Market intelligence for international student recruitment from ICEF
19th Feb 2026

ICEF Podcast: Students are switching to AI for search. Are you ready?

Expert views on the trends shaping international student recruitment

Listen in as ICEF’s Craig Riggs and Martijn van de Veen recap some of the latest developments in our sector, including the latest enrolment trends for Canada and Spain's growing popularity as a study destination.

Our hosts are then joined by Tim O'Brien – Senior Vice President of New Partner Development with INTO University Partnerships – and Education marketing coach and author Guus Goorts for a featured discussion on how AI-based search is affecting international student recruitment.

Today’s students are moving away from scrolling through pages of search results and are instead heading straight to generative AI for answers. Tools like ChatGPT and Gemini are no longer just homework helpers, they are becoming early stage advisors for a new generation of prospective international students.

You can listen right now in the player below, and we encourage you to subscribe via your favourite podcast app in order to receive future episodes automatically.

For additional background, please see:

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