Great to meet you
INTO people are as diverse as the thousands of students we serve every year. We all share a passion for progress, equality and a better future. Find out who we are, what we believe in and check out our career opportunities.
What we do
INTO is an education and recruitment partner, connecting international students with top universities in the US, UK, and Australia. Since 2006, we've helped over 150,000 students from 188 countries achieve their dream degrees. We operate globally, with 1,500 staff and 2,500 recruitment partners.
Why we do it
INTO envisions a world where every student, no matter their background, can access quality higher education. We're committed to global connections that empower individuals and inspire innovation. Our goal is to lead in international education, partnering with top universities, and preparing students for career success in a connected world. Together, we aim to build a more prosperous and inclusive global society through education.
INTO leadership teams
Our executive and management teams converge from wide-ranging backgrounds, with senior academics working alongside seasoned private enterprise leaders and colleagues from public services.
Executive team
John Sykes
Co-Founder and Chief Executive OfficerJohn Sykes
Co-Founder and Chief Executive OfficerJohn has over 20 years’ experience in the higher education sector and has a strong background in corporate finance. As one of INTO’s founding directors, John has been a lynch-pin in the development of every Joint Venture.
After graduating from Brighton University, John joined leading accounting firm KPMG, where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant and gained significant experience in the corporate finance arena. John then joined a corporate finance practice in Sussex where he led many small- and medium-sized investments in London and the South East, eventually becoming a partner.
From 1995 to 2003, John was Finance Director of Study Group, where he formed a strong working relationship with founder Andrew Colin and played an instrumental role in growing the business, overseeing its acquisition by The Daily Mail Group in 1999, and helping to expand operations into Australia, the USA and Canada.
In 2006 John and Andrew established INTO University Partnerships. John has been a Director and Board Member of the company since inception. In 2012, John led a private placement process culminating in an equity investment from Leeds Equity Partners of £66 million in the group for a 25 per cent stake in the business. This investment completed the first stage of INTO’s funding plans, which are aimed at providing universities with access to significant external capital to fund innovation and capacity building in the higher education sector.
John focuses on driving business development and supporting operational leadership in order to guide the strategic direction of the company. He attributes INTO’s extraordinary growth trajectory and reputation for academic excellence to robust management, ongoing and substantial investment in learning centers, and a superior global sales and marketing infrastructure.
When he is not travelling to meet new partner institutions or visit INTO’s operations around the world, John lives in Eastbourne, East Sussex, with his wife Denise and three children Michael, George and Olivia.
Roz Chivers
Chief Financial OfficerRoz Chivers
Chief Financial OfficerRoz Chivers serves as Chief Financial Officer for INTO University Partnerships.
Roz joined INTO in 2018 after 15 years at Avios where her last role there was Head of Commercial Finance and Business Planning (FP&A).
In joining INTO, Roz relocated from the UK to San Diego to successfully lead our Commercial Finance, North America team. During that time, she transformed the level of commercial finance support provided to the North America teams.
Andy Fawcett
Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President, AdmissionsAndy Fawcett
Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President, AdmissionsAndy is responsible for INTO’s technology and information systems and global admissions.
He joined INTO from global education and publishing company Pearson where he was for five years responsible for the provision of technical solutions to deliver digital education products.
Prior to this, he was global chief information officer for Hays — a recruitment business with operations in over 30 countries. During his five years there, he set up a new digital channel for recruitment agents and introduced systems to enable the rapid expansion of their international operations. He also spent 10 years as a management consultant with the consulting company Accenture.
Andy’s educational background includes a Chemical Physics degree from the University of Bristol in the UK, an executive MBA from the Kellogg School of Management in the United States and a selection of professional qualifications from the INSEAD business school in Paris.
Tom Hands
Chief Recruitment OfficerTom Hands
Chief Recruitment OfficerTom is an Australian now based in Hong Kong. He is well known to many within the industry and has an extensive wealth of experience in International Education and Recruitment.
He joined INTO from Kaplan International where he was Chief Commercial Officer for nearly 2 years and oversaw strategic reviews of expansion markets, recruitment and marketing structures and global integration initiatives
Tom’s International Education sector career started at Navitas in 2003, where he stayed until 2020, with a stint at Study Group from 2011 to 2013 as Partner Director –South and South East Asia. Prior to joining Kaplan in 2020, Tom was Navitas’ General Manager – Global Sales where he was responsible for Navitas’ global source market sales team and legal/operational entities, and previously Regional Sales Director, Greater China and North Asia.
Tom has completed Bachelors degrees in International Business and Chinese at the University of Queensland, and speaks Mandarin. He will now focus on our Recruitment business unit as a member of the Executive Team
Emma Samarasinghe
Chief People OfficerEmma Samarasinghe
Chief People OfficerEmma is responsible for INTO’s global People function.
She joined INTO in 2016, as VP People, before being promoted to the INTO Executive Team in 2022. Emma has over 20 years of experience in global Human Resources leadership, having worked within many sectors including retail, travel, healthcare, telecommunications, FMCG, and media.
Emma started her Human Resources Leadership career within retail working for brands such as HMV Group, Mothercare, and Gap Inc., before moving into the travel sector working at Kuoni Global Travel Services. Before joining INTO, she ran her own HR consultancy for 5 years, supporting organizations with Human Resources leadership on an interim basis. Emma’s expertise and experience has helped shape INTO’s People function who support our employees across the world.
Education is very dear to Emma. She is a Board member of INTOGiving, who support projects that increase access to education and improve the quality of teaching and learning across the globe. Emma is also a Trustee of The Southover Partnership, an organization that focuses on young people with complex special needs, whose goal is to give all children a future through education.
Emma is a member of the CIPD and has a BA(Hons) degree in Business Studies and Spanish.
Sharon Sundue
Executive Vice President, US EducationSharon Sundue
Executive Vice President, US EducationDr. Sharon Sundue serves as Executive Vice President, US Education. In this role, Sharon oversees partnership performance and student success for all our US partner universities.
Sharon has spent her entire career in US higher education. After she received her PhD in History from Harvard University, she was appointed to the history department at Drew University and served as Associate Dean for Curriculum and Faculty Development in the College of Liberal Arts there. She has been with INTO since 2014, when we established our partnership with Drew University; under her leadership as the inaugural executive director of that partnership, Drew’s international enrollments grew from 3% to 20% of the university’s undergraduate population. Drew now ranks fourth among baccalaureate institutions in terms of international student population.
Sharon later expanded her responsibilities at INTO as Vice President, Academic Affairs, working closely with all university partnerships to develop and enhance academic programs that promote sustained enrollments and student success. In October 2021, she was promoted to Senior Vice President, Partnerships and Academic Affairs, in which role she had the opportunity to collaborate with all executive directors and university partners to drive performance.
Mary Wade
Executive Vice President, UK EducationMary Wade
Executive Vice President, UK EducationMary, as Executive Vice President, UK Education, is responsible for overseeing partnership performance and student success for all our UK partner universities.
Mary joined INTO in May 2023 with over 25 years’ experience in the education sector, establishing and maintaining strong private to public sector partnerships and has a proven track record in delivering exceptional student outcomes. Before joining INTO, Mary was at Cambridge Education Group (CEG) for a number of years where her last role was as their Chief Operating Officer for ONCAMPUS UK/EU, CEG’s pathway provision at leading universities across the UK, USA and mainland Europe.
Education and International education has always been Mary’s passion having originally been an English Language Teacher in Turkey, Egypt and Slovakia followed by roles within the British Council in Turkey. She also holds voluntary positions within the education and charity sectors.
Mary holds a BSc (Hons) in Physics, an MSc in Educational Leadership, and an MBA.
Nick Adlam
Chief Commercial OfficerNick Adlam
Chief Commercial OfficerSince July 2023, Nick’s role is focused on leading INTO's commercial growth agenda.
Prior to joining INTO, Nick has forged a rich and varied career in strategy and turnaround leadership and consultancy. Graduating with a Masters in Civil Engineering from Imperial College, Nick started his career as a construction engineer. He then went on to build his foundation in strategy and turnaround at Bain & Company for a number of years before joining Element Six, part of the De Beers and Anglo American groups to turnaround a $50M and then $100M P&L. In 2013, Nick set up Adlam Associates to become an independent advisor in strategy and turnaround and later built consulting firm, The Barton Partnership. Nick has also held multiple non-executive roles and been involved in a number of entrepreneurial opportunities along the way.
Nick is passionate about supporting young people to explore the great outdoors and set up The RDC Foundation to support others to enjoy the outdoors as he has. His endeavors have included mountaineering in the Himalayas and Alps, cycling across the USA, crossing an icecap on skis and extensive overlanding across Africa, Asia and South America. Nick lives with his family and pet Labrador in Hampshire, UK.
INTO board
Andrew Colin
Founder and OwnerAndrew Colin
Founder and OwnerAndrew Colin is the founder/owner of INTO University Partnerships. He provides the leadership and vision which has helped INTO to develop partnerships with leading universities across three continents.
Andrew combines a strong entrepreneurial spirit with a passion for education and international student mobility.
Back in 1981, while studying law at the London School of Economics, Andrew launched his first company - providing Apple-sponsored computer courses for schoolchildren.
In 1990, he founded and directed Study Group, which, under his leadership, became a major force in international pre-university education with centres established throughout the United Kingdom, United States, Australia and New Zealand.
In 2005, Andrew founded INTO University Partnerships, with the aim of transforming the international student experience and helping leading internationally-focused universities to expand access and improve student mobility.
Since its establishment, INTO has delivered world-class educational experiences to international students through joint venture partnerships with leading universities across the UK, the US and China.
In May 2013, Andrew received the prestigious Global Leadership Award from the University of South Florida in recognition of his contribution to international education.
Professor Sir David Eastwood
ChairProfessor Sir David Eastwood
ChairProfessor Sir David Eastwood is Non-Executive Chair of the INTO University Partnerships Board of Directors. He served as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Birmingham from 2009–2021.
Former posts include Chief Executive at the Higher Education Funding Council for England, Vice-Chancellor at the University of East Anglia, and Chief Executive of the Arts and Humanities Research Board. His early career was spent at the University of Oxford, where he was Fellow and Senior Tutor of Pembroke College. He later held a Chair in Modern History and was Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Swansea University.
He chaired the Russell Group of Universities (2012-2015), Universitas 21 (2014-2021), and also Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS, 2015-2021). He also served as an international member of the Hong Kong University Grants Committee (2011-2021). He has been a member of numerous national commissions include the Browne Review of Higher Education Funding (2009-2010) and the Nurse Review of Research (2014-2015).
In January 2012 he was appointed as a Deputy Lieutenant for the county of West Midlands, and was awarded a Knighthood in 2014 for services to education.
Jeffrey Leeds
Leeds Equity PartnersJeffrey Leeds
Leeds Equity PartnersJeffrey is President and Co-Founder of Leeds Equity and has over 20 years of experience investing in private equity transactions in the Knowledge Industries.
Prior to co-founding Leeds Equity, Jeffrey spent seven years specializing in mergers and acquisitions and corporate finance at Lazard Frères & Co. Prior to joining Lazard, Mr. Leeds served as a law clerk to the Hon. William J. Brennan, Jr. of the Supreme Court of the United States. Mr. Leeds also worked in the corporate department of the law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York after graduating from law school.
Jeffrey currently serves as a director of BARBRI, Evanta Ventures and INTO University Partnerships. He also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities and Real Page (NASDAQ: RP). He has previously served as a director of Argosy University, Datamark, Miller Heiman, Ross University and Seaton, among others. Jeffrey was the founding chairman of the Green Dot New York Charter School and serves on the board of the Colin L. Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at the City College of New York. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and served on the Council on Foreign Relations Independent Task Force on Education and National Security.
Jeffrey graduated summa cum laude from Yale University with a B.A. degree in History and attended Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar. He earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School.
Chris Mairs
Managing Director, Leeds Equity PartnersChris Mairs
Managing Director, Leeds Equity PartnersChris has over 15 years of private equity and investment banking experience.
Prior to joining Leeds Equity in 2008, Chris worked in both London and New York for Greenhill & Co. as an Analyst in the Mergers and Acquisitions Group.
Steven Smale
Co-Founder and DirectorSteven Smale
Co-Founder and DirectorSteven is one of INTO’s founding directors and leads all student recruitment activity for the group.
Fluent in Chinese, Steven is one of the world’s leading practitioners in the management of large, distributed student recruitment networks. Under his leadership, INTO currently attracts more than 12,000 students per year from all over the world to our partners.
As director of the Global Recruitment Unit, Steven oversees the activities of a global team operating out of 25+ regional offices — ensuring that students and their advisors receive outstanding service supported by customer-focused processes, all enabled by the latest technology.
His time as an international student in Taiwan in 1990 and his long experience of living and working in China gives him an unparalleled perspective of the support needed by young people studying far from home, as well as a deep awareness of the value of studying overseas — all of which, he says, are vital to him in his role today.
Steven has built his career in counselling international students and developing the systems, processes and management structures which enable institutions to recruit at scale and to deliver services and experiences which international students, their families and their representatives expect.
After university where he studied Chinese and German, Steven worked for the Anglo-Taiwan Education Centre in Taibei. There he honed his Chinese language skills and helped to establish a body to promote education in the UK that resulted in a transformation in the number of students travelling from Taiwan from 38 to 2,500 per year.
John Sykes
Co-Founder and Chief Executive OfficerJohn Sykes
Co-Founder and Chief Executive OfficerJohn has over 20 years’ experience in the higher education sector and has a strong background in corporate finance. As one of INTO’s founding directors, John has been a lynch-pin in the development of every Joint Venture.
After graduating from Brighton University, John joined leading accounting firm KPMG, where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant and gained significant experience in the corporate finance arena. John then joined a corporate finance practice in Sussex where he led many small- and medium-sized investments in London and the South East, eventually becoming a partner.
From 1995 to 2003, John was Finance Director of Study Group, where he formed a strong working relationship with founder Andrew Colin and played an instrumental role in growing the business, overseeing its acquisition by The Daily Mail Group in 1999, and helping to expand operations into Australia, the USA and Canada.
In 2006 John and Andrew established INTO University Partnerships. John has been a Director and Board Member of the company since inception. In 2012, John led a private placement process culminating in an equity investment from Leeds Equity Partners of £66 million in the group for a 25 per cent stake in the business. This investment completed the first stage of INTO’s funding plans, which are aimed at providing universities with access to significant external capital to fund innovation and capacity building in the higher education sector.
John focuses on driving business development and supporting operational leadership in order to guide the strategic direction of the company. He attributes INTO’s extraordinary growth trajectory and reputation for academic excellence to robust management, ongoing and substantial investment in learning centers, and a superior global sales and marketing infrastructure.
When he is not travelling to meet new partner institutions or visit INTO’s operations around the world, John lives in Eastbourne, East Sussex, with his wife Denise and three children Michael, George and Olivia.
Nick Adlam
Chief Commercial OfficerNick Adlam
Chief Commercial OfficerSince July 2023, Nick’s role is focused on leading INTO's commercial growth agenda.
Prior to joining INTO, Nick has forged a rich and varied career in strategy and turnaround leadership and consultancy. Graduating with a Masters in Civil Engineering from Imperial College, Nick started his career as a construction engineer. He then went on to build his foundation in strategy and turnaround at Bain & Company for a number of years before joining Element Six, part of the De Beers and Anglo American groups to turnaround a $50M and then $100M P&L. In 2013, Nick set up Adlam Associates to become an independent advisor in strategy and turnaround and later built consulting firm, The Barton Partnership. Nick has also held multiple non-executive roles and been involved in a number of entrepreneurial opportunities along the way.
Nick is passionate about supporting young people to explore the great outdoors and set up The RDC Foundation to support others to enjoy the outdoors as he has. His endeavors have included mountaineering in the Himalayas and Alps, cycling across the USA, crossing an icecap on skis and extensive overlanding across Africa, Asia and South America. Nick lives with his family and pet Labrador in Hampshire, UK.
Tamsin Todd
Non-Executive DirectorTamsin Todd
Non-Executive DirectorTamsin joined INTO as Non-Executive Director in 2022. A strategic leader with a background in product and technology, Tamsin has worked in many sectors and businesses across the US, UK and Europe. She was CEO of Findmypast from 2017 to 2023, through a period of transformation and expansion. During her career Tamsin has driven growth for admired brands including Amazon, Microsoft, Betfair and TUI Group.
Tamsin served as Trustee of the Imperial War Museums and Chair of its Trading Company between 2015 to 2023, and she is a Non-Executive Director of Auction Technology Group. She holds an MBA from Imperial College London, an MA from the University of Texas at Austin, and an AB summa cum laude from Princeton University where she has served in senior leadership roles in the alumni community. She is an investor and advisor to early-stage startups.
Annalisa Gigante
Non-Executive DirectorAnnalisa Gigante
Non-Executive DirectorAnnalisa joined the INTO Board of Directors as a Non-Executive Director in 2022 and Chairs the Remuneration and Nominations Committees. She brings a track record of commercial growth and award-winning innovation, as Chief Innovation and Technology Officer in global leading companies in Chemicals, Life Sciences and Services, including Holcim, Bekaert, DSM, and the Adecco Group.
She is Head of Innovation at International Airlines Group, and serves on the Boards of the Henry Royce Institute – the UK’s Institute for advanced materials research, Cambridge Enterprise, and the Investment Committee of the University of Cambridge’s Seed Fund. These support academics, researchers, staff and students of the University of Cambridge in achieving knowledge transfer and research impact.
Annalisa brings to INTO a wealth of experience and focus on transformation, R&D, digital and sustainable technologies, having launched cutting edge innovations in collaboration with start-ups and academia.
UK INTO center leadership team
Bridget White
Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives and Global OperationsBridget White
Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives and Global OperationsBridget has over 20 years’ experience in the higher education sector, and a strong background in management, leadership, international student services and welfare & international admissions.
Bridget has worked with INTO since 2005, during which time she has overseen the initial set up and implementation of the UK INTO centres, as well as the establishment of the Admissions and Application Processing functions in Brighton and San Diego.
Bridget has also acted as start-up director in the majority of INTO’s joint ventures and established the Student Services operation for INTO China. In addition, she has been heavily involved in setting up our immigration compliance function.
Nuala Corr
Senior Vice President, UK PartnershipsNuala Corr
Senior Vice President, UK PartnershipsNuala Corr is Senior Vice President, UK Partnerships.
Previously, she served as Center Director for INTO Queen’s University Belfast, a role pivotal to the success of the joint venture and is responsible for all operations and administrative functions.
Nuala has over 16 years’ experience working within international education at several institutions. Her most recent role prior to joining INTO Queen’s in May 2019 was within the International Office at Queen’s University Belfast. As part of her role, she had led on the interface between the INTO center and the University, developing both strategic and operational plans to achieve ambitious partnership aspirations. She also was instrumental in driving the delivery of direct entry targets to Queen’s University from key partners globally, working collaboratively with key internal and external stakeholders to maximize outcomes.
Nuala is fully committed to nurturing and strengthening relationships between INTO and its partner universities, developing long-term sustainable recruitment outcomes for the mutual benefit of all partners.
Tuukka Hinttula
Senior Vice President, UK PartnershipsTuukka Hinttula
Senior Vice President, UK PartnershipsTuukka has over 20 years’ experience in combining cross-functional competencies in international higher education within the public and private HE sectors.
Between 2009 and 2017, Tuukka has held senior positions within the recruitment team with INTO University Partnerships, including the management of INTO’s global regional office network. In 2017, he assumed the responsibility for developing INTO’s direct entry provision to ensure the business became more optimally positioned to deliver growth in direct entry enrolments. During this time Tuukka provided strategic direction over a significant investment and expansion, successfully guiding this function to a company-wide integration in 2022.
Based in Brighton, Tuukka is currently Senior Vice President, UK Partnerships, providing leadership to a number of INTO’s center directors, their management teams and employees in the UK. His responsibilities cover leading and strengthening INTO’s relationships with university partners to ensure the organization continues to add significant value across its partnerships.
Dawn Abbott
Center Director, INTO ManchesterDawn Abbott
Center Director, INTO ManchesterDawn Abbott has been the Center Director for INTO Manchester since it opened in 2008 and leads the team at the center to provide all aspects of student support and academic matters.
Dawn has a degree in French and Spanish from the University of Nottingham, and has over 25 years of experience working in international education in the UK, Spain and Brazil. She started her management career at an English language school in Brazil and then returned to the UK to take her Master’s in Applied Linguistics and English Language Teaching at King’s College London. She continued in teaching, teacher training and management in the private and the further education sectors prior to INTO Manchester.
In her spare time, Dawn enjoys reading, travelling, yoga and spending time with family and friends.
Eleanor Maly
Center Director, INTO University of StirlingEleanor Maly
Center Director, INTO University of StirlingEleanor Maly joined INTO as Centre Director of INTO University of Stirling in October 2022.
Ellie joined us after five years as Director of Operations and Director of Education at International House London, prior to which she was UK Operations Director for Embassy English. Ellie has over 15 years’ experience in the international education sector and over 10 years' experience in educational leadership. She has lived and worked in several countries around the world, including Lesotho, South Korea, and Cambodia. Ellie served on the ASAC, the Governance Committee for the British Council, and was Treasurer of English UK London.
Ellie is completing an Executive MBA with Cranfield University and holds a first-class degree in English Literature from the University of Edinburgh.
Karen Bridges
Center Director, INTO University of East AngliaKaren Bridges
Center Director, INTO University of East AngliaKaren joined INTO University of East Anglia in June 2023, after being Centre Director at INTO City, University of London since May 2019.
From an early career in the NHS as a Registered Nurse, Midwife and Health Visitor, Karen made her first move into a career in education via Further Education (FE). Several geographical moves took Karen to the East of England where she joined a large FE and higher education college to manage an NHS workforce development contract, in association with the University of Essex and Anglia Ruskin University. In a five-year period, Karen grew the contract and provision to represent a quarter of the college's total income, providing allied health professionals across multiple disciplines to NHS East of England.
Following a personal tragedy in 2009 Karen changed career. Completing a Masters in Systemic Leadership with the Tavistock, she became a Professional Interim Manager and Consultant. Over a 10-year period, Karen developed a reputation in the FE and HE sectors she worked with, for her commercial acumen and curriculum development skills, as well as for her ability to turnaround failing provision and deliver a professional and exemplary student experience. Karen’s final interim project was with INTO Queens University Belfast, from where she caught the INTO bug.
When not working Karen can be found outdoors (Forest, Moors, Beach and Fenland) with her very special English Bull Terrier Jumble — who is food for mind, body and soul.
Clare McKeague
Center Director, INTO Newcastle UniversityClare McKeague
Center Director, INTO Newcastle UniversityClare joined INTO Newcastle University as Interim Centre Director in August 2023 on secondment from Newcastle University. She has extensive experience in regional, national, and transnational projects, partnerships and operations working across Higher Education, Government and International Organisations. Within her International Office role at Newcastle University, Clare has played a leading role in the development and delivery of international student recruitment strategies and plans.
Adelina Melillo
Center Director, INTO City UniversityAdelina Melillo
Center Director, INTO City UniversityAdelina joined INTO in September 2023. Having graduated in French and Italian from Leicester University, and studied abroad, Adelina then pursued a career in international education. She has worked with international students for over 20 years starting her career in language teaching in Spain, Italy and Ghana, progressing to leadership positions across a whole host of educational institutions.
Adelina joined INTO from Cambridge Education Group’s ONCAMPUS where she was their London South Bank University’s Centre Director before becoming Centre Director for ONCAMPUS London, a choice centre, in partnership with several University of London Colleges.
In her spare time, Adelina enjoys coastal walks on the Kent coast, where she lives, and is currently studying an MSc in International Business and Management.
Liam O'Hagan
Center Director, INTO Queen's University BelfastLiam O'Hagan
Center Director, INTO Queen's University BelfastLiam joined INTO Queen’s University Belfast in September 2010, initially in a teaching capacity before taking on a Programme Manager role for almost nine years.
In 2019 Liam was appointed the Academic Director at INTO Queen’s. During this time, Liam led the way in transforming the academic quality and standards of the INTO Queen’s programmes as well as increasing the overall outcomes and progression rates for students. He has successfully taken the centre through three QAA annual reviews and at the start of 2023, the more comprehensive QAA Educational oversight - Exceptional Arrangements review. The final report confirms QAA’s confidence in INTO Queen’s management of quality and standards and identifies good practice for the Centre. Liam balanced all this while leading his team through the ongoing challenges brought on due to the pandemic.
Liam holds a First Class Honours degree from Queen’s University Belfast and an MSc (Econ) from University of Wales, Aberystwyth.
Tom Lavin
Center Director, INTO University of ExeterTom Lavin
Center Director, INTO University of ExeterTom joined INTO University of Exeter as Center Director in January 2024. Tom joined having worked for Study Group as Center Director at Teesside University's International Study Center. Prior to this, Tom also worked at Durham University Center for Academic Development, as well as spending approximately 5 years as Admissions Director at one of the largest international schools in Singapore. He also worked for 10 years at the British Council across the Southeast Asia region in a number of Academic and Commercially focused leadership roles.
Tom holds a BA Hons degree in Politics from Sheffield University, as well as a PGCE from the University of Nottingham and a Master's in Educational Leadership and Management. In his free time, Tom is mostly occupied with entertaining and being entertained by his four young children and exploring new restaurants with his foodie wife.
Robin Peel
Center Director, INTO London World Education CenterRobin Peel
Center Director, INTO London World Education CenterRobin Peel was appointed Centre Director of INTO London in January 2024. He began his international education journey teaching English in Thailand at the age of 18. After returning, Robin completed his undergraduate degree in Thai and Linguistics at SOAS, University of London, followed by a master’s in Pragmatics at UCL. After spending some time teaching the Thai language at SOAS, and English language at Takashoku University in Japan, Robin returned to the UK and shortly after, began working for INTO London, swiftly progressing to Programme Manager and then Academic Director. After leading the team through numerous successful QAA and ISI reviews, Robin was then appointed Centre Director.
Originally from Newcastle, Robin is a keen football fan and follower of Newcastle United, and can sometimes be found playing Beatles covers in South London.
Thom Kiddle
Director of NILEThom Kiddle
Director of NILEThom Kiddle has worked at NILE since 2011, after moving back to the UK from Chile where he was head of academic research and educational technology at the Chilean-British University. He has previously worked in Portugal, the UK, Australia and Thailand in language teaching, teacher training and language assessment.
He has a Master’s degree in Language Testing from Lancaster University and the Cambridge Delta, and his role at NILE involves strategic and organisational management, and training and consultancy in a range of areas including testing and assessment, learning technologies, materials development and language teaching methodology.
Thom is also Chair of the Eaquals Board of Trustees; treasurer and a founding director of AQUEDUTO – the Association for Quality Education and Training Online; and a member of the British Council English Language Advisory Group.
He has published in Applied Linguistics, Language Assessment Quarterly, System; in 2019, two chapters in Routledge Handbooks of Language Teacher Education; and has two forthcoming publications on Quality Assurance and Digital Language Teaching Materials in 2023. Thom was also a plenary speaker at IATEFL 2021.
US INTO center leadership Team
Steven Richman
Senior Vice President, Partnerships (Public)Steven Richman
Senior Vice President, Partnerships (Public)Steven Richman serves as Senior Vice President, Partnerships, for INTO’s public university partners. In this role, Steven oversees partnership performance, growth and student success for INTO Oregon State University, INTO University of South Florida, INTO The University of Alabama at Birmingham, INTO George Mason University and INTO Illinois State University.
Steven has spent most of his career in international education with Hofstra University. He received his JD from Hofstra University and his MA in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University. Beginning in 2012, Steven served in leadership roles as Senior Director of Global Initiatives at the Maurice A. Deane School of Law, followed by Dean of International Recruitment and Dean for Global Opportunities for Hofstra University. In these roles, he and his teams grew, diversified and stabilized international enrollments by implementing comprehensive admission policies, recruitment strategies and data insights to manage student pipelines. He was also a founding member of the online Health Law and Policy LLM/MA program, in which he currently serves as Special Professor of Law.
In addition to university experience, Steven has presented on international education around the globe, including at NAFSA conferences, and he has held leadership positions in Study New York and the American Association of Law Schools. In 2019, upon the launch of INTO’s partnership with Hofstra, Steven became founding Executive Director of INTO Hofstra University.
Yasmin Sefer
Senior Vice President, Partnerships (Private)Yasmin Sefer
Senior Vice President, Partnerships (Private)Yasmin Sefer serves as Senior Vice President, Partnerships, for INTO’s private university partners. In this role, Yasmin oversees partnership performance, growth and student success for INTO Drew University, INTO Saint Louis University, INTO Suffolk University and INTO Hofstra University.
Yasmin has spent most of her career in international education, and she has been with INTO for nearly 12 years, most recently serving as VP, Recruitment. Before spearheading our North America recruitment efforts with great success, Yasmin joined INTO in 2010 from Kaplan, where she was Senior Manager, International Sales and Market Development.
Yasmin received her BA in Political Science from New York University.
Laura Arthur
Executive Director, INTO Drew UniversityLaura Arthur
Executive Director, INTO Drew UniversityLaura Arthur has worked in the field of international higher education administration for more than twenty years.
Since 2010, she has served as Drew University’s Director of International Student and Scholar Services, spearheading all aspects of advising and student support services for the university’s entire population of international students and scholars from over 50 countries. She has also served as INTO Drew’s Director of Student Experience since the partnership commenced, supervising the center’s academic coaching program in addition to student health and wellness support and services that enhance the curricular and co-curricular student experience and further the internationalization efforts of the University. Prior to joining Drew, Laura served as Director of International Services at Stevens Institute of Technology and associate Director of International Programs for Students at the University of South Carolina.
Laura holds a master’s degree in International Education and Exchange Management from the Graduate Institute of the School for International Training in Vermont. As an undergraduate, she earned her BA in International Relations from the University of Wisconsin and was, during this time, an international student in Madrid — this was a transformative experience for her and provided her with a sense of just how powerful a globalized education can be for a student.
Bob Gilmour
Executive Director, INTO Oregon State UniversityBob Gilmour
Executive Director, INTO Oregon State UniversityBob Gilmour is the Executive Director of INTO Oregon State University. In this role, Bob provides leadership for the INTO OSU center with 700 students and 80+ staff and faculty.
Bob has over 26 years' experience of working with international students in UK and US universities as an instructor, faculty member, program manager and director. He has been in the at OSU since 2010 following 18 years at Newcastle University in the UK. He has also lived and worked in France, Poland and Ecuador.
He has presented at conferences nationally and internationally on a variety of topics including multimedia online learning environments and international student engagement.
Since 2015, Bob has traveled worldwide working with educational counsellors, sponsors, schools and parents as well as meeting students who are hoping to study at OSU!
In his spare time, Bob rides his road bike around the Oregon countryside, sings and plays guitar in a band and competes in a wide variety of games against his two boys.
David Hofmann
Executive Director, INTO The University of Alabama at BirminghamDavid Hofmann
Executive Director, INTO The University of Alabama at BirminghamDavid Hofmann joined INTO UAB as Executive Director August 2016 prior to the program's first cohort of students. Since then, INTO UAB has brought almost 700 students to UAB.
In this role, David overseas INTO UAB center operations; international marketing, recruitment and enrollment for all center programs and direct entry; student experience; providing quality Academic English programs; and collaborations with the university.
David has over 20 years of experience in Higher Education, most recently spending 12 years with The Art Institute system of schools. Within this organization he served as Director of Housing, Dean of Student Affairs, Regional Vice President-Student Affairs, and Campus Director of The Art Institute of St. Louis. Prior to that he worked for Boston University and Texas Christian University. He has a Bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and a Master's degree from Texas Christian University.
Todd Rose
Executive Director, INTO George Mason UniversityTodd Rose
Executive Director, INTO George Mason UniversityDr. Todd Rose currently serves as the Executive Director of INTO Mason, a position he has held since January 2015.
INTO Mason is a joint venture between George Mason University and INTO University Partners (UK) and provides English language, academic, and cultural support to students from around the world, primarily in the first year of their undergraduate or graduate degrees. Before this role, he was the Assoc. Dean in University Life and head the Higher Education concentration in the MAIS program at Mason from 2010-2015.
Dr. Rose has spent almost 30 years in higher education, working at four very different institutions. In addition to his time at Mason, he was a Vice President at Millsaps College (MS), Asst. Dean of Students at Emory University (GA), and in a variety of positions at Baldwin-Wallace University (OH).
Before his career in higher education, Dr. Rose was a commercial lending officer at a large, regional bank in Nashville, TN working with companies in the service industry sector with annual sales of $10 million to $100 million. He earned a BBA in Finance (minor:Economics) from Southern Methodist University (TX), an MBA from Baldwin-Wallace University (OH), and a PhD in Educational Leadership and Research (with an emphasis in Higher Education) from The University of Southern Mississippi (MS).
Kristen Coelho
Executive Director, INTO Hofstra UniversityKristen Coelho
Executive Director, INTO Hofstra UniversityKristen joined INTO in July 2023 as the Executive Director at INTO Hofstra. Kristen brings over 15 years of professional experience from across the educational ecosystem where she has served as an international educator, business leader, and people manager.
Before joining the INTO team, Kristen was working in the EdTech sector as a sales and customer success leader where she worked closely with educational organizations around the world to facilitate the integration of digital learning tools and programs.
Kristen began her career in education as a program coordinator, graduate assistant, and peer tutor for international students during her graduate studies at Columbia University Teachers College where she earned her M.A. in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). Her teaching career began in NYC Public Schools, where she also served as an academic services coordinator and staff developer focused on driving culturally responsive pedagogy and inclusive learning environments. Kristen returned to higher education as the founding Academic Director of Adelphi University International, where she built and scaled the academic operations of the International Accelerator Program.
Kristen also holds a Bachelor of Music, Classical Voice Performance from Boston University.
Tim Hercules
Interim Executive Director, INTO Suffolk UniversityTim Hercules
Interim Executive Director, INTO Suffolk UniversityBefore joining INTO Suffolk University in October 2023, Tim served as the founding Executive Director for INTO Saint Louis University in 2015.
In his role at INTO Saint Louis University, Tim was the chief administrator of the joint venture striving to drive results for Saint Louis University (SLU) and INTO University Partnerships. Tim always enjoys engaging with global partners, students and families to share what our INTO Centers have to offer and the opportunities available.
Prior to joining INTO, Tim served within the enrolment management division at Saint Louis University. Tim began his higher education career in Student Financial Services and then became SLU’s Director of International Services and Student Educational Services. Before joining SLU, Tim worked for one of the top corporate travel companies managing all aspects of incentive and business meeting travel needs for Fortune 500 companies. A true Billiken at heart, Tim earned his undergraduate degree, Master of International Business, and J.D. at SLU. During his undergraduate studies at SLU he studied abroad at the SLU-Madrid campus.
Tim’s international experience has given him a global perspective and appreciation for international travel, culture and education.
Ryan Saale
Director, Operations & Partner Relations INTO Saint Louis UniversityRyan Saale
Director, Operations & Partner Relations INTO Saint Louis UniversityRyan Saale serves as the Director of Operations and Partner Relations at INTO Saint Louis University. In this role, Ryan provides strategic leadership for center operations including management of student experience, marketing and recruitment, and admissions operations.
Ryan joined INTO SLU in 2016 and brings more than 18 years of experience in higher education, international student recruitment, and corporate communications to the organization. Prior to his current role, Ryan served as the Assistant Director of Marketing and Recruitment at INTO SLU, in this role he engaged with students and families, INTO global teams and recruitment partners to drive enrollments to, and increase brand awareness for, INTO SLU and Saint Louis University.
Prior to his roles in higher education, Mr. Saale served in various positions at corporate communications and public relations agencies supporting multinational corporations, Fortune 500 companies, national and local businesses and organizations with focused specialties in strategic communications, media relations and crisis communications. He earned two undergraduate degrees in public relations and Spanish from Webster University and a masters in international affairs from Washington University in St. Louis. He is a native of Saint Louis and has lived, worked and studied abroad in Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Spain.
Australia leadership
Amanda Turner
Director, The University of Western Australia (UWA) CollegeAmanda Turner
Director, The University of Western Australia (UWA) CollegeAmanda Turner joined INTO in our very first Australian partnership as The University of Western Australia (UWA) College Director in early 2022.
Prior to this Amanda work at UWA as Associate Director, Global Engagement in a role focused on establishing and operationalizing UWA’s strategies aimed at increasing successful international engagement and growth.
Amanda has a Bachelor of Commerce and postgraduate qualifications in Information Technology. She has spent a large portion of her professional life within the education sector predominantly as Divisional General Manager for Students and Education at the University of Tasmania. Other education organizations she has worked at include the Australian Maritime College, Western Sydney University and Charles Darwin University.
Amanda has also worked in a number of leadership roles in the community services sector that focused on disability support in Tasmania, and assisting the long term unemployed and indigenous communities in the Northern Territory.
Partnership development team
Tim O'Brien
Senior Vice President, New Partner DevelopmentTim O'Brien
Senior Vice President, New Partner DevelopmentWith a career in international education spanning almost 30 years, Tim's work has encompassed most aspects of international education. He is responsible for helping to shape and expand INTO’s partner university network.
Prior to his current assignment, Tim spent eight years with INTO supporting the expansion of INTO's UK network. His work has included responsibility for INTO's market insight, external relations, and working as managing director for UK operations.
Before joining INTO, Tim worked in a variety of senior international roles in UK universities with responsibility for recruitment, alumni, student exchange, internationalization and establishing presence across many of the key markets in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Tim and his teams collected three HEIST (the UK's leading marketing awards for higher education) Gold awards for excellence in international marketing during his tenure in the UK university sector.
Tim represented the university sector as a member of the international board of the UCAS, the UK's national university admissions service. He also served as a board member of the Northern Consortium of Universities in the United Kingdom. He has consulted for the British Council, DAAD – the German international education organization and continues to speak regularly at external fora and conferences.
Tim is a graduate of International Relations and Political Science from Newcastle University in the United Kingdom.
David Stremba
Senior Vice President, Partnership Development, North AmericaDavid Stremba
Senior Vice President, Partnership Development, North AmericaDavid brings over 22 years of international education sector experience to INTO. In his role, he develops and executes a comprehensive, long-term business development strategy targeted at cultivating relationships with North American universities to drive institutional growth, create new revenue streams and expand options for students.
David has extensive experience working with U.S., U.K., Australian and Canadian universities; he previously oversaw the strategic development of partnerships at Shorelight Education, as well as partnership development at Navitas, North America as Executive General Manager. Prior to that, he was the Managing Director, North America at INTO University Partnerships, where he established the organization in the market and oversaw the planning, launch and management of INTO’s initial six university partnerships in the United States. Under David’s leadership, INTO grew its North American university partner network and student populations from the ground up. David also spent time at Kaplan Inc., where he was instrumental in the development of Kaplan’s first university partnership in the United Kingdom.
David has traveled extensively in over 50 countries, including Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. David is based in San Diego, CA, and holds a bachelor’s degree in international politics from Penn State University and an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management, where he graduated with high honors.
Lisa Henkel
Vice President of OperationsLisa Henkel
Vice President of OperationsLisa Henkel serves as the Vice President of Operations. In this role, Lisa is responsible for providing project leadership and managing centralized resources to support US network projects and process improvement initiatives.
Aside from serving eight years in the United States Air Force, Lisa has spent her entire career in higher education. Prior to joining INTO, Lisa served in a variety of roles at University of Maryland Global Campus where she led the implementation of operational strategies and objectives across multiple revenue-generating and support departments. Lisa spent ten years in the university’s overseas divisions, including three years as the director of downrange and Europe operations, where she was responsible for directing enrollment operations across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Lisa has a master's degree in management and a Master of Business Administration from UMGC. She is also Agile, Lean Six Sigma and PROSCI Change Management certified.
Steve Roden
Affiliates and Projects Director, UKSteve Roden
Affiliates and Projects Director, UKSteve serves as a member of the Business Development and Partnerships team for the United Kingdom, working closely with prospective partners and international education organizations.
He joined INTO in 2012, establishing the company’s the student placement business, which now has commercial contracts with over 100 universities across the UK and Europe.
Prior to joining INTO, Steve had 20 years’ experience in student recruitment, admissions, events and project management roles including working at a range of UK universities including the University of Salford, where he was director of the international office. He has previously sat on the advisory council for the Northern Consortium UK.
He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Liverpool and a postgraduate marketing qualification from Liverpool John Moores University.
Daniel Renton
Recruitment and Business Development Director, Australia and New ZealandDaniel Renton
Recruitment and Business Development Director, Australia and New ZealandDaniel is the Recruitment and Business Development Director, ANZ, for INTO. He has worked in international education for over 20 years, with and for universities, agents and private providers around the globe, mostly in sales, marketing and general management.
Recently, Daniel has also learned a lot from HR and education technology roles, and he firmly believes tech will continue to reshape every aspect of international education from marketing and recruitment to teaching and learning and beyond.
As an exchange student during his MBA, Daniel experienced the enduring and amplifying value of international study. He loves being part of realizing that opportunity for others.
Working at INTO
As INTO grows, so do the opportunities to join our global team.
We create new career opportunities worldwide where you can make an impact through international education. If you want to work in a team dedicated to building life-changing learning opportunities for international students, then you’re in the right place!
INTO people are as diverse as our students. We are educators, influencers, marketers, strategists, accountants, business leaders, communicators, student care professionals and information technologists. We speak multiple languages, and we live all over the world. We share a love of educational and cultural exchange across borders.
Active in more than 120 countries, 1,500 colleagues collaborate to provide a world class service to international students and university partners. If you share our enthusiasm for international education, we’d be delighted to hear from you.
Environmental, Social and Governance Strategy
At INTO, we are committed to connecting world-class universities with exceptional global talent, transforming students’ academic success ethically while promoting environmental and social justice. Our ESG strategy showcases our dedication to sustainability, transparency, and integrity. With a clear focus on immediate actions and long-term goals, we aim to drive positive outcomes across environmental, social, and governance aspects.