBT 500 / TOEFL iBT 61) is advisable

Practical Information

● Delivered online in a self-paced modular format (approx. 50 hours of study are

recommended)

● Courses are free of charge, formal exam at cost

● Exams: “open book” (i.e. on- and offline resources may be consulted) and

candidates with a minimum of 80% correct answers pass the test

● Worldwide testing at all ICEF Workshops, plus ability to do ‘online’ at any time

with a webcam

● Test format: multiple choice questions in 80 minutes (IATC: destination country

information not tested)

● Highly recommended to do (and pass!) the Self-Assessment before requesting

a testing opportunity

● Candidates successfully passing the formal exam will receive a Certificate of

Recognition and immediate listing on ICEF Agent training

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Recognition:

ICEF Trained Agent

Counsellors and Agency List

Agency Profiles

Agent, Agency name,

ITAC/CCG/ USCG/CITAC/ICG #,

qualification date, country,

agency profile & contact information

featured in an online listing:

www.icef.com/agent-training/

Agency Profile

Resources: Online App - QEA

• Free tool for educator marketing

professionals to help them find qualified

agencies by name or location (near me

now)

• Now listing over 9200 qualified agent

counsellors worldwide (ICEF, PIER,

British Council) from 125 countries

• Over 6 700 downloads to date

• Search for “Qualified Education Agents”

in Google Play or the App Store

• Download your free copy now!

ICEF Agency Status (IAS)

● ICEF’s industry-leading quality assurance

processes are recognised worldwide as an

important qualification for agencies who have

been successfully vetted, and participated in,

ICEF Workshops

● In 2010, ICEF launched a recognition

programme, acknowledging agents who have

met ICEF's strict standard of quality

● Currently we have over 4200 recognized IAS

agents

● Screened agencies that attend one or more ICEF Workshops

successfully, automatically qualify

● Agencies who have received ICEF Agency recognition are evaluated

every two years to ensure ongoing compliance with ICEF’s standards

IAS – Conditions of Recognition and Renewal

Use your ICEF Agency Status logo as a sign

of quality and professionalism on marketing

materials:

Brochures, business cards, e-mail & URL

IAS – Benefits and Usage

Email signature

Webpage

Thank you!

See www.icef.com for more detailed information

training@icef.com

agent@icef.com

Questions regarding

Agent training please email:

Questions regarding ICEF‘s

Agency recognition program?

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