Why international students are important
The issue of international enrolment at the University of Alberta has recently made headlines. Given that the U of A and other postsecondary institutions are publicly funded, the composition of our student body and accessibility for Albertans is rightly of broad public interest.
The global nature of Alberta’s economy is also a key consideration, however, and too often it is overlooked in the discussion. Our wealth and arguably our future prosperity are tied to our ability to operate effectively on the world stage.
Alberta’s economy depends on buying and selling goods and services in markets outside of our province. In the first half of 2012, our exports reached almost $50 billion, second only to Ontario, and more than 30 per cent of these exports were in non-energy goods and services.
Furthermore, in 2011, percapita investment in the province reached $23,461, more than twice the national average. Much of this comes from outside of Canada.
The justifiable interest that all Albertans have in seeing our post-secondary institutions benefit our society thus needs to acknowledge economic forces, both present and future.
Let’s also note that this isn’t an issue unique to Alberta. Public institutions worldwide wrestle with finding the right balance in admissions on many dimensions, including international students. Likewise, the balance across disciplines, programs and faculties is often a subject of debate within universities and colleges.
Today, international students make up about 10 per cent of the University of Alberta’s student body, with the exact ratio varying among faculties and programs. For instance, at the Alberta School of Business, our bachelor of commerce, MBA and PhD programs have international enrolment of 17, 16 and 36 per cent respectively. This reflects our school’s success in international recruitment, a characteristic of globally com- petitive business schools.
International students come to the U of A for some of the same reasons that domestic students do. Postsecondary education delivers a great deal of personal benefit, both economic — improved income levels and enhanced career opportunities — and personal — intellectual development and personal growth.
From Alberta’s perspective, what value do international students bring to a classroom, a university and a country? Let me suggest at least three important contributions, which interestingly are all related to the very reasons that international students want to come to Alberta.
First, with respect to classrooms and programs, international students enrich the learning environment by bringing their backgrounds, perspectives and cultures to our campuses.
The Alberta School of Business, as an example, is more attractive to all students, including Albertans, because the diversity in the classroom better prepares our students for the world.
We would not be true to our vision — “Leaders from Alberta for the World” — if we did not admit international students.
Further, many of our Albertan students benefit from educational and work exchanges abroad that are facilitated by our international network. Student exchanges, like trade, go two ways. Sending Albertans abroad goes hand in hand with attracting international students here.
The benefit of diversity in the classroom is true in all disciplines, from biology to history to education. Albertans would be done a disservice if our colleges and universities did not enrich their experience with foreign peers.
Second, many students from abroad choose to remain in Alberta after graduation. These highly skilled individuals contribute to alleviating our labour shortage.
While attracting accountants, engineers and pipefitters from abroad is certainly one path to ensuring that Alberta has the necessary workforce to respond to our need for growth and development, admitting bright individuals to our universities and colleges is an important option that should be part of a broad workforce strategy.
With most analysts predicting that labour shortages will continue for some years, adding to our human capital is a particularly valuable consequence of international enrolments. In addition, international students, many of them among the best and brightest of their countries, are a source of innovation — economic, technical and cultural — that contributes to a society’s quality of life.
Finally, the international students who return home after graduation extend Alberta’s global network in business, science and culture. These graduates are potentially the best trading partners and ambassadors for Alberta.
In an increasingly integrated world, Alberta needs these connections. The Alberta School of Business’s alumni network extends from Hong Kong to Paris and our alumni remain engaged and committed to the school, the university and to Alberta. This leads to specific benefits, such as connecting with our students on study exchanges, and helps build our reputation around the world.
Certainly, like most good things, international enrolment needs to be set with a balance in mind. Publicly funded institutions must continue to serve domestic students.
To fully understand what serving domestic students and our provincial economy means, however, we must include the positive impacts of international students, both on learning environments and on our economy and society.
For Alberta, a province that aspires to leadership, this is a fact that should not be ignored.