Spotlight on Career Outcomes / Pathways

We now understand that many students are actively thinking about careers and career supports even at the point of application for admission. The trend toward a greater focus on career outcomes for international students has been playing out for years, but the pandemic has greatly amplified concerns around affordability, return on investment, and graduate outcomes.

This has in turn placed a much sharper focus on the career support services, including linkages to internships or other work placements, offered by institutions and schools. Such services are much more in demand now than ever before, and as such they represent an important point of differentiation and marketing for educators.

With all that in mind, we thought this would be a good time to share the following featured selection of articles on the topic from ICEF Monitor. And we hope you will find the research highlights they offer helpful in your planning and marketing this year.

Thank you as always for reading along with us, and don't forget to visit our website for the latest market intelligence on international student recruitment.

Surveys show that career outcomes outweigh rankings for many prospective international students  

Recent surveys indicate students are becoming less attached to the idea of studying in a particular country while becoming more focused on whether an institution can provide them with skills for their careers.

Most international students say career supports a big factor in their choice of institution

A new survey finds that international students at UK universities place a high priority on career services and work experience in planning their studies abroad. But only about half of respondents say they are happy with the level of career supports available.

Global survey highlights increasing importance of student supports during pandemic  

QS’s International Student Survey finds that prospective students are most worried about money issues and the ability to receive medical care abroad. Prospects feel that being able to speak to current international students at an institution would reduce their worries.

The growing footprint of virtual internships  

The shift to online working and learning during the pandemic has proven to be an accelerator for adoption of virtual internships as well.