Our relationship with agents

Working with recruitment representatives – advice for prospective students:

The University of Liverpool works with an established network of educational agencies who play a highly valued role in supporting applicants and prospective students who plan to study at Liverpool.

At the first meeting with a representative it is advised that total clarity is sought about any fees that may be applicable for that service.

1. Selection

We are very selective in our choice of agents, and the number of appointments made is limited to ensure that their management is bespoke and effective.

The International Recruitment Team is mandated by the University to select, appoint and manage the University’s network of agents. The recruitment team invests significant resources in identifying and screening suitable agents, and in training and supporting them in their work. It is a key point of contact for agent communications and liaison between the agents and the International and EU Admissions’ Team.

The following criteria are used when considering a new agent for appointment:

• We prefer agents who specialise in sending students to UK universities, as opposed to foundation or English Language programmes, and who have staff familiar with the UK education system.  We review the prospective agent’s current volume of UK university registrations to confirm they are well versed in enrolling students in UK universities, as this indicates a strong track record in successful counselling.
• We look for agents who represent comparable universities and have a strong track record with these universities; we measure this by requesting at least 2 references from existing partners.
• Agents must hold appropriate business licenses and conduct themselves with due regard to the regulatory conditions in the market(s) in which they operate. Where the British Council operate a training programme for agents in that country, we give preference to those agents that have undertaken this training.
• We select agencies with professional counselling facilities that are appropriate for hosting interview sessions, displaying materials and are well located for students and their parents.
• We will usually limit the number of agents in a country proportionate to the size of the student market and geographic size of the country.

2. Management

The University of Liverpool’s International Recruitment team works closely with all representatives, to make sure that they have the most current information about the university’s programmes, fees/scholarships and application process. They do this by delivering regular in-country and online training and the International and EU Admissions’ Team produce an Agency Admissions’ Guide which is part of the initial training materials sent to newly appointed agents.

The organisations that have been appointed by The University of Liverpool to counsel potential candidates in their applications to the University can be found here.  Please note: The University of Liverpool pays those official representatives (agents) listed a commission for their support to applicants and to recruit students to the University.