NorthTec looking forward to welcoming international students back

NorthTec is looking forward to international students coming back once border restrictions are lifted in July - something that could bring in up to $15 million to the Northland economy

Allowing international students back into Northland could add up to $15 million to the region's economy, Northtec says, as it looks forward to welcoming foreign students back after more than two years.

Many Northland sectors, including tourism, horticulture and health, are celebrating after last week's announcement that the border would reopen in July, two months early.

And Northtec is happy as it means the border would reopen to international students.

Toa Faneva, Te Ahurei chief executive of NorthTec, said pre-Covid the international education sector was worth around $5 billion a year. International ākonga in Northland contributed around $15 million to the regional economy each year.

''We are very pleased to be able to welcome international ākonga (students) back to NorthTec Tai Tokerau Wānanga after July 31. International ākonga have been part of our NorthTec whānau for many years, bringing diversity and vibrancy to our campuses and contributing to our local economy,'' Faneva said.

''Having international ākonga in our classes brings a global perspective to academic study, which broadens and enhances the experience for domestic learners. In turn, our international learners experience New Zealand life and are immersed in our local cultures, as well as gaining a quality education.

''We have had a number of international ākonga at NorthTec during the last two years, who were in NZ and therefore not affected by the Covid-19 border closures. We currently have 73 international ākonga based in Whangārei and Auckland, including those completing the Registered Nurse Competence programme.''

He said it's too early to say how many international ākonga will come to study at NorthTec later this year, as this announcement was only made last week. There were 865 international students at NorthTec in 2019, the last year before Covid hit.

''However, we hope we may be able to host a number of ākonga from overseas once the borders are open to them.''

Faneva said prior to the border closures and the impact of Covid-19, international ākonga were generally able to find accommodation in Whangārei and Auckland with few problems.

''Support and assistance with this is provided by the international staff team. At this stage we do not anticipate major problems for ākonga looking for accommodation locally,'' he said.

The creation of Te Pūkenga – of which NorthTec is a subsidiary – provides the opportunity to further embrace the wider benefits of internationalisation in education, and develop a strategy that is significantly different to the revenue-driven model that has often predominated.

''Our focus will be about much more than bringing international ākonga to Aotearoa New Zealand to study. We have the opportunity to create a high-value future for global ākonga by providing excellent education outcomes and improving our international connectedness – sharing our unique bicultural nation with others, and giving us the opportunity to experience theirs.''

Numbers of international students at NorthTec pre-Covid (2015 to 2019):

2019 - 865

2018 - 897

2017 - 1,051

2016 - 923

2015 - 799