International Strategy: 2008-2011
VISION
Edge Hill, a learning-led university with a deep commitment to both professional excellence
and cultural inclusion, will add a substantial international dimension to its work during the
planning period.

The student community will become significantly more ‘international’ in its composition
and outlook.

Research centres, and staff working collaboratively or as individuals, having established
national reputations in focussed areas, will disseminate and promote their work
internationally.

Two-way partnerships will be established with organisations in a growing number of
countries in order to create opportunities for the development of research activities and
for staff and student exchange.
Central to the University's learning culture will be the capacity to innovate, initiate and
respond to change. This developmental dynamic will exist within a framework that aspires
to embrace internationalisation and integrate a global dimension into the curriculum and into
the university community.
Different areas (subjects/departments/faculties) will contribute to the achievement of this
vision in different ways. The major initiatives pursued by faculties will be coordinated
through the International Group.
KEY AIMS
1.
To enhance the quality of the Edge Hill student experience;
2.
To increase the number of international students recruited to EHU
programmes;
3.
To build research partnerships and strengthen the University’s international
networks;
4.
To develop collaborative provision with organisations within and beyond the
European Union;
5.
To raise awareness of the EHU brand in international arenas.
FORMAT OF THE STRATEGY
Each of the above aims is given a more detailed expression through

a number of related objectives that set out how we propose to achieve the aim (each
group of aims/objectives will be known as a ‘goal’);

a commentary on success indicators;

a brief discussion of contextual issues;

the identification of connections with the University’s Strategic Plan.
A separate document outlines an implementation plan.
Aim 1
To enhance the quality of the Edge Hill student experience
Objectives – what we need to focus on:
1.
Enhance student support systems for international students (working in liaison with the
Students’ Union).
2.
Develop English language support for international students.
3.
Establish a cultural awareness training programme for all University staff .
4.
Promote outward student mobility through exchange programmes such as Erasmus.
5.
Review and improve pre-departure and orientation processes for international
students.
6.
Promote the internationalisation of the curriculum for the benefit of all Edge Hill
students.
7.
Ensure that international student satisfaction is monitored regularly.
How will we recognise success?

High retention of international students

A thriving alumni community

Significant growth in total applicant numbers

Increased number of countries supplying applicants and entrants

Increasing numbers of our UK students who gain international experience through
Edge Hill’s international networks

Improved student satisfaction
Contextual Issues
A.
International students (non-EU) account for about one in eight of all HE students in the
UK with a very significantly higher concentration in graduate programmes (both
research and taught). Edge Hill’s non-EU student body comprise less than 1% of all
students and this figure would be much lower if students from the USA who access the
Study Abroad programme are excluded. It is reasonable to conclude that there is
potential at the University for significant growth in the proportion of students who are
recruited outside the UK and outside the EU.
B.
Whatever short-term impact global economic recession may have, the prospects for
UK HE in international markets remain strong so long as British universities continue to
enjoy a high reputation for quality. Economic growth, especially in China and India,
produces demand for university education that the expanding national systems are not
able to satisfy at present and are unlikely to be able to meet for many years to come.
C.
Demand for (and supply of) international education opportunities have increased
significantly in the last decade and at the same time, students have become more
discerning in their choice of education provider. They are more knowledgeable about
their choices, and are adopting more of a consumer approach to their education
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purchases. It is essential that Edge Hill University stresses the high levels of student
satisfaction that we achieve (eg NSS).
D.
Edge Hill departments and staff, including the Students’ Union, have limited
experience of working with international students and effort needs to be focused on
working with departments across the university to highlight international student needs.
One major developmental need at Edge Hill University is to support and extend the
ambitions of all our students. Establishing a more cosmopolitan campus where
students of different nationalities and cultures interact will assist this.
E.
The International Strategy is designed to achieve cultural change. We believe that all
our students should leave the University with a better understanding of the global
challenges our society faces. Outward student mobility is, therefore, a component of
internationalisation at Edge Hill University. Through experience of higher education
and/or work-based learning in other countries, our students are better prepared for
global citizenship.
F.
Whilst our International Strategy will focus, in the immediate future, on students and
their educational experience, we see it as important to achieve synergy. All aspects of
the strategy are mutually reinforcing.
Connection with the University’s Strategic Plan
i.
The university is committed “to further develop a support infrastructure for international
students as their numbers increase”, as identified in Aim D.9. This connection to the
strategic plan is unequivocal.
ii.
Aim D3 identifies a need to enhance academic practice in support of student learning.
iii.
The students’ union capacity to provide services to a diverse student body must
include international students (D.7).
iv.
The creation of optimal conditions for learners to engage with and participate fully in all
aspects of university life refers both to UK and to international students (D.8).
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Aim 2
To increase the number of international students recruited to EHU
programmes
Objectives – what we need to focus on:
8.
Identify priority countries though a review of major markets that supply students to UK
HE.
9.
Ensure that the University’s Faculties have developed and identified the programmes
that have greatest market potential.
10.
Develop systematic in-country networks of agents, consultants, representatives and
ultimately alumni.
11.
Utilise short-stay and exchange programmes that have potential for developing market
presence in some countries.
12.
Leverage the gains made through the development of international partnerships and
reputational intervention.
13.
Review the effectiveness of our ‘business process’ (the recruitment pipeline).
14.
Consolidate close working relationships between the International Office, faculties and
their constituent departments and the support departments in the University.
15.
Undertake annual reviews, with updates as appropriate of university policies on course
fees, incentives, scholarship and fee payments.
How will we recognise success?

Significant growth in total applicant numbers

Increased number of countries supplying applicants and entrants

Steady growth in international UG entrants (including from EU countries) – aim initially
for 3% of the intake of new students (including advanced standing admission) to FAS
(other targets to be identified for the other faculties).

Significant growth in PG enrolments

Recruitment from China and India (the largest suppliers of students to world markets)
Contextual Issues
G.
International student mobility has increased significantly in the last decade. It is
generally accepted that, medium term, there will be no overall slackening in the growth
curves that are underpinned by the economic significance of highly skilled graduates
and their importance to the competitiveness of nation states and multi-national
corporations.
H.
International competition with UK HE will increase as former buyers of UK HE
becoming sellers of their own HE products to both their own and overseas students.
An increasing number of non-English speaking countries are offering programmes in
English while transnational education opportunities mean that UK education is
available internationally on a ‘borderless’ basis.
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I.
Carefully chosen marketing initiatives have the potential to expand significantly our
international student recruitment from its current low base. To achieve growth the
University will need to meet, very successfully, the needs of international students by
offering programmes that are in high demand and/or distinctive and by offering safe
and secure residence on campus for at least the first year of study.
J.
Many British universities are hampered in their international marketing activities by
ponderous procedures that alienate applicants. The typical applicant expects quick
responses and web-enabled communications. It is vital that decisions are taken
quickly and that applicants have confidence in our ‘offer’ (in the broadest of senses).
As a new entrant to some major markets, eg China, we will have to work hard to
establish credibility and we face some major obstacles (league table position, location,
few in-country alumni etc). This makes it essential that our procedures are fully
professional.
K.
Provision of English language, particularly pre-sessional opportunities, will facilitate
recruitment from a wider range of countries, while improving the student experience for
non-native English speakers.
Connection with the University’s Strategic Plan
v.
The University has made a commitment to institutional growth, sustainability and
equality of opportunity (Aim A). We seek to “ensure continued generation of surpluses
… through … increasing income generation”. (A:1)
vi.
We aim to develop collaborations with international partners (Aim F) and to “raise the
international profile of the University … in student recruitment”. (F:3)
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Aim 3
To build research partnerships and strengthen the University’s
international networks
Please note that the concept of “research” includes knowledge transfer and incorporates all the
activities identified in the University’s definition of ‘Advanced Scholarship’.
Objectives – what we need to focus on:
16.
Identify areas of research strength within Edge Hill that have the potential to deliver
successful long-term international research collaborations.
17.
Audit the University’s current international research collaborations including
membership of international networks and publish procedural guidance on the
development of international research collaborations.
18.
Provide staff development opportunities to support the establishment and maintenance
of international research collaborations, including scoping of new initiatives
19.
Develop a funding stream dedicated to the development of research collaborations
(the proposed International Research Development Fund).
20.
Develop a briefing pack for Edge Hill staff to support visits to overseas universities and
contact with international delegates at conferences.
21.
Capture and consolidate intelligence about collaborative opportunities (eg register of
Edge Hill staff contacts) by working with colleagues on their return from academic
visits eg overseas universities, international conferences (including UK venues).
How will we recognise success?

Year on year growth in the number of successful research collaborations (including
publications and conference papers involving authors from Edge Hill and at least one
overseas university)

Increase the proportion of staff engaged in at least one international collaboration

Increase the number of staff undertaking staff development associated with the
maintenance and development of international research collaborations

Year on year growth in the number of potential international research collaborations
reported to the Department of Research & Knowledge Transfer

Year on year growth in the number of bids made for grants to fund research involving
staff from both Edge Hill and overseas universities
Contextual Issues
L.
There is an increasing expectation that universities across the globe will engage in
research with overseas universities. This provides opportunities for Edge Hill (as more
overseas universities and academics seek to partner) but also threats in that there will
be competition from the University’s UK competitors for high quality overseas
partnerships.
M.
English is the lingua franca of the international academic world, meaning that UK
academics have an advantage over those from countries whose primary language is
not English.
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N.
Overseas universities seeking partnerships will expect to engage in high quality
research collaborations both in terms of academic input and also administration.
O.
The availability in the next 12-18 months of accommodation in which visitors from
overseas can be hosted at Edge Hill will help make the development of reciprocal
relations easier.
P.
While some research collaborations are strategically driven (ie from the top of
organisations), many (and probably the large majority) are initiated, driven and
maintained on a bottom-up basis (ie on the relationship between one or a small
number of individual academics who wish to work together on a specific project). In
terms of research collaborations, small can be beautiful: big achievements may start
with small beginnings.
Q.
For any collaboration to be sustainable, each individual member of the partnership and
their respective organisation must gain something from it that meets both their initial
and also their developing motivations, and the costs of collaborating must not exceed
the costs of taking part and belonging for more than a short period of time. In the
absence of these conditions, any partnership will collapse or fade away.
Connection with the University’s Strategic Plan
vii.
We are committed to ensuring ‘effective...international collaboration in the
development of high quality interdisciplinary postgraduate programmes, research
projects and centres’ (Aim C:6).
viii.
The University aims to ‘ensure the development of selected centres of excellence in
postgraduate provision and research which...are recognised internationally’ (Aim
C:2).
ix.
We intend to raise ‘the international profile of the University...in (relation to) research
and knowledge transfer’ (Aim F:3).
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Aim 4
To develop collaborative provision with organisations within and
beyond the European Union
Objectives – what we need to focus on:
22.
Identify (especially within priority countries) sectors and potential academic partners.
23.
Develop expertise within Faculties and service areas to enable the swift appraisal of
opportunities and the secure management of overseas provision.
24.
Establish collaborative relationships from which international students might either
progress to EHU on-site provision (typically external validation/ accreditation/
articulation) or where they study EHU programmes overseas (franchise partnerships).
25.
Develop collaborative relationships with overseas employers and educational/ training
institutions for the delivery of EHU CPD programmes.
26.
Create opportunities for EHU students to undertake part of their studies in an overseas
partnership institution.
27.
Working with established processes, ensure that risk analysis procedures for new
partners are fully addressed and cover academic, commercial, legal and reputational
risks.
28.
Produce exemplar pricing models to assist Faculties in developing appropriate
negotiating stances with potential partners.
How will we recognise success?

International partnerships approved in all three Faculties

International partnerships considered to be a normal part of Faculty business

Close working relationships between Faculties, International Team, Collaborative
Provision Manager, AQU and Registry

The growth of a pool of internationally experienced liaison tutors, verifiers and
validation panel members

The ability to securely approve new international provision, within one academic term
of initial expression of interest

The extension and adaptation of current EHU-based English language testing and
student support to accommodate the needs of overseas collaboration
Contextual Issues
R.
Within the collaborative market, Edge Hill is both a late entrant, has relatively few staff
with the experience and expertise to develop and manage overseas partnerships, and
thus tends to be (rightly) conservative and careful in its negotiations with potential
partners.
S.
We are potentially vulnerable to low quality partnerships (many of the strong
organisations are already in relationships with other HEIs). We need to develop the
expertise to recognise potential risks and to develop robust processes to counter
them. We must ensure that development and validation teams include inexperienced
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staff working in partnership with our experienced core, thus rapidly growing a broader
base of experience.
Connection with the University’s Strategic Plan
x.
We aim to have a responsive yet robust process to consider such proposals;
“…embed a risk management approach to strategic development”… (A:5) and
“…continued refinement of benchmarked quality assurance …arrangements”…(B:1).
xi.
“to ensure effective regional, national and international collaboration in the
development of high quality interdisciplinary postgraduate programmes, research
projects and centres.” (C:6).
xii.
“..realise the opportunities afforded by partnership working to enhance accessible
provision , progression….” (E:3).
xiii.
We will enhance collaboration with international partners (Aim F).
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Aim 5
To raise awareness of the EHU brand in international arenas
Objectives – what we need to focus on:
29.
Identify key audiences in priority countries and segment these into meaningful
categories, eg potential students, influencers, intermediaries, partners, alumni.
30.
Devise brand and reputational statements based on the core EHU brand,
foregrounding relevant elements and defining the evidence and collateral required to
build the brand/reputation.
31.
Consolidate a close working relationship between the Corporate Marketing team,
colleagues, departments and faculties with marketing responsibilities.
32.
Combine audiences with messages in a matrix identifying any distinct emphases
needed in specific areas.
33.
Review the channels available to communicate with identified audiences and the ways
we use them, considering both ‘generic’ channels (that communicate with UK and
worldwide audiences) and overseas-specific channels.
34.
Develop, implement and review a robust and well-planned communications plan,
making effective use of relevant media and securing high involvement from EHU staff,
partners and representatives.
35.
Develop the necessary awareness and expertise within professional communications
staff.
How will we recognise success?

Increased awareness and understanding of EHU, evidenced by feedback from
recruitment and academic partners

Clearly understood, readily available brand messages and materials in use by EHU
staff and partners

Entry-level third-party media coverage within priority markets

A clear communications plan that can be adapted to support the ongoing
internationalisation of EHU and achievement of the other Aims
Contextual Issues
T.
Our starting point can be assumed to be one of low awareness.
U.
Given high levels of recruitment competition and maturity of international academic
partnership across the sector, our brand needs to be established in a crowded/noisy
landscape. Innovative and effective work will be required to achieve recognition.
V.
Our brand assets do not include high league table positions or a well-recognised study
destination. The actual strengths of the University and the region (including a more
visible link with Liverpool) need to be communicated as a compelling offer (ie a
promissory brand) to markets and as evidence of a strengthening reputation to
stakeholders.
W.
Success in the other four Aims is a prerequisite for the enhancement of reputation and
improvement of brand awareness. This Goal therefore involves amplifying and
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communicating - effectively, consistently and comprehensively – the ongoing
successes of students, partners and employers as well as EHU itself.
Connection with the University’s Strategic Plan
xiv.
Becoming a ‘university of choice’ is a Theme in the Strategic Plan, as “reputation, built
on the solid foundation of excellence in all aspects of its business, is the key to
becoming an institution which is attractive to students, staff and partners, thereby
increasing the University's ability to influence the environment in which it operates”
(Cross-Cutting Theme 1).
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