Advisory Board
Wendy Alexander, vice principal, (international), University of Dundee 
Wendy Alexander is vice principal, (international) at the University of Dundee and Scottish Government International Trade Envoy for Higher Education. She is a member of UK Government’s DIT/DfE Education Sector Advisory Group and the British Council’s Higher Education Sector Group. She is an Advisory Board member of the UK National Committee on China, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Patron Social Investment Scotland, a member of Scottish Equity Partner LLP Investment Advisory Board, a former Board member of Scottish Government’s Strategic Board for Enterprise and Skills and former Trustee of the Leadership Foundation (now Advance HE).
Prior to her current executive role, she was a member of the Leadership team at London Business School leading their degree programmes. As a Member of the Scottish Parliament (1999-2011), she served in the first three Scottish Cabinets, including as minister with responsibility for further and higher education, holding the enterprise and lifelong learning, transport and communities portfolios and also served as Scottish Labour Leader in the Scottish Parliament. She holds honorary degrees from University of Strathclyde and University of West of Scotland.
Professor Bernard C.Y. Tan, senior vice provost (undergraduate education), National University of Singapore
Professor Bernard C.Y. Tan is senior vice provost (undergraduate education) at the National University of Singapore (NUS). He assists the provost in setting educational directions and policies, and to assure educational quality for the university. He chairs the University Committee on Educational Policy. He was vice provost (student life) and interim vice provost (graduate education). He received the NUS Outstanding Computing Alumni Award in 2019, Republic of Singapore Long Service Medal in 2019, Republic of Singapore Public Administration Medal (Silver) in 2012, NUS Outstanding Educator Award in 2004, and NUS Young Researcher Award in 2002.
Professor Tan was president (2009 to 2010) and Asia-Pacific council representative (2004 to 2006) of the Association for Information Systems (AIS). He is still a fellow of the AIS. He received the AIS Sandy Slaughter Service Award in 2019. He has served on the editorial boards of ACM Transactions on Management Information Systems, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Journal of Management Information Systems, Journal of the AIS, Management Science, and MIS Quarterly.
Professor Tan is Shaw Professor in the Department of Information Systems and Analytics. He has given keynote addresses and invited talks at international conferences and workshops. His research work has been published in various international journals.
David Pilsbury, chief development officer, Oxford International Education Group
David Pilsbury is chief development officer at Oxford International Education Group. He was formerly deputy vice chancellor, international at Coventry University, a position he held since 2008. He was responsible for all international activities including joint ventures, recruitment, collaborative delivery, curriculum internationalisation, mobility and enhancement. He implemented an ambitious agenda involving a more than six-fold increase in recruitment; established the UK’s largest overseas collaborative delivery programme with over 20,000 students in ~30 countries; and developing the world's largest international enhancement programme which has ranked No.1 for overseas mobility since records began.
He has won many awards including a Queen’s Award for Enterprise and the premier award of EAIE. He holds a number of board level positions including with JISC, China-Britain Business Council and Emirates Aviation University and advisory positions with IDP Connect, StudyPortals, EURIE, NARIC and the Hainan Provincial Government. He chairs the UUK International Pro-Vice Chancellors Steering Group on the future of Global Engagement and is a HK VTC Honorary Fellow. He was the founding CEO of the Worldwide Universities Network, Head of Research Policy for HEFCE and Assistant Director R&D at Cambridge University Hospital. Pilsbury spent a number of years in strategic consultancy and investment banking after a D. Phil and postdoctoral research at the University of Oxford.
Dr. Fanta Aw, executive director and chief executive officer, NAFSA
Dr Fanta Aw has been a dedicated member and leader within NAFSA since 1996 and currently holds the position of executive director and chief executive officer. From 2013 to 2016, she served as NAFSA's president and board chair. Dr Aw is a recognised and highly respected figure in the fields of international education and higher education administration.
She was formerly vice president of campus life and inclusive excellence at American University in Washington, DC, where she provided senior executive leadership for 15 campus life departments. Aw was also responsible for leading, coordinating, monitoring, and assessing institutional work related to strategic plans for inclusion, diversity, and equity. In addition, she worked with university leadership on student engagement and campus internationalisation, and co-chaired the Covid-19 taskforce.
As senior professorial lecturer at AU’s school of international service, Aw taught graduate courses related to immigration, higher education internationalization, and international higher education policy. She received the 2013 University Award for Outstanding Teaching in an Adjunct Position.
With over 30 years’ experience in higher education administration, Aw has led workshops and trainings for numerous organisations, including the Department of State, Institute of International Education, AMIDEAST, College Board, and NAFSA.
Aw earned all her degrees from American University: BS in accounting, MA in public administration with a concentration in organisation development, and a PhD in sociology with a concentration in international education, social stratification, and transnational migration.
Jessica Sandberg, dean of international enrollment, Duke Kunshan University
With over 20 years in the field, Jessica Sandberg is driven by a passion for international education. She presently serves as dean of international enrollment for Duke Kunshan University (a joint venture between Duke University and Wuhan University) from her base on Duke’s campus in North Carolina.
Prior positions include admissions roles with Temple University, Community College of Philadelphia, Vesalius College (Belgium) and Arcadia University. Jessica is perhaps best known for developing the #YouAreWelcomeHere campaign in 2016 to promote US higher education to prospective international students and, later, the associated scholarship programme. In 2017, she was recognised for this effort by The Chronicle of Higher Education with an appearance on their annual Influence List. Jessica is a frequent writer and presenter for NAFSA, NACAC, AIRC and AIEA and served as editor for NAFSA’s popular reference book, Guide to International Recruitment in 2017.
In 2021, Jessica was elected as national chair for NAFSA's International Enrollment Management Knowledge Community and is serving a three year term. Jessica holds a BA in political science from Moravian College and an MA in international relations from the University of Kent at Brussels.
Tania Rhodes‐Taylor, CEO, Otus Advisory
Tania Rhodes-Taylor is CEO of international higher education consultancy and coaching practice Otus Advisory.
She was previously vice-principal (external relations) at the University of Sydney and was the strategic lead for the university’s externally facing activities. She oversaw student recruitment and admissions, marketing, communications and media, museums and the university’s engagement with industry.
Prior to joining Sydney, Tania was director of marketing and communications at Queen Mary University London. She holds an MBA in higher education management from the Institute of Education, UCL.
Tania has previously worked in the corporate and government sectors in the UK, USA and Asia before moving to work for government agencies and, since 2007, within the higher education sector
Rebecca D. Hansen, director of international admissions, The College of Wooster
Rebecca is a dynamic leader with a deep passion for international education. She is currently the director of international admissions at The College of Wooster, where she serves on the enrollment management leadership team. With over a decade of dedicated membership in International Association of College Admissions Counseling, Ms. Hansen also serves on the International ACAC membership committee (2022-2025), heading the onboarding sub-committee.
In her previous role with Northern Kentucky University (2015-2023), Ms. Hansen served in several positions, culminating with her time as director of international student and scholar services. Her time at NKU is marked by her pioneering recruitment initiatives and dedication to enhancing the experience for international students.
Recognised for her outstanding contributions, Ms. Rebecca Hansen has received several accolades, including the prestigious International ACAC Distinguished Service Award (2023), the Wise Woman of NKU Award (2022), and the Friend of Student Affairs - Staff Award (2022).
