New Zealand Declares Solid Foreign Enrolment Growth Plan

Education New Zealand (ENZ) said this week that the number of international students enrolled in the country increased by another 21% in 2024, after a post-pandemic spike in2023. With 83,425 international students enrolled overall this year, New Zealand's global educational market is now 72% back to its pre-pandemic levels. It had dropped as low as forty thousand in 2022, and for the New Zealand education sector to have such a solid recovery and move towards pre-pandemic levels is a huge success.

Amanda Malu, the Chief Executive of Education New Zealand, stated that institutions funded by the Government, Private Training Establishments (PTEs) are almost at the same enrollment levels as in 2019. Enrollment in Te Pūkenga / NZIST, Government-Funded PTEs, English Language Schools, Universities, and Schools is increasing. In2024, government-funded PTEs had the largest annual growth (+59%), followed by primary (+53%) and intermediate (+32%) schools. Graduate studies are another significant growth area, according to ENZ. The number of international students enrolled in master's programs increased by 68%between 2023 and 2024, from 8,740 in 2023 to 14,695 in 2024. In comparison with2019, when the nation down under had 7,945 enrolled in master's programs, this represents an 85% increase.

According to data from the previous year, 40% of all international students in New Zealand were enrolled in university courses. The remaining 22% were in K–12 education,14% were in PTEs, 12% were in NZIST, and 12% were in linguistic studies. Among the major Asian sending markets, China accounts for 34% of 2024 enrollments, followed by India (14%), Japan (9%), South Korea (4%), and Thailand (3%). For New Zealand in 2024, the only Non-Asian nations that make it into the top ten senders are the United States (3% of 2024 enrolments) and Germany (an additional 3%).

New Zealand aims to double its revenue from international education by 2034, and it has a plan termed ‘Going for Growth’ initiated to achieve that. It basically aims to:

●    Increase the percentage of people who know about New Zealand as a place to study from40% in 2024 to 42% in 2027 and 44% in 2034.

●    Increasing the number of students enrolled, coming from 83,400 in 2024 to 105,000 in 2027and 119,000 in 2034.

●    Raise the percentage of potential students who rank New Zealand as one of their foremost three study destination options from 18% in 2024 to 20% in 2027 and22% in 2034.

Additionally, the plan lays out several key strategies, including the following:

●    Start a well-known worldwide branding campaign to highlight the special benefits of New Zealand education and increase awareness in important foreign markets.

●    To improve education provider collaboration with agents and boost student outreach efficacy, adopt an enhanced agent network model that standardizes training and interactions with recruitment agents.

●    Develop our AI-powered platform that offers partners and potential students around the world 24/7 assistance and information, enhancing responsiveness and service quality.

New Zealand's efforts to expedite student visa procedures and grant visiting students more work rights are also highlighted in the ‘Going for Growth’ plan. As of right now, this includes, starting in November 2025, permitted student visa holders will have the ability to work 25 hours per week instead of the current 20-hourlimit. Additionally, "all tertiary students in acknowledged exchange or Study Abroad programs, including programs one-semester long," will be eligible for in-study work.