The Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand,Sanjiv Kohli, has just left the country after completing a full three-year term as the Head of India’s Mission in Wellington.
In reflecting on his time in the job the Indian High Commissioner identified dishonest education agents and the harm caused to students as a particular concern:
Following complaints of fraud from some students three years ago, we entertained dialogues with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Immigration New Zealand, Education New Zealand and the affected students. While we believe that the New Zealand government is genuinely interested in improving the lot of our students, we are also taking steps to have checks and controls in place in India to prevent exploitation.
The High Commissioner did not refer to specific incidents but there have been several reported cases of misconduct and dishonesty by education agents in New Zealand over the past several years. AgentBee has reported on most of those cases in detail and you can find them in our education agent alert database – click here.
How to protect yourself against dishonest education agents
Choosing a good education agent is critical. Make the wrong choice and you could quickly lose your money and your dreams. Here are some simple tips to help you select the right education agent:
- Ask a friend – if you have a friend who used an education agent and had a good experience, talk to them about it and ask for a recommendation.
- Check the agent alert database – do a search in our agent alert database to see if there are any reports on the education agent.
- Check student reviews – check out reviews of the education agent on Facebook, Google and AgentBee. AgentBee member agents are committed to professionalism, integrity and transparency and post verified student reviews for each student they enroll.
(Are you an education agent? Click here for info on how to become an AgentBee member.)
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