Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education Agents & Their Business

The on-going pandemic has confined us in our homes. We all are aware of how dreadfully it has torn economies. Most startups have already sunk into the ecosystem. Forget about growth; merely meeting the days’ end has become the new normal & new struggle for many business houses. With the 2nd wave picking up the pace across the globe, there seems no light at the end of the tunnel.

But standing on top of the food chain, the human race has learned long ago how to survive and excel. That’s what a few handfuls of businesses did by digitally transforming their operations and providing services online. Retail & eCommerce, Logistics, Insurance, Sports & Entertainment, Travel & Tourism, and Higher Education Institutes faced the highest blow of COVID-19.

Some of you might disagree and say, didn’t people became more concerned about their health amid coronavirus, and thus insurance industry shouldn’t be on the list. The demand for life & health insurance saw a surge of 35-40%; however, the travel and overseas student health insurance segment observed a downfall.

“Every Calamity Is An Opportunity.”

The COVID-19 pandemic did alter the future of many things. Let’s take the education sector, for instance. Teaching & learning has unearthed a new profound way that proves knowledge can’t be contained. Even if it has to take up an online form. It did present a few challenges initially, such as disrupting the admissions cycle and enrollments, etc. Ultimately reducing or limiting the number of aspiring students willing to study abroad.

Before we understand the impact and how to overcome the challenges for education agents or consultants, we will first need to analyze the impact of crisis across the student admissions journey. (This would instead help education agents in ‘Lead generation,’ ‘Pitching’ or ‘Securing the Inquiry’ – which we will see ahead)

Impact of the Crisis Across the Student Admissions Journey

Due to the interconnection between Students – Universities & Institutes – Education Agents, the latter could not immune themselves in the current situation. Be that as it may, migration agents need to find a solution to overcome the challenges, survive, and stay ahead in the competition.

What Education Agents Needs To Do Amid Pandemic?

A usual business process-flow of an education agent would more or less consist of the following steps:

• Lead Generation
• Pitching
• Lead Conversion
• Start Admission Process
• Turn-around-time From University
• Fulfilling Conditions
• Payment & OSHC
• Completion of Enrolment
• Visa Filing
• Pre-departure

A slight change in approach in each step would help you to elevate student experience & engagements.

Lead Generation:

Gone are the days to rely on traditional media sources and methods. Today’s digital era demands you to showcase your services to attract the target audience. A digital-first move such as ads on a website or mobile app, running campaigns on social network platforms, conducting webinars are need of the hour.

Pitching:

First, you’ll need to breakdown the wrong notion among students by clearing that, “There is a Travel Ban, Not a Ban Student-Visa.” A few countries have opened the border for international students, whereas others, such as Australia is yet to act. You’ll also need to highlight the importance of online education, new & relevant programs, etc

Lead Conversion:

To secure the lead, you’ll need to understand students’ concerns, challenges, & expectations from the online study mode. Help them understand guidelines, policies, and audit the course to turn their confusion into readiness for academics’ digital delivery.

Start Admission Process:

Check back with the university and help streamline the admission process, possibly by navigating the onboarding steps. Proactiveness in preparing SOPs, LoR, etc., could go a long way in easing the admission process to lessen the COVID-19 impact.

Turn-around-time From University:

Keep the communication at an optimum level with the university to enhance the process. If necessary, opt for an online session with the admission coordinator to ensure timely functioning and avoid any delays.

Fulfilling Conditions:

Universities adhere to different requirements considering geographic location, local administrative system, and student’s backgrounds. Education agents must ensure that they are meeting the timeline and submitting the requirements as per university standards.

Payment & Insurance:

Once all the paperwork seems in-place, consultants must oblige to admission fees, overseas student health cover (OSHC), and any other mandatory requirements to secure the visa grant. For students willing to study in Australia, student health insurance is necessary to file for Visa.

Doing OSHC comparison & buying is a tedious process and takes up a lot of agents as there are numerous OSHC providers. Instead, try adopting an overseas health insurance management tool to save time in securing OSHC for Australia and help your business performance, reports, and, more importantly, earn commission on each policy.

Completion of Enrolment:

Upon completing the application and payment process, you should promote students to perform various online activities pertaining to their university. This will drive prospects to engage & start building relation with university. For example, network with faculty & alumni, AR/VR based campus tour, follow social media pages, check videos, blogs, podcasts, etc.

Visa Filing & Pre-departure:

Pay meticulous attention to details while filing for visa as this is the last and most crucial step. Cross-verify and leave no room for error while filing the student visa. Additionally, until there is a travel-ban in-place, your students will have ample time to research on pre-departure preparations.

Conclusion:

KONPARE  The OSHC tool mentioned above will not only help you with lead generation & instant health insurance certificate but also helps you with brand visibility & increase cash flow by earning commission.