The British Council has developed a new online suite of training to provide a practical and professional training programme for agents and counsellors to enable them to recommend the UK as a study destination to international students.

The British Council Agent and Counsellor Training Suite launched on Tuesday 5th March 2019 and will provide school counsellors, college counsellors, teachers and education agents online courses with the knowledge to become a fully Certified British Council Agent or Counsellor (on completion of the Certificate level) and officially listed on our approved British Council Global List.

We recommend that educational institutions in the UK inform their international student recruitment agents to complete this training programme.

This revised 2019 training has been updated to reflect the changing context around UK education for international students and education industry trends. The flexible and user-friendly training supports professional development by providing continued learning at multiple levels of high-quality study. The interactive and engaging content will enable learners, in any location with internet access, to complete the training when it best suits them and can be conveniently accessed on desktop, tablet and mobile devices.

Brenda McMahon, Director of International Education Services at the British Council, said, “This exciting new suite is for all individuals who recommend the UK as a study destination for international students. Whether you’re a new entrant or experienced in the sector, we’re welcoming you to discover multiple levels of high-quality learning. With over 400,000 international students coming to the UK to study, we recognise that preparing for success is beneficial not only for the students themselves, but also for our agent and counsellor community and the UK as a study destination.”

The training suite will cover:

• the UK education and training system; courses and qualifications at each level

• the attractions for students considering studying and living in the UK

• student lifestyle issues – living costs, travel and accommodation

• quality assurance mechanisms and how they operate •

course fees and scholarships

• UK application procedures and standard entry requirements; visa and immigration regulations

• professionalism and ethical behaviour

• working with UK institutions and academic readiness

• visa and immigration compliance for UK institutions and students

• GDPR and intellectual property

• child safeguarding

• ethics

The multiple levels of training encourage and track professional development on an on-going basis, emphasising excellence in support and service provision.

The training starts from £200 per course and is open for registration now.

Visit the Agent and Counsellor Training Suite platform to sign up for the available courses.