NEW FACES

Dan Rafferty 

Finance Director for INTO USA
INTO USA 

Dan joins our team as the new Finance Director for INTO USA. He will be providing support to the JV's and INTO USA's financial operations. Dan brings over 20 years of experience in financial management, and has extensive experience working in the private sector and also at a university. For the past 8 years he served as the financial controller of a private company in San Diego where he oversaw the company's financial operations. Prior to this, he worked 10 years in the accounting department for the University of California, Riverside.  Dan has a BS and an MBA from the University of California, Riverside.

 
 

Dr Sarah J. McKenzie 

Academic Director
INTO UEA London 

Sarah has joined us from CAPA International Education, where she was Chief Academic Officer, responsible for worldwide academic quality assurance in centres for American students including London, Sydney, Florence, Madrid and Beijing. She gained her MA and PhD in Renaissance Literature from the University of Warwick, and has taught literature for over sixteen years, including at the University of Warwick, at Harlaxton College, and at the University of Evansville. Sarah comments: 'I am delighted to join the INTO UEA London centre, where I will bring the knowledge and academic experience I have gained in international education to an excellent team.'

 
 

Tyler Oxley 

Undergraduate Admissions Coordinator
INTO OSU 

Tyler grew up in Coos Bay, Oregon, and did his undergraduate degree at Linfield College where he played on two NCAA Tournament soccer teams while studying International Business and Asian Studies. After college, he spent over 3 years living in China. He taught at universities in Qinhuangdao and Nanning and traveled throughout the country and Southeast Asia. In 2010, Tyler completed his Master's Degree in International and Public Affairs from the University of Hong Kong and moved back to Oregon. When he is not working in the INTO OSU Admissions Office, Tyler spends his time outdoors hiking, biking or playing soccer. 

 
 

NEW JOBS

Student Support Assistant – Web Applications Developer

$9.00 - $11.00/hour
Tampa, Florida, USA

Research and Policy Analyst

up to £25,000 plus benefits (negotiable for outstanding candidates)
INTO University Partnerships, Brighton

HR Advisor

Circa £26-£29k pa, depending on skills and experience
INTO Manchester

Presessional English Teacher

£29,131 (pro rata) plus 30 days holiday (pro rata).
INTO UEA London

Cleaner

£14,583.38 per annum (£7.45 per hour)
INTO Newcastle

Academic Support Officer

tbc
INTO UEA London

Undergraduate Pathways Coordinator

$47,840 - $51,480
Corvallis, Oregon, USA

Recruitment Director, China, Hong Kong and Macau

Salary commensurate for the role
Shanghai, with regular travel to regions across China
SHOW MORE

INTO This Week 58

25 May 2011

01

Students bring magic touch to INTO Exeter opening celebrations

Last Thursday evening, staff, University representatives and INTO affiliates gathered at the new INTO Exeter Centre to celebrate its opening, enjoying music, speeches and a range of staff presentations. The icing on the cake, however, came from two students who took part in a touching interview about their time at INTO before one performed a traditional Chinese song.

As the 300 guests arrived they were met by a great buzz. The new centre had been decorated with red and blue balloons (INTO and University colours) and the flags of the 89 student nationalities that have studied at INTO Exeter since 2006. Music from the steel band Red Hot Steel added to the international atmosphere.

Kicking things off were speeches from senior staff. INTO Exeter Centre Director Penny Foster thanked staff for all their hard work in ensuring a smooth move into the new building, while Exeter Vice-Chancellor Steve Smith and INTO Chairman Andrew Collin praised the new centre and its impact on the wider partnership, which they hope will be able to attract a greater number of international students over the next few years.

Then came the evening's highpoint: Penny Foster held a short interview with star students Yuanqing Zhang from China, who is taking the Foundation Business, and Gulnara Vafina from Russia, who studied the Graduate Diploma at INTO Exeter, did her master's at the University, and now works for the Accommodation office on campus.

Both girls talked about their experiences at INTO and how much they appreciated the support they'd received - an example of how strongly many students feel about the student experience INTO provides. Yuanqing Zhang then sang a good luck song in Chinese before cutting a ribbon to officially open the building.

Turning the spotlight back on the new Centre, Cowlin, the construction team that worked on the building project, gave a presentation charting the Centre's evolution from initial drafts to completion - well timed given the Centre won its first property award last week.

The event was a resounding success. Melian Kearney, Admissions Co-ordinator at the Centre, said: "It was a night enjoyed by all, great music and great food in a fantastic building."

Ruth Davenport, Senior Admissions Co-ordinator, said: "A fabulous and fun atmosphere, celebrating a brilliant place. It was great having Red Hot Steel playing outside from the beginning, it really set the mood for a great party."

The £53million million study centre, which was completed in January, should enable INTO Exeter to attract more international students through its increased capacity and enhanced services. Students, who had their first lessons in the building in February, now enjoy a well-equipped Learning Resource Centre, science lab, interactive whiteboards in all classrooms and brand new IT suites.

The building also symbolizes the growing importance of international students and internationalisation at the University of Exeter, which hopes to recruit 4,000 international students by 2015.

+ EXPAND TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

02

Agents ‘scrub up’ on St George’s FAM trip

Last week, agents from over 10 countries gathered in London for a familiarisation trip to our latest university partner, St George’s, University of London (SGUL), in which they visited campuses, received training and even tried their hand at a spot of medical practice.

The aim was to teach them more about St George's, one of the UK's most respected medical schools, and about the new INTO SGUL venture - in particular its newly developed degrees and pathways which include the first ever medical pathway to be delivered by a British medical school.

Over two and half days the agents received comprehensive training and visited the St George's campus, where they were shown the high standards of medical education available before 'scrubbing up', donning doctors' gowns and learning how to take blood pressure.

They also visited the London Centre and City University before ending up at the launch celebrations for the new Study Centre at INTO Exeter.

Tuukka Hinttula, INTO Regional Director Middle East and North Africa, said: "It was a hugely useful and successful week, from learning the ins and outs of studying medicine to being present at the launch of the wonderful new INTO Exeter building.

"Agents are very excited about the new joint venture as medicine is a very popular and sought after discipline associated with extremely high entry criteria," he added. "The INTO SGUL foundation year in particular will help provide a route into medicine for highly qualified and capable international students who would not normally be considered for this subject in the UK."

Steve Walters, interim Centre Director of INTO St. George's, said: "The aim of a FAM trip is not just familiarisation. It is also intended to inspire and enthuse and there is no doubt that the trip achieved that. For many of the agents the inspiration came from close engagement with the workings of a medical school, and one which is co-located with a hospital. The enthusiasm came from the St George's staff.  The welcome they extended to the agents was widely commented on."

+ EXPAND TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE

03

USF award likely to boost engineering pathways

In a massive scoop for the University of South Florida, a professor of mechanical engineering has been awarded the 2011 National Outstanding Teaching Medal from the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) – the top honour from the leading professional organisation in American engineering.

The award is also good news for INTO USF, which runs a number of popular pathways leading to engineering degrees at USF.

Professor Autar Kaw was recognized for his pioneering teaching methods, which involve presenting knowledge in a variety of ways to account for different student learning styles, and spreading knowledge through the use of open source materials.

In his diverse classes the Professor uses lectures, PowerPoint presentations, textbook chapters, clickers (personal response systems), in-class experiments and simulations - whatever it takes to involve and inspire students.

"I use every avenue of integrating real-world and research problems into education," Professor Kaw said. "Rather than choose and be attached to a particular teaching pedagogy, I believe that it is important to mix teaching styles to reach, encourage and challenge our diverse student population."

Professor Kaw has also led a team devoted to making online course materials available to the world since 2002. His Holistic Numerical Methods Institute website receives a million page views per year, while his Youtube lectures attract half million viewings. 

"I firmly believe in open and free dissemination of educational materials, and we have ample evidence now of how it has fundamentally changed the modes and improvements in education," said Professor Kaw.

So far students have been enthusiastic about his approach. "He's hard but it's rewarding," said former postgraduate student Dan Miller, who now works for Hatch Corporation in Tampa and has co-authored a textbook with Kaw. "You may not appreciate it until you're further down the pipeline and you're taking a class and realize, 'I understand this!'  You find yourself using his methods to dissect and solve all kinds of problems." 

Professor Kaw's award is great news for INTO USF which recruits a large number of international students to its engineering pathways each year. It provides further evidence of the high quality teaching students can expect at USF, and will help the University's engineering courses stand out in a field that is highly competitive in the United States. 

Dr. Glen Besterfield, Center Director at INTO USF, said: "Dr. Kaw epitomises the quality of engineering education throughout the College of Engineering at USF which makes it a global destination for aspiring engineering students around the world. His receiving this recognition will also further help INTO USF stand out in students' eyes, with its extensive selection of engineering graduate pathways available in over nine fields and its undergraduate pathway."

Professor Kaw is no stranger to awards, having received among others the Outstanding Teaching Award from the ASEE South Eastern Section in 2010 and the Florida Professor of the Year accolade from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in 2004. He will receive his National Outstanding Teaching Medal at the annual ASEE conference in Vancouver, June 26 - 29.

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