Student Recruitment in Europe

For most of us, Europe conjures up images of vacation time lying along the Adriatic coast, sipping wine in the Tuscan countryside, or exploring the endless history and rich culture, but have you ever thought of it as a fertile student recruitment market?

Although there are challenges with respect to promoting a Canadian education in Europe given such factors as the Bologna Accord and nearly free education costs for European Union students, plus the high costs of doing recruitment in Europe, Canada is a viable option for many of these students and it is becoming more and more appealing. As with many other regions in the world, entrance to the top European universities is restrictive, and with a global attitude, more and more students are looking at studying abroad for their education. While UK, German, and Dutch universities are still the top full study destinations for Europeans, American and Canadian destinations are becoming more than just the traditional semester abroad that we have become known for.

During a recent recruitment trip to Europe, which included the Council of International Schools Forum on International Admission and Guidance in Munich, Germany I was able to explore the European market and make a few observations. The first is that Canadian institutions, especially universities, are very active in this region – the conference alone had 18 Canadian universities represented. With a number of ex-pats working in global head offices, governmental organizations, military outposts and the like, Canadian students can be found far and wide across the continent, which makes recruitment efforts even more attractive. Moreover, given the fact that many Europeans vacation in Canada and that there are a number of direct flights between various European and Canadian cities, traveling to Canada is relatively easy and Canada is not foreign to many students as a fair number have visited, participated in a high school exchange, or have friends in our country.

The most interesting aspect of my visits was that the “arts” are alive in Europe. In Canada, and many other regions in the world, our most popular programs tend to be engineering, business, and health sciences. While these programs are of interest, it is the arts programs (traditional humanities and social sciences) for which I received the most interest -- a stark contrast to what we are normally accustomed to. As I later found out, it is the arts programs that typically have the highest admissions averages at many UK and European universities (as much as an IB diploma score of 38 or 39!), which results in higher competition and increased pressure on students to perform well in their senior year.

This supply-and-demand combination for arts related programs makes Europe a very interesting market for many Canadian institutions that are looking at filling these core programs and attracting highly qualified students. Add to this the exchange rate between the Canadian dollar and the euro; the lower cost of a Canadian education in comparison to the USA or UK; the quality and portability of a Canadian education; our attractive during and post-study working regulations; and the full-service education that Canadian institutions provide (student services, co-op/internship opportunities, study abroad, athletics, campus environment) make studying in Canada a very attractive package to many international students in Europe and around the world.