McMaster University seeks Chinese advertising firm to recruit more students from China
The university's global engagement strategy states that roughly 15 percent of undergraduate students come from outside Canada and emphasizes attracting international students as a strategic priority.
McMaster University is looking to hire a marketing agency with expertise in China's tightly controlled media environment as it ramps up efforts to recruit more undergraduate students from the People's Republic of China.
A newly posted Request for Proposals (RFP) on the MERX procurement website invites bids for "Paid Media Campaign Services in China" to promote McMaster to prospective students living in China. The university says it wants to "attract interest from students residing in China and encourage them to consider studying an undergraduate degree at the University."
According to the tender documents, McMaster is seeking a contractor with "extensive media strategy experience, gained specifically from within the Chinese media landscape," as well as experience marketing educational institutions to Chinese audiences. The successful bidder would develop and execute paid advertising campaigns targeted at Chinese students.
The contract would run for an initial three-year term, with the option for McMaster to renew it annually for up to two additional years at the university's discretion.
The procurement aligns with McMaster's broader international recruitment strategy. The university says its international recruitment marketing team promotes McMaster to prospective students in more than 200 countries, while its global engagement strategy states that roughly 15 percent of undergraduate students come from outside Canada and emphasizes attracting international students as a strategic priority.
McMaster also maintains dedicated programs for Chinese students and researchers, including partnerships with the China Scholarship Council and Chinese-language recruitment materials aimed at prospective applicants.
The RFP does not disclose the value of the proposed advertising contract. Prospective bidders must demonstrate experience navigating China's unique media environment and promoting educational services within that market.
Sheila Gunn Reid
Chief Reporter
Sheila Gunn Reid is the Editor-in-Chief, Alberta Bureau Chief, member of the board of directors, and host of The Gunn Show at Rebel News. Sheila also serves as President of the Independent Press Gallery of Canada. A mother of three and longtime conservative activist, Sheila is the author of bestselling books, including her most recent release, Independence Blueprint: What Alberta Can Learn From Quebec.
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COMMENTS
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Bruce Atchison commented 2026-07-20 21:20:44 -0400Defund all universities with ties to the CCP! Communists undermine any free country they visit. It’s time to defund hard-left universities.
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Bernhard Jatzeck commented 2026-07-20 13:30:27 -0400A lot of post-secondary institutions expanded some 30 or 40 years ago because of an increasing number of applicants. But, as many graduates found out, a degree or diploma wasn’t necessarily a guarantee of a job, so domestic applications declined. Those institutions were stuck with a lot of empty lecture theatre seats and, in order to stay in business, they invited foreign students to come and study there.
