While we’re not out of COVID-19 yet, it is encouraging to see that the interest in studying abroad particularly in all our four key international student destinations, Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United States, is seeing a very positive growth trend. And I see this as resonating with our beliefs: that education is one of the most important decisions that people will make in their lives and therefore the education industry is able to withstand such tests. Adversities such as the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak only make the desire to educate ourselves, in the best possible way we can, stronger.

I am also happy to hear about the positive stories and feedback on the high level of care that our EduCo teams and campus staff deliver, in these disrupted times, to the thousands of students for whom we are responsible.

Our priorities right now are crystal clear – we must:

• continue the high level of support for every single student studying at our institutions
• maintain our student engagement, performance and participation
• support new students who want to study at our institutions, whether that be online, from their home country or online, from their new country.

As you know, we are still in a situation that negatively impacts, every company, industry, sector and country in the world. However, I believe that we have been very proactive in putting together our response plan this past January. What happened next still amazes me. Our campus staff transformed each of our institutions from classroom-based teaching to online and virtual classrooms. Our campuses were closed, social distancing was implemented around the world and we packed up our offices and worked from home. In parallel with that transformation, we have maintained our student engagement with class participation rates at or above previous levels, and to date, we have not had one confirmed positive COVID case reported across our entire student and staff population.

Not only have we responded quickly and effectively at the campus level, but as a global company we have become even more connected. We saw an accelerated sharing of best practices and we have also gained a greater understanding and appreciation of what our colleagues and partners do around the world.

We are not through this crisis yet and even after we beat this health crisis, the road to recovery is still long and challenging. But I am confident that we will rise to the occasion. So, wherever you are in the world, stay safe and continue to see the positives in these different times.

 

Joff Allen
Chief Executive Officer