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Offshore , onshore or not sure ?
Securing a steady intake of qualified , cashed-up students will be among the biggest challenges .
The challenges of setting up an offshore campus .
By Greg Whateley and Jim Mienczakowski
As the onshore international student market continues to be suppressed by the ever-evolving manifestations of COVID-19 , the heady lure of establishing offshore operations in potential growth markets in Asia is inevitably the fare of boardroom discussions in many universities and institutes of higher education . And why not ?
SETTING UP OFFSHORE Establishing a successful offshore revenue pipeline and an international identity for your home institution ’ s brand is to be commended . Such developments have proven to be excellent career accelerants for their proponents and architects . For vicechancellors and presidents , it represents a needed diversification of revenue sources and demonstrates positive action during times of economic stress .
Scoring a ‘ first-in ’ entry as a leading educational entity to an exciting new overseas market is a good and marketable bit of positioning . For chancellors and owners , perhaps it signals progress and action at an international corporate level . With the right partners backing the venture , a campus can be established with virtually no cash investment by the parent university / provider . What ’ s not to like ?
If you can mimic an Australian Foreign Branch Campus ( FBC ) to establish a viable operation in a country with a lower salary environment and cheaper running costs than found in Australia , you can create further savings by serving back online teaching , assessment , IT support , finance operations and HR services to your parent institution . If establishing research infrastructure is also cheaper in your new host country , all sorts of research expansion and commercial activities become viable .
The older ‘ franchise model ’ of simply delivering courses to offshore sites is not capable of providing such outcomes or of being recognised as a fully mandated branch of the parent university . In this respect , a branch campus has much greater potential .
MATTERS TO CONSIDER BEFORE DIVING IN First , if your intention to go offshore is simply to support your domestic operations , you might need to rethink your strategy . You are unlikely to reap significant benefits in your first five years of operation , and you will still need to deal with unprofitability in your domestic operations .
Next , political climates can change swiftly , for example , in Myanmar , Hong Kong and China . Due diligence will not resolve traumatic economic , cultural and political turmoil around the globe . Location is , as always ( almost ) everything ; what isn ’ t location-related is timing and a good dose of luck .
Finally , securing a steady intake of qualified , cashed-up students will be among the biggest challenges for a new FBC , but the demand for Australian qualifications , and access to migration to Australia , remains strong – it ’ s all very achievable .
Our final points are based on more than 30 years of experience in working offshore .
EDUCATIONAL NEO-COLONIALISM It has been our experience that host nations in emerging economies want their top universities to be of their own nationality and making . FBCs taking the lion ’ s share of the available student market while purporting to be of ‘ superior quality ’ to local institutions is increasingly viewed as neo- ( educational ) colonialism . The international policy environment in which you operate is forever changing – it may even turn hostile . Know-how and relevant , deep experience should be vital components of your decision-making capacities .
STRATEGY SHORT , LEGACY LONG The elephant in the room , of course , is technology . Only when ( not if ) education authorities can be assured that online providers have overcome the fraud that has plagued the perception of online degrees ( unfairly in our opinion ), can the costs and relevance of FBCs swiftly erode . Electronic proctoring and biometric technologies may soon be able to give the necessary assurances . Until then , other blended approaches – currently being explored – may fill the gaps .
STILL MAKING GOOD SENSE Ultimately , it ’ s our opinion that the future of higher education will increasingly be more cost-effective with hybrid online teaching than with overseas and on-campus learning . However , FBCs still make good sense , especially if they can also reduce service delivery costs back on your parent campus . Living with an FBC is a long-term proposition for a university – establishing one is sometimes the easiest part of all . ■
Emeritus Professor Jim Mienczakowski is currently a Higher Education Consultant . Emeritus Professor Greg Whateley is currently Deputy Vice Chancellor at Group Colleges Australia .
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