Working together to recruit international students for semicon with recruitment campaigns for higher professional education and university education

Positive energy

Antoinette explains: ‘We are joining forces because we realise that we cannot recruit the extra people from our own pool alone. We really need international students.’ Irene adds: ‘Together, we are putting the Netherlands on the map. And that generates positive energy.’

To begin with, the universities are focusing on students from Italy, Spain and Indonesia with the joint Next Level concept, while the universities of applied sciences are targeting Italy, Spain, Turkey and Portugal. Irene: ‘We are targeting several countries at the same time, so we can monitor what works and what doesn't.’ Antoinette mentions another advantage. “We know that students from these countries often stay in the Netherlands after their studies, and that's what we want.”

Joining forces

Universities already collaborate frequently in the field of information provision and recruitment of international talent, but this is less common in universities of applied sciences. Antoinette: “This collaboration now also exists between universities of applied sciences. Within the Beethoven project, we look beyond borders, join forces and share our strengths.” Irene also thinks the collaboration is going very well. “We have the same goal and think in terms of the common interest.” The collaboration gives potential students a diverse and complete picture of the possibilities of technical education in the Netherlands.

Marketing experience

Irene and Antoinette both have extensive marketing experience, respectively as head of the marketing department at the University of Twente and as a marketer at Fontys, with a focus on international students. Irene: ‘We are very conscious of the question: what resources do we use when and how? What content suits which target group?’ Antoinette gives an example: ‘HBO universities have a younger target group, who are often unfamiliar with the possibilities of technical, practice-oriented studies. That is why we have developed a quiz, for example, so that they can discover the world of tech in a fun way.’

Link with the business community

The recruitment websites are now complete (www.hightechuniversities.nl and www.studytechinnl.com), but Antoinette, Irene and their colleagues have many more plans. In the coming period, they also want to establish a link with the business community. For example, through a webinar with alumni, so that students can get a good idea of their opportunities in the Netherlands.

First visible results

The first results of both campaigns are now visible. Irene gives an example: “We have organised joint events in the three countries we are focusing on. In Indonesia, we collaborated with the embassy. It's fantastic to be there with our joint story.”