Partner Universities (what you need to know about the AEC)

For further information about being a part of the AEC partner university program, please email joyce@mystudyaustralia.com  or emma@mystudyaustralia.com 

The AEC does not enter into any form of exclusive contracts or arrangements for the following reasons:

1. The AEC would like prospective North American students to have access to a multitude of university options. This avoids the problem of students landing overseas and then withdrawing completely to return home or changing their university preferences once there because they believe that another university would have suited them better. Therefore, offering students a choice of options is considered to be in the long term interest of the student as well as the university.

2. The AEC wants to provide unbiased advice to students. Of course we will do everything possible to make your university’s information available to the student. This includes `unique features’ about your university. However, we will not in any way promote your university in preference to another partner university or direct a student to you who we know is looking for something quite different.

3. AEC partner universities have the freedom of managing as many partnerships abroad as they wish to and it avoids the dependence on any particular program or strategy to bring them all their students! The reality of the student market requires a broad based strategy and the AEC understands this.

Some important information that you need to know about the AEC before you decide whether you want the AEC to be part of your network of agencies representing your university in the North American market:

• The AEC was set up in March 1997, after the first IDP Education Australia Office in the USA (1994-1996) closed. Two IDP USA staffers then opened a student processing agency on behalf of 17 Australian universities. Hence, commenced the AEC in Florida. Whilst there have been operational changes along the way, the original concept of the AEC has not changed. It is a unique organization - it operates almost as a non-profit. (For example, the organization’s income is shared by its staff.)
• The AEC does not require much support from its university partners. The AEC requests only 3-5 sets of materials per year. We keep individual university material scanned in our system online. Our method of counseling involves counseling sessions via telephone, email and during visits to campuses followed with many emails that provide university web site links so students can make an informed decision about their choice of university and/or overseas destination city. Often we will provide an email with links to your web site which directs students to the appropriate sections – this cuts down immensely the time it would normally take the student to research study options; it also saves partner universities money because you don’t need to send us boxes of materials or continuously brief us about your programs!
• Our small group works out of home offices in the USA and Australia – briefings can take place via teleconferencing or in person. AEC staff can also meet with Australian partners either at the annual NAFSA Conference or when AEC staff visit partner universities. (Please note that after 9 years of exhibiting at the annual NAFSA Conference, the AEC no longer has a booth at NAFSA. From 2008 there will be AEC staff participating in the NAFSA conference so that those university partners that wish to catch up with the AEC can do so!)
• The AEC does process smaller numbers of students. Why are our numbers small? Firstly we are a small organization; secondly, we do not offer many of the incentives that are becoming very much a part of the `trade in education services’ business in North America. This is particularly in the area of semester and year abroad student recruitment. We have had to `balance’ the need for incentives against the overall cost of the study abroad experience for prospective students. Our mission is to keep the cost of study abroad affordable.
• The AEC focus has not shifted. We remain focused only on semester/year abroad and full degree student processing and unlike some other organizations, we do not represent many countries and/or manage travel and housing businesses.
• The AEC believes that the presence of an additional resource such as the AEC is important for the market place as it brings about healthy competition so the price of study abroad can remain competitive. This also ensures that there are no monopolies created in the market place by allowing only a select few that can keep raising prices on semester and year abroad programs.
• Until 2 years ago, the AEC was extremely active at many study abroad fairs across the US and at several Canadian fairs. However, after some 9 years of this strategy, the AEC learnt that participation at fairs even where the AEC is invited to the fair and hands out many, many materials is not necessarily the sure way of recruiting semester/year abroad students. Some schools genuinely want programs and overseas universities to come to their fairs in order to increase awareness of their international programs but then many of these universities have the largest displays of their own university managed programs (including faculty led programs and exchanges) and/or their preferred program partners at front of these study abroad fairs and students are directed to those particular programs. Therefore, the AEC is now very selective about the fairs we will participate in.

Integrity is extremely important to the AEC. It is in the spirit of this statement that the AEC makes its views known to prospective university partners. Only in this way can universities truly engage with the AEC.