#004 Ft. James Martin, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Insider Guides (International Education)

In this episode of The Campus Experience, we welcome James Martin, Co-Founder & Managing Director at Insider Guides, a media company that creates free resources & magazines, jam-packed with tips for international students across a variety of topics. James also started the Victoria & South Australian chapters of the International Education young professionals’ group. 

With more than 11 years of experience in the international education space, James has been instrumental in helping more than 70% of international students arrive in Australia feeling more prepared, more welcome & more connected. 

In this podcast we discuss:
• James’s first international trip as a student
• Returning to Australia and feeling like something had changed
• Where the idea for Insider Guides came from
• The help he received along the way
• The variety of topics that are covered in Insider Guides including:
o Getting a phone
o Banking
o Accommodation
o Job tips
o Study tips
o Culture
o Health
o Transport
o Fun stuff
• The ‘Living Cost Calculator’ which gives you an approximate expense per week – I feel like lots of people could benefit from this tool!
insiderguides.com.au/cost-of-living-calculator/ 
• Continuing to innovate, launching his recent Youtube channel
www.youtube.com/channel/UCv2BBkcIzi2sz1cjKiHnO5Q 

NOTE: If entrepreneurship is of interest to you, jump forward to the 5minute36second mark to dive into how James got the idea for starting his own business & how he conducted his first ‘customer interviews’ with international students across the bar!

Two of my favorite quotes from this episode are:

“We as local students we travel around the world looking for these international experiences but sometimes these amazing people have come from all the way around the world to study at your institution, it’s about opening your heart, opening up and saying, “Look guys, I’m a local, let’s have a chat, let’s grad a coffee.” Only good can come from it.”

And,

“I think its important to try a lot of things when you’ve got nothing to lose. When you’re at university, you really don’t have a lot to lose by just thinking of a business idea, getting a few business cards printed, maybe bringing an international student along for the ride & trying something out. Only good can come from that really.”

To download your free resources in your city, visit insiderguides.com.au/ 

Additional resources mentioned:
• Australian Financial Review article from late October talking about the quote-unquote “recycling of overseas students for commissions”
www.afr.com/news/policy/education/unscrupulous-operators-recycling-overseas-students-in-return-for-commissions-20181022-h16y3g 

• International Education Association of Australia (IEAA)
Education is Australia’s 3rd largest export, at $30.3 billion & supports more than 130k jobs
www.ieaa.org.au/about-us/sector-stats 

For more interviews with leaders like James, make sure you follow Campus Consultancy.
Facebook: facebook.com/campusconsultancyAU 
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/campusconsultancy/ 

Speak with you again soon!