Simply put an education agent is a sales person like any other. They have their industry and expertise but at its heart an agent is trying to sell their product, in this case educational courses to you as a customer. But, as with sales people everywhere, they can vary remarkably in their quality. Many agents genuinely approach their students with the desire to help them find the perfect course but a minority could not care less and will sell courses with no care as to whether or not they fit you, the student.
So what should you keep an eye out for in your Agent? Here are 8 things you should be looking for in any agent that you consider.
1) Clear Communicator
A student wants answers to their questions, but needs them in a way they can understand. Students come from many walks of life and while some may have prior experience or be confident negotiating their way through the application process themselves, many haven’t a clue. You need an Agent that can talk to you in language you can understand so that you can make the right decision. This is, after all, your future you’re trying to decide on.
2) Empathetic
An agent should put you as your ease when you talk to them. One way they might is by matching your actions and body language. A quiet and withdrawn agent is probably not going to enthuse a more outgoing student, but on the other hand a more boisterous Agent can be very intimidating to a more reserved student. An Agent who is able to match you on an emotional level is one who is much more interested in ensuring what they have to offer is what you’re going to need.
3) Inquisitive
While an agent obviously wants to make money, the best way for this to do this is to ensure the appropriate matching of students and institutions. The best way for an agent to do this is for them to continually ask questions to help them understand your specific needs and desires. This will help them make the appropriate recommendations with you in mind meaning they can make suggestions that will make you happiest. Happy customers give glowing recommendations and recommendations lead to more business and money. That’s why it’s in the agents best interests to show a genuine interest by asking lots of questions.
4) Big Smiles and Happy Faces
You want to make sure that your agent is interested and committed in trying to help you. A smiling, enthusiastic demeanour and an eagerness to help is a good way to see if the Agent is generally interested in doing the best they can by you or are simply not interested. If you get the feeling of the latter – avoid! Chances are high that the agent simply won’t care enough to give your inquiry the attention you need and deserve.
5) Authenticity
As a student to be, you are making a decision that will influence the rest of your life. That is why it’s essential to get an idea of whether or not your agent shares this same sense of importance when it comes to making recommendations of where and what you study. Make sure your agent earns your trust by providing you with options as well as reasoned recommendations drawing upon the pros and cons of each potential decision.
Any agent worth their salt should genuinely be interested in doing the best they can for you so be careful of anyone pushing a particular course on you without taking time to give you alternatives.
6) Patience and Understanding
Making a decision for your future studies can be a difficult, even overwhelming, experience and an expensive mistake if things go wrong. That’s why it is essential to take your time until you can make a decision you feel comfortable with. By this same measure, it’s important that your Agent understands this and does not attempt to rush you to any decision. It’s only a matter of courtesy for an agent to make contact after a visit to offer further assistance or advice, but there’s a fine line before being aggressive and pushy. A good agent will leave you feeling helped and assisted, not intimidated into making a rash decision.
7) Humility
Your agent doesn’t know everything, and even veterans of the education sector are constantly having to learn and develop their skills and knowledge in order to stay on top of things. It’s not unheard of, or even surprising to find yourself more informed about something than your agent might be. This is particularly likely the more self-research you may have done into your options.
A great agent will have the humility to admit they don’t know everything as well as the wisdom to take on board your thoughts, feelings and discoveries to work with you to find the ideal course for you.
8) Trusted by Universities and Colleges
Lastly, and possibly most importantly, you need to know that your agent is trustworthy. This can be very hard for student to qualify. How will you know if the agent you are speaking to works in an ethical way? How do you know if they are able to directly contact educational institutions? How do you know you can trust your agent?
This questions are the reason that QISAN, the Quality International Study Abroad Network was founded by the same people who created ASIC. QISAN is a network of Agents and Institutions who all sign-up to operate under the QISAN Code of Ethics outlining their commitment to you the student.
To make contact with a trusted agent visit the QISAN Student Enquiry page and start the process to meeting your great new agent.
Photo Credits:
https://www.flazingo.com/creativecommons | https://www.flickr.com/photos/tamuc/12641774514/
Subscribe To The ASIC Newsletter
Join the ASIC mailing list and keep up to date with all the latest education and accreditation news and updates from the ASIC team.
