New Zealand: Language school rolls increasing

[Harold Schiffman]

Language school rolls increasing

By GILES BROWN - The Press | Monday, 11 August 2008

DAVID HALLETT/The Press



While businesses across the country struggle with recession, New
Zealand's language schools are experiencing a boom. Statistics New
Zealand figures show a $7 million increase in spending by
international students studying at English language schools in the
year ending March. Expenditure of $121m on tuition and fees was up
nearly $4m, the second consecutive yearly increase. The industry says
the growth is partly due to the lower value of the New Zealand dollar,
thought to be behind an increase in South Korean students during the
past two years.

The biggest spenders on tuition and related fees in the past year were
students from Saudi Arabia, with their expenditure soaring nearly 70
per cent as their numbers increased. "We are twice the size we were
two years ago," the principal of Christchurch's Excel English College,
Anita Bell, said. The influx of Saudi Arabian students was due to
their Government running a scholarship programme for students in an
attempt to become a major business hub, she said. "The oil isn't going
to last for ever, and they are setting themselves up for a different
future. English is the language of the web and if you can't speak
English, your job chances are diminished," Bell said.

The Saudi Arabian students were often lawyers, optometrists and others
looking to set themselves up for a professional career. Language
Schools New Zealand manager Gus Fahy said the low New Zealand dollar
attracted many students. "We are very much driven by exchange rates
and we will expect our business to be growing now that the exchange
rate is coming back in our favour," Fahy said.

English New Zealand is a group of English language schools from across
the country. Chairman Rob McKay said although the schools were doing
well, the Government needed to make long-term policy decisions to
ensure this continued.

"As a total export, education is estimated to be worth $2.3 billion.
That's seriously large," he said.

However, the sector could not rely on scholarships in Saudi Arabia and
the interest of South Korean students.

McKay said New Zealand should follow Australia's lead and allow
students to work while they studied. This would help guarantee high
student numbers from a range of countries.

"Building business on the back of scholarship students isn't
sustainable. How long do we expect the Saudi Government to keep
providing scholarships for? The only way we can have a sustainable
market is if we have a diversified market."

South Korean language student Alia Lee, 21, said she was undertaking a
year-long course in English in Christchurch before returning home to
begin a career in marketing.

It was the country, rather than the currency, that attracted her.

"I was always wondering about coming to New Zealand and I think I made
the right choice. When I first came here, I was homesick, but now I
have been here I would like to stay longer," she said.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4650921a7694.html

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