Rethinking Agent Roles in Education

This episode delves into the transformation of agent partnerships in recruitment and admissions, emphasizing the need for institutions to view agents as collaborators rather than mere vendors. Cleopatra shares insights from her experience, offering strategies to foster effective partnerships that drive mutual growth and success.

• The importance of adapting roles in recruitment 
• Shifts in agent partnerships over time 
• The drawbacks of transactional mindsets 
• Strategies for building genuine collaboration 
• Recognizing diverse strengths of agents 
• Emphasizing open communication for success 
• The value of mutual respect in partnerships

Send us a text

East Coast Admissions
The #1 College Admissions Counseling Service for the East Coast

Support the show

Visit our Website
Like, Share and Subscribe on Facebook
Like, Share and Subscribe on Instagram
Like, Share and Subscribe on X
Like, Share and Subscribe on LinkedIn
Email us: [e-mail]

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:11):
Welcome back to the future of recruitment and
admissions by East CoastAdmissions.
I'm Cleopatra and in thisepisode we are diving into an
essential topic for institutionsand admissions teams agent
partnerships and admissionsteams Agent partnerships.
As many of you know,recruitment agents play an
essential and critical role inhelping institutions reach

(00:31):
students across the globe.
However, over time, thetraditional ways of working with
agents have become outdated,leaving institutions frustrated
and unsure about how to makethese partnerships effective.
Through my years of workingwith institutions and
recruitment agents, I'vewitnessed first hand how many
institutions are stuck in acycle of outdated approaches.

(00:52):
When early days of agentpartnerships In the past,

(01:14):
institutions were attendingevents like ISEF and similar
organizations, these events weregreat opportunities for
institutions to meet agents andlearn more about each other, and
even sign agreements on thesport.
At the beginning it was quiteexciting, I must say.
Everything felt new andpromising.
But as time went on, thingsstarted to change.

(01:35):
The number of agents grew andmany of them signed with 1,500
or even 200 institutions.
With this growth came a majorshift in how schools were
working with agents.
The initial enthusiasm gave wayto a wait-and-see approach.
Schools would sign agreements,provide marketing materials and
wait to see what the agents cando.

(01:55):
In the meantime, agents wereoften overwhelmed by the sheer
number of institutions they wererepresenting, and schools felt
frustrated that their effortswere not paying off.
Fast forward to today, and thatsame model isn't cutting it,
but schools are stuck in a loopof requiring agents to submit
references, sign agreements andthen simply wait for results.

(02:19):
But this approach isn'tfostering growth, productive
partnerships.
In fact, many schools havebecome disillusioned with agent
partnerships, believing thatthey can't make a meaningful
impact unless the agent brings ahigh volume of students right
away.
The problem with this mindsetis that it's too transactional.
It's based on a show me theresults first mentality, rather

(02:42):
than building a relationshipthat fosters mutual growth and
trust.
This approach assumes that theagent is just a means to one end
, not a partner that can bringvalue over time.
So what's the solution?
It's simple Schools need tostart thinking of agents as true
partners, not just salespeople.
This requires a shift inperspective and a change in how

(03:05):
schools engage with agents.
Instead of treating them likevendors, institutions should
view them as collaborators whobring local expertise, cultural
understanding and a network ofpotential students.
A more successful approachinvolves engaging agents early
on, understanding their needsand providing them with the
tools and support they need toeffectively represent your

(03:28):
institution.
The conversation should notjust be about commission rates
or marketing materials, but itshould be about how the
partnership can work together toachieve common goals.
I want to share a personalexperience to illustrate this
point.
I work with a school based inCalifornia that had a very
different approach to Asianpartnership.
Initially, everything was goingwell.

(03:49):
Agreements were signed, wediscussed the future and were
both excited about thepartnership.
Instead of continuing thedialogue in a collaborative way,
they became dismissive, as ifsaying unless you give us
something, there's nothing morewe can do.
That experience really made mequestion why institutions even
bother working with agents ifthey are not willing to invest

(04:09):
in their relationship.
A partnership requires mutualrespect, open communication and
a willingness to work togethertowards shared goals.
If one party is just waitingfor the other to deliver, that's
not a partnership.
It's a transactionalrelationship and that's unlikely
to succeed.
In today's world, agents arenot just a one-size-fits-all

(04:31):
solution.
Some agents are powerhouseplayers with established
networks and years of experience, while others may be new but
eager to build their portfolios.
The key is to understand thevalue each agent brings and
recognize that not allpartnerships will look the same.
Schools should be askingthemselves how can I support my

(04:51):
agents?
How can we build a mutuallybeneficial relationship?
What can we do to help themsucceed so they, in turn, can
help us attract the beststudents?
In closing, it's time torethink how schools approach
agent partnerships.
Moving away from the outdatedtransactional model and focusing
on building true collaborativepartnerships will lead to better

(05:15):
outcomes for both schools andagents.
By investing in theserelationships and working
together as partners, schoolscan drive enrollment, build
stronger global connections and,ultimately, create a more
sustainable recruitment process.
I'd love to hear from you,whether you're an admissions rep
, a recruitment agent or anyoneworking in this space what

(05:36):
challenges have you faced whenworking with agent partners?
How have you navigated theserelationships?
Share your thoughts andexperiences and let's continue
this conversation together.
We all have valuable insightsto share and through this
podcast, we can learn from eachother.
If you love today's podcast,please don't forget to subscribe

(05:56):
and leave a review.
Thank you so much for listeningand I can't wait to dive deeper
into these topics with you infuture episodes.
Stay tuned for more.