The Agent Quality Framework (AQF) is set to revolutionise how UK education agents operate. With the increasing demand for international students at UK universities, ethical and transparent practices are more crucial than ever. All UK universities have signed up to the AQF pledge and this has become a requirement set by the UKVI.
What is the AQF?
The AQF or Agent Quality Framework is jointly led by the British Council, BUILA, UKCISA and UUKI and is a new UK Agent Quality Framework (AQF) which has been put in place following extensive research with students, education providers, education advisers and agents. The framework is designed to enhance the partnership between the UK education sector and agents and counsellors and to recognise and share best practice.
This framework follows on from the ‘London Statement’ which was signed in 2012 by universities from the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the US and Ireland, outlining a ‘Statement of Principles for the Ethical Recruitment of International Students by Education Agents and Consultants’.
One of the key goals of the AFQ, aside from ensuring quality standards of practice in recruiting international fee-paying students, is to avoid over involvement of government in the regulation of international student recruitment. Universities are keen to ‘self-regulate’ the industry, giving them more control of how they recruit students and through which channels.
Why it matters for student recruitment agents
Whilst there are 7 parts to the framework, the part that matters most to agents is the National Code of Ethical Practice for Education Agents. Here, the universities have set out detailed guidelines of how they intend to work with agents. This is their pledge to the UK government, to ensure the way they sign up, manage and work with agents is of the highest standard.
The framework sets out a very clear set of conditions that agents must meet to be compliant. Agents who fail to meet these standards, risk losing contracts and have the possibility of being ‘black-listed’ by the sector. This framework is being applied to universities, so it is they who need to ensure that their agents are complying to the framework and hence it is they who will start to look at termination policies and suspension policies, to demonstrate to the UK government that they are implementing the framework and acting against agents who do not comply.
As agents are being scrutinised more and more, by universities, the government and the wider media, the way they deal with students, manage their offices and promote UK universities is coming under the spotlight. The UKVI has already announced plans to state the name of the recruiting agent on the CAS issued to students, allowing them to track, not only visa rejections, but attendance levels and completion rates, all affecting the credibility and reputation of the agent, involved in recruiting the student.
How compliance can enhance credibility and student trust
Agents who understand and embrace the AQF are going to stand out. In fact, larger, global agents are not only embracing the AQF but have been instrumental in shaping it. It is the thousands of average sized agents across all markets that need to understand the AQF and start to implement changes to their organisation, well before universities are required to report to the government on their agent network.
The AQF’s key focus is the student. The framework wants to see a clear demonstration that agents are honest, transparent and fair with students. Everything the AQF demands from agents, reverberates around this concept. So, agents need to consider how they approach, interact and record their dealings with students. One of the easiest ways in which universities can start to understand the quality of their agents is to survey all students recruited through this channel.
If agents adhere to the AQF, the chances of students being complimentary about them is high. Agents who are simply considering their commission rates and ‘driving’ students towards certain courses or universities with vague information and inflated promises of part-time work opportunities and cheap cost of living, are likely to face challenges when students discover the reality of the university and location they have been placed at. When these students are then being asked questions by the university about their experience with the agent, students are likely to be very negative. All of this impacts the agent’s credibility with the university and considering social media, trust with future students.
Our advice, agents should appoint a member of staff to become the AQF champion and understand the relevant sections of the AQF in detail and start to consider what changes are needed in the organisation to demonstrate compliance. Everything from how a student is initially approach, right the way through the student journey, each step needs to be mapped against the relevant sections of the AQF and a clear plan needs to be put in place to ensure compliance
