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Should international students use study abroad agencies? Behind the scenes of study abroad agencies.
The content of this article is solely based on the author's perspective and experience, and is provided for reference only.
Should you use study abroad agencies when going abroad to study? If you ask others, they might analyze the advantages and disadvantages of using agencies, as well as the advantages and disadvantages based on individual circumstances. But if you ask me (I am Shisheng Miao), I don't analyze those. I suggest not using them. This article will discuss the level of agencies as agents of foreign schools, their relationship with foreign schools, the differences between personal and agency applications, and introduce student commissions and similar issues.
I have personally experienced study abroad agencies at various stages, including well-known large companies and small studios run by graduates from prestigious schools like the University of Cambridge. I have also participated in some recruitment consultation activities representing certain schools in the UK. In the past, I blindly believed that using agencies was reliable and thought that agencies must have unique resource advantages and that the teachers in agencies must have more experience and expertise than students.
After a profound lesson, I don't want to mention those terrible experiences anymore. Agency fees are also expensive, but for regular students applying for study abroad, I do not recommend using agencies. Outstanding students don't need to use them either, unless it's for some super-rich individuals who don't meet the standard and want to take alternative paths, as recently reported in the news. However, if they do choose to use agencies, they should find reliable channels and be prepared to bear corresponding risks and high fees. This applies to children who are special talents (such as children of presidents, chairpersons, elites from prominent families, wealthy individuals, top talents recommended by top-tier individuals, etc.), or those who directly donate buildings and funds to schools, or those who begin with unreliable agencies but fail in the end, like the case of a wealthy second-generation individual who spent six and a half million dollars to enter Stanford in 2019 but was expelled.
Most foreign schools now have offices in China, and the teachers in these offices generally speak Chinese. So, you can directly contact them for assistance throughout the process, and it's free. Secondly, if there is no office in China, you can directly find the required information on the school's official website and relevant social media platforms, or directly contact the UK universities. Of course, you would need to communicate in English at that point, but the school's response is usually quite quick on business days, and the information they provide is more reliable, as it comes directly from the school.
Study abroad agencies are generally divided into large companies and small institutions. Their sources of income usually come from the application fees paid by students and commissions from schools (some agencies do not include fees for documents, translations, visas, etc., which need to be paid separately). The commission is usually a certain percentage of the student's tuition fee (including language course fees, as the commission for language courses is very high). The specific amount of commission varies from university to university, and the commission for each application stage may also differ. However, some high-ranking and well-known universities do not offer commissions.
For universities that do not offer commissions, agencies usually apply to these universities through the school's official website, UCAS, or contact the school's representatives in China (individual students can also apply directly in the same way). Among them, study abroad agencies are further classified into primary agents and secondary agents (some may be tertiary agents or even N-level agents, but some agents may not be aware or care about their level due to lack of information or other reasons. We won't delve into this issue further here. If you are interested, we can cover a dedicated topic on foreign university agents in the future, noting that the agents are not necessarily for foreign universities only; they can also be for primary and secondary schools, etc.).
Some study abroad agencies are primary agents of foreign universities, and the universities directly provide commissions to these primary agent organizations. Primary agents are the agencies that have signed contracts directly with the universities (but note that this does not mean choosing these agents will grant you preferential treatment; the requirements and application process are the same as applying individually).
On the other hand, small study abroad institutions or studios generally do not have the qualification of being primary agents of foreign universities (although there are exceptional small companies that have become primary agents; for example, I know a student who started their own small agency and achieved this). Instead, they collaborate with primary agent organizations and receive a portion of the commission after being deducted by the primary agents, becoming secondary agent organizations.
Note 1: Regardless of the agent level, any study abroad agency and foreign university have a relationship of applicants and the applied. The foreign university will not provide preferential treatment based on which agency you choose, and generally, all study abroad agencies and individual applicants have equal opportunities. However, if you belong to the categories mentioned earlier, such as making substantial donations or being a celebrity's child, the university may provide preferential treatment based on specific circumstances. For example, the children of Mr. Pan and Mr. Li were admitted to top schools after making significant donations.
Note 2: Since we mentioned donating buildings or money to universities, it's important to note that you should not let intermediaries profit from the price difference. Whether it's donating buildings, money, or anything else, remember to directly contact the university so that you, your child, or your friend's child can be given priority consideration for admission.
After becoming a secondary agent, the primary agent company will provide teachers who specialize in document preparation and application assistance to the secondary agent organization. This includes training the teachers in the secondary agent organization, updating the list of schools, providing guidance on visas or accommodations, and providing all necessary information in detail to the secondary agent. In other words, secondary agents can be divided into three types:
Independent secondary agents: These are self-sufficient secondary agent organizations that have their own application teams and can handle document-related matters independently. They may occasionally seek advice from the primary agents when faced with unfamiliar situations or use the primary agents' services during the application submission.
Dependent secondary agents: These secondary agent organizations do not have their own application teams for document preparation. Instead, they continuously recruit students and send their information to the teachers at the primary agent organization for analysis, advice, and feedback to the students. They may use the document services provided by the primary agents or find individuals for part-time document preparation.
Hands-off secondary agents: It's important to note this type of secondary agent, which can be a primary agent, tertiary agent, or even an N-level agent. As the name suggests, hands-off agents try their best to sign contracts with prospective study abroad applicants and receive payment. Once the contract is signed successfully, they outsource the applicant's application to a third-party company or individual. If lucky, the outsourcing may be reliable and result in successful admission to the desired school. However, if unlucky, the outsourcing may be incompetent, unhelpful, and cause significant delay in time, energy, money, emotions, and appearance, among other things.
In other words, the consultants or teachers within study abroad agencies can be considered as salespersons. They receive commissions for each signed student, and document teachers may receive commissions based on the quantity or quality of their work. The specific amount of commissions varies depending on the company and the student.
As an illustrative example, suppose Company A is a primary agent for many universities, and Company B is a small studio that approached A to apply for universities through their services. A warmly welcomes the collaboration, and after signing the agreement, B starts sending students to A. For instance, a student named Zhang San sees B's advertisement and applies to universities through B by paying X amount of money. B forwards all of Zhang San's information to A for the university application. Once Zhang San is successfully admitted, the university provides a commission to A, who deducts a certain percentage and then transfers the remaining commission to B.
Next, let's discuss student referrals. Many study abroad agencies provide referral commissions to individuals or organizations that refer students to them. The amount of referral commissions varies based on the number of students and the nature of the partnership. There are several ways to provide referral commissions, and I will briefly discuss a few of them here.
Discussion (1): Personal Introduction of Students to Agents. This refers to the practice where, after a successful personal introduction, agents directly rebate a portion of the student's study abroad application fee back to the individual. The rebate is calculated as a percentage, and for high percentages, introducing just one student can result in thousands or tens of thousands of yuan (especially for specialized cases). Personal introductions can be done in several ways, such as introducing on an individual basis within a small circle, or on a larger scale based on students' personal information (this involves a wide range of topics, including the casual sharing of student lists, etc., which I won't delve into here).
Discussion (2): Cooperation between Agents. This is relatively simple and refers to complementary business arrangements between different agents. It involves areas that other agents have not touched upon, such as language training, art training, etc. The specific arrangements for rebate percentages depend on the individual circumstances (some rebates can be astonishingly high, reaching tens of thousands in monetary units).
Discussion (3): Cooperation between Agents and Domestic Schools. This can be further divided into several types, such as the 3+1 model, 2+2 model, or establishing a presence in a particular school or becoming one of the few or the sole designated agents for a school. There are various types of arrangements in this category.
For example, a certain study abroad agency collaborates with domestic high schools or other schools, and then the students from those schools are collectively sent to a certain foreign university, and so on.
In reality, for the majority of the entire process of applying to foreign universities, apart from one's own academic performance, the most important aspect is the application essay. Everything else can be managed independently. However, if you still wish to seek the assistance of an agent, you can, but you must choose carefully because some study abroad consultants and essay advisors at agencies have never studied abroad themselves or have never even been outside the country.
This reminds me of an incident many years ago when I attended a certain study abroad fair. Many parents were lining up to ask the agents questions, and one particular agent claimed to have graduated from a prestigious foreign university to all the parents and students who came for consultations. Later on, I was curious and asked, "Are you also a graduate of XX university abroad?" The person replied, "No," and admitted to never having been abroad or studied overseas. However, the company was planning to send them on a study tour to a well-known university so that they could claim to have studied there. They said that every study abroad agent does this, lying about their educational background to enhance their credentials, and the parents and students are none the wiser.
Among them, some study abroad agencies like to advertise that students with certain backgrounds have successfully applied to prestigious schools through them. But in reality, either it's just promotional advertising or the students themselves have exceptional abilities.
Therefore, to summarize, here are some recommendations:
Apply on your own. Apart from seeking assistance from professionals with experience to provide suggestions and revisions for your application essay, you can obtain help for all other information through the official teachers at your school in your home country or through official channels. Pay attention to the official websites and social media platforms of the schools, follow the Chinese social media and official website of the British Council, follow the official channels of the Ministry of Education's Study Abroad Service Center, follow online media related to the schools you are interested in applying to, keep track of visa and other policy updates in the country where the overseas school is located, and join discussion forums related to your interested schools or majors. Be proactive in searching and gathering information.
Find reliable advisors. Look for personal advisors who you believe are trustworthy and can provide guidance. You can seek paid consultations for advice on application essays, application planning, and other related services. If one advisor is not enough, you can consult multiple advisors for reference. Be cautious and do not blindly trust someone just because they claim to have a prestigious background. Observe carefully, compare different advisors, and exercise caution.
Engage with reliable agents for application assistance or a combination of agent assistance and self-guidance. When seeking assistance from an agent, be cautious, observant, and analytical. Don't sign a contract with the first agent you consult. Instead, consult at least five or more agents. Prepare questions in advance and you will find that different agents have different answers to the same question. Some consultants may lack expertise. Pay attention to the service attitude of the study abroad consultants. Be cautious of consultants who initially appear very friendly, caring, and trustworthy. In reality, once you sign the contract, their attitude may change drastically. If you're lucky, they will at least do their job, but if you're unlucky, they may provide poor quality work, procrastinate, or engage in a refund dispute (a game of tug-of-war). They may try to shift blame onto you for everything (don't be afraid to take legal action if necessary). If you need assistance, please consider joining my study abroad support alliance when it is established in the future, or see the various ways to join. My goal is to establish a study abroad support alliance to prevent any study abroad student from being mistreated.
Key point 2: Study abroad consultants will aggressively recommend schools with high commissions, rather than conducting a proper evaluation based on your background. In some cases, they may be well aware that your background is not strong, but in order to secure a complete contract, they will praise you as exceptionally intelligent and a perfect fit for top-tier schools. They may employ tactics that appear friendly but are actually veiled threats (or even outright aggression), making you believe that you are unworthy of a certain school, that you won't graduate, or that you will be solely responsible if your application is rejected. If you encounter a terrible study abroad agency, consultant, or essay advisor, believe me, the experience they provide will be unforgettable and expose you to the ugliness of human nature.
Currently, there are many agencies that charge low fees or no fees at all, as they earn their income solely from commissions provided by schools. So, as long as you choose a reliable agency with caution, it can be an option. However, it is crucial to consult with them in advance and clarify the charges, prices, refund policies, services provided, quality assurance, contract terms, and all other details. It is recommended to fully understand and confirm everything before making any payment, and it is advisable to mentally prepare for potential unpleasant situations after making the payment.
Alright, this lengthy discussion will end here for now. Please note that all the content in this article is for reference only, and the decision-making power and choice are entirely yours. If there is a demand for more comprehensive or in-depth information about study abroad agencies and individual applications, I may write more in the future if time permits. Keep in mind that I typed out every word of this article on my phone with a certain mindset on Friday, April 16, 2021. Lastly, I hope this article can be helpful to all of you, and I wish you all a successful study abroad journey.