The government of New Zealand has approved a NZD 400k investment in internationalization and student mobility, while the nation continues to strengthen ties with India.
New Zealand was the last country to open its doors for international students to study. However, the country is currently working to strengthen its ties with India to attract more Indian students. An India-New Zealand educational week has recently ended, focusing on increasing the number of Indian students and researchers in New Zealand’s higher educational institutions.
Experts from India and New Zealand were engaged in intellectual conversation throughout the meeting. Actress Soha Ali Khan, the brand ambassador of Education New Zealand, led the debate with Grant McPherson, CEO of Education New Zealand. He further highlighted the plans related to strengthening bonds with India.
New Zealand has plans to keep investing more and work closely with Indian institutions to promote their collaborations. According to Grant, the nation has different approaches and terms for post-study working rights and immigration policy.
New Zealand boasts about having the most powerful master’s programme in the entire world. It doesn’t matter whether a student chooses a one-year master’s programme or a two-year master’s programme; they will enjoy three years of employment privileges. Further, an international student who is enrolled in a PhD programme will only be required to pay domestic fees for the duration of their study in the country. This means the students are not required to pay any additional costs associated with being an international student.
Grant states that New Zealand’s borders have been open for six months, and the response from Indian students has been tremendous. There are 85% of student visa petitions that have been granted, but all these efforts are ultimately made to make up for lost ground.