Winners 2018
International Students House (ISH), UK
ISH accommodates over 500 residents in London and believes it fills gaps in the support services provided by London universities: a key element of its membership includes a program of social activities to facilitate integration between different nationalities. Innovations for 2017 included a new games room and free breakfast for all.
Eaquals, Europe
Eaquals' mission is to foster excellence in language education around the world. Covering Europe, Eaquals finds itself navigating a diverse range of languages and language providers, championing comparative best practice via webinars and the launch of the Eaquals CPD scheme.
Common Purpose, UK - Global Leader Experience: Abroad
Common Purpose has been running experiential leadership programs for university students from underrepresented backgrounds for the past 15 years. Over the past 12 months, 1,670 students have taken part in its mobility programs and travelled from Exeter to Nairobi, Philadelphia, Sharjah; City (London) and SOAS to Bangalore; UEL to Mumbai; Dundee to Dubai; KCL to Nairobi and many more.
LEARNING: The Open University, UK - The Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa (TESSA) Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on FutureLearn
The TESSA MOOC uses technology to help deliver a blended learning model incorporating FutureLearn's MOOC platform and face-to-face delivery. The course provides professional development to improve teacher training and children's learning experience.
TECHNOLOGY: StudyPortals, Netherlands – StudyPortals BestFit
Providing students with the ability for them to measure the likelihood they will fit into a particular university or program, BestFit takes the guess work out of choosing which education institutions to research. With more than 3,000 users per day, the tool is having a significant impact on the international education industry.
Mapmystudy, India
Mapmystudy has been a pioneer in the space of blended counselling, offering both online and offline services to students. Creating a unique outreach model, Study Connect, the agency now provides the freedom for both student and partner universities to connect, exchange information, and extend support for recruitment. By including a "write a review" section, the platform also allows students to provide their insights on an institution.
Liu Daming, China - NCUK International Foundation Year, University of Manchester, UK
Liu Daming completed the NCUK International Foundation Year at Can-Achieve Lanzhou in 2015, before studying Psychology at the University of Manchester. Daming is the first Chinese student to study overseas in a wheelchair at undergrad level - he has suffered from brittle bone disease since childhood. In 2013, he became the youngest author in China to have a book published by one of the country's largest publishing companies and has won 11 national level literature awards.
Tripti Maheshwari, India - Lancaster University, Cass Business School, UK
Tripti Maheshwari founded Student Circus after graduation from Lancaster University in 2014 and gaining an MSc Finance from Cass Business School in 2015. She set up the search platform for international students in the UK to find Tier-2 employers willing to hire graduates. It has now grown into a £2m business which helps thousands of students.
Malaca Instituto, Spain
Malaca Instituto is a campus-based Spanish language school in Malaga. Drawing on 47 years' experience, the school's materials development department has created a range of over 20 textbooks, including an 'Early Start' series targeted at UK teachers of primary school Spanish.
Education New Zealand, New Zealand - 1 Million Cents Scholarship
Created to celebrate reaching a global social community of 1 million followers, Education New Zealand's 1 Million Cents Scholarship was an entirely social media-based scholarship, exceeding expectations in terms of reach and offering a NZ¢10,000 scholarship.
Dr. Mary M. Dwyer, President and CEO, IES Abroad, USA
By the numbers, Dr. Mary M. Dwyer's impact on study abroad is remarkable. As president of IES Abroad, she has pushed significant growth for her company, building from 1,300 students per year two decades ago to now more than 8,000 today. Over the course of her presidency, she has contributed 95,000 students of the total 135,000 in IES Abroad's 67-year history.
Numbers alone, however, do not begin to illustrate her impact on study abroad. The creation of the IES Abroad Advancement department, which provides needs and merit-based scholarships for students, and the Initiative to Diversify Education Abroad, which seeks to increase participation of underrepresented communities, are some of the ways Mary is trying to make overseas education more inclusive.
Daughters For Life Foundation, Canada
The Daughters for Life Foundation was founded by Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish in memory of his daughters and niece, who were killed in an Israeli tank strike. DFL supports women from the Middle East to study abroad, in the hope of creating peace and ending the bloodshed in the region.
University of South Carolina/Shorelight, USA - International Career Accelerator
With the goal of upskilling students and preparing them for the workforce, the International Career Accelerator runs alongside regular academic requirements of students at USC. The accelerator has an envious track record, with 86 per cent of those who complete all four levels obtaining employment, and many using the skills learnt to obtain internships and other positions while still studying.
UNSW/Ministry of Science and Technology, Australia/China - Torch Innovation Precinct at UNSW
The UNSW Torch Innovation Precinct is a partnership between UNSW and the Ministry of Science and Technology in China that aims to bring together industry, small- to medium-sized enterprises, entrepreneurs, investors and policy makers to the university's campus. In 2017, research contracts were established with 37 industry partners and the project has enabled UNSW to scale up university-industry research partnerships and establish five joint laboratories with partners in China.
Swinburne University of Technology, Australia - IT for Social Impact India Project
The project enables a small cohort of technology and business undergraduate students to travel to a remote tribal region of India and work on tasks for its hots NGO, Satpuda Vikas Mandal. Projects have included gender equity workshops and a pest/disease identification app.
Monash University, Australia - English Connect
The English Connect program engages international students in peer-to-peer curricular English language programs. It helps international students improve their English, both for their studies and their life outside the classroom, and build a network within the university.