While the global pandemic and its effect on international education is far from over, one company has revealed plans to open 15 new offices and overhaul it’s approach to student recruitment beyond the crisis.
AECC Global, a provider of independent and certified student counselling services and university application support, already has 35 offices in 12 countries and has announced new offices in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
“We are committed to offering our student recruitment services to assist students in more markets as the world emerges from the pandemic,” said chief operating officer Daryl Fong.
“Covid-19 delayed some of these plans, but we are committed to growing our office network for our university partners around the world and focusing on key growth markets for international students travelling to Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia.”
The company also has its sights set on opening new operations in China, Africa and South America in the coming years, as it is already supporting students from these regions virtually via its virtual education consulting platforms.
As well as the expanded physical presence the company is further investing in the development of its digital offering.
Before the pandemic took hold, AECC Global opened its Digital Innovation Hub in Chennai, India with over 70 new team members developing technology to improve the student experience and create new opportunities for its university partners to reach more students.
Chief commercial officer Jake Foster said the team is developing a new content-rich, career-focused course search platform and student friendly mobile app that it expects to launch in the coming months for students and universities around the world. This will complement the new student portal platform it plans to launch in the second half of 2021.
“We’ve completed four-five years of platform development in the last 12 months”
“As a result of the pandemic we’ve fast tracked all of the development of new technology and platforms at AECC Global, and we’ve completed four-five years of platform development in the last 12 months. Our goal is for students to be able to apply for courses, upload documents, apply for visas, purchase insurance and select accommodation all from the palm of their hand via our platform.”
With 45,000 students already supported to study overseas since the company began, Fong believes its experience along with this most recent investment in people, presence and technology will ensure AECC is well positioned to be at the forefront of not only the recovery but the ongoing growth of the international education sector.
“As a result of border closures, there is a huge build up of student demand, our team members and technology platforms are ready to support and assist students in more markets as the world emerges from the pandemic.”
