Partner case studyUniversity of Nottingham Ningbo China
Having an Alumnifier that can engage with our offer holders is invaluable to a university like ours
The University of Nottingham Ningbo China has a five-year international growth plan and named Thailand a priority market. Africa was harder still: too far and too expensive to staff from China. Two Alumnifiers now cover both.
The two people
Neither is a student ambassador or a hired hand. They are alumni with senior careers of their own, representing the campus they went to.
Onjira Sriphaiboon
Bangkok · ThailandCovers Thailand, the market UNNC named a priority in its five-year plan. She works with offer-holders through the decision window and represents the campus at events in Bangkok, including the flagship event below.
What she does nowSenior International Communications Division Manager at one of Thailand’s largest retail conglomerates.
Iliyasu Abba Abdullahi
Abuja · NigeriaRecruited specifically to open up Africa. He supports applicants in Nigeria in person and applicants across the rest of the continent remotely, in a region UNNC could not reach from China at any sensible cost.
What he does nowManaging Director of a large construction and product management firm based in Abuja.
The flagship event
Bangkok, run by a UNNC graduate.
A Network Connect event for UNNC offer-holders in Thailand, organised and hosted by Onjira. No staff travelled from Ningbo for it.
In their own words
Tim identified the need for in-market support at the conversion stage. We asked him four questions and left the answers as he sent them.
“Students can find anything they need online. What they are often lacking is a real person that can share genuine stories.”
Tim Hubbard · Director of International Recruitment, UNNC
What were you trying to achieve in Africa and Thailand, and what made Alumnify feel like the right route rather than the more familiar options?
“UNNC has an ambitious five year international student growth plan and we have identified Thailand as a priority market. Whilst we are seeing organic growth in applications, I felt that we needed more on the ground support to help us in the conversion stage. Having an Alumnify representative that can engage with our offer holders is invaluable to a university like ours. Onjira has also supported us with attending events in Bangkok which has saved both our staff time and travel budget whilst providing a fantastic first impression of UNNC.”
“In Africa, we found that with the distance and cost of travelling from China, it was challenging to have an on the ground presence, so Alumnify helped us to recruit Iliyasu in Nigeria, with the aim to support applicants in Nigeria, and to have a key role in virtually supporting our applicants across Africa.”
What did you make of the alumni themselves?
“Very impressive. Onjira graduated with an MSc in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management in 2019 and is now a Senior International Communications Division Manager for one of Thailand’s largest retail conglomerates. Iliyasu is now MD at a large construction and product management firm based in Abuja. As soon as we met them online, as shortlisted candidates, we had no doubt they would both do an amazing job representing UNNC.”
“I’ve also been impressed with how they are both well trained, but retain their authentic honest reflections when talking about their time at UNNC.”
How did prospective students and their families respond to hearing from someone who had actually done the Ningbo route?
“It really made a huge difference. Nowadays students, particularly those aiming for top-ranked universities, are adept at finding information on their university. They can quickly extract what they need from official websites and social media platforms, and will be actively searching for student voices on TikTok, Reddit and elsewhere. What they are often lacking is a real person that can share genuine stories.”
“As an example, our Alumnify led flagship event in Bangkok was well attended and most of the students confirmed their place at UNNC shortly after.”
If a colleague at another university asked you about working with Alumnify, what would you say?
“I’d say go for it, but take the time to investigate where Alumnify can fit into your recruitment mix. For some countries and markets Alumnifiers can be used to boost your existing activities, for other markets you can work with Alumnify to lead recruitment activity. I’d be confident that, as we have found for UNNC, ROI will be clear and that you will be supported every step of the way by the Alumnify team.”
Tell us your two hardest markets.
We will come back with the alumni we can already reach there, what activity would look like, and how many credits it would take. No obligation either way.