Exports in Higher Education–Finding Qualified Students in Central Europe
November 23, 2015Jennifer Moll is a Senior International Trade Specialist at the International Trade Administration’s Detroit Export Assistance Center.
If you work in higher education, your institution may be actively recruiting international students. Successful international recruiting involves finding students abroad; venues to conduct effective outreach; forming international partnerships; ensuring international students meet the school’s qualifications; and connecting with scholarship and financial aid options domestically and internationally. In the spring, we’ll host an event designed to help your institution explore all of these important elements in the growing higher education market of Central Europe.
The U.S. Commercial Service at the U.S. Embassies in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary, is partnering with EducationUSA and the Fulbright Commission, to organize education fairs in their respective countries from April 18-22, 2016.
The fairs are much more than shaking hands with foreign diplomats. In each market, event participants will have access to:
- Briefings from the U.S. embassy in each country about the education environment and market factors;
- One-on-one appointments with potential partners;
- A student fair; and
- Networking events in the respective country (Prague, Warsaw, or Budapest).
Central Europe has experienced amazing development in the last 20 years, including growth in the field of higher education. Across the region there is a strong tradition and interest in quality education that U.S. institutions can tap into. Prague, Warsaw, and Budapest each have unique characteristics that make them suitable targets for overseas recruitment efforts:
- The Czech Republic has great recruitment potential. High-quality educational programs, coupled with English as the standard second language, produce a large pool of highly qualified candidates for both undergraduate and graduate studies in the United States. Also, an increase in study abroad programs and institutional cooperation has given rise to several new private foundations that have the potential to be sources for student scholarships.
- Poland is unquestionably a prime target for U.S. educational institutions to successfully recruit undergraduate and graduate students. This market not only represents the sixth largest country in the European Union in terms of population, but it also has a population heavily skewed toward young students interested in higher education.
- In Hungary, studying abroad is seen as an absolute must for many students, with one-third of students having the goal of study overseas. Summer camps, as well as special English language and mentoring programs all contribute to a large, highly-qualified pool of applicants that will be of great interest to U.S. colleges and universities.
To expand your institution’s international reach to these growing markets, visit the event page to learn more. Be sure to sign up for our related webinar, ‘Best Practices and Opportunities for Student Recruitment in the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary’, on December 2nd at 11 a.m. EST.
There’s never been a better time to explore the higher education market in Central Europe. Our team would love to help your institution succeed!
*For more information or questions, email Jennifer at Jennifer.Moll@trade.gov.
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