State sees jump in international college students
The number of international students in Arkansas increased by 13.9 percent from fall 2015 to fall 2016, largely because of an influx at Southern Arkansas University, according to a new report.
Arkansas was home to 5,665 foreign students in 2015 and 6,455 in 2016, according to the Open Doors report published annually by the Institute of International Education, with aid from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Nationwide, the number of international students increased by 3.4 percent to 1,078,822, making up 5.3 percent of total enrollment in higher education institutions in the United States, the group’s data show. That’s largely because of international students staying in the United States longer for optional practical training, or temporary employment directly related to the student’s field of study, such as a medical residency program.
Numbers of new international student enrollment, though, dropped for the first time in at least a decade — by 3.3 percent to 290,836 in fall 2016, data show. And a separate survey carried out by the institute of more than 500 colleges and universities suggests that the number could drop even further in fall 2017 because of factors including concerns about the nation’s social and political climate and increased competition from other countries.
The possible drop has worried some higher education leaders who say international students help broaden the understanding of domestic students through diverse thoughts, opinions, ideas and experiences and expose them to the global economy.
“People who have a chance to experience different perspectives early in life have a better chance of developing the skills, resourcefulness and cooperative spirit that we need to face the great challenges and possibilities of our fast-changing world,” said Alyson Grunder, the bureau’s deputy assistant secretary for policy. “One of the most effective contributors to solving global challenges, expanding economic opportunity and increasing security and stability is our effort to foster international networks of people committed to common goals.”
At SAU, President Trey Berry said it’s part of the university’s mission to educate its students to be global students.
“The world is at our fingertips. It’s on our phones, at our computers,” he said. “We have to know what’s going on in the world because we’re so interconnected, not just social media but economics, politics.”
The Magnolia university had some 672 foreign students in 2015 — third largest in the state — and moved up to second — after the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville — with 1,408 foreign students in 2016, the report shows. SAU reported 1,157 international students in fall 2016, but the institute also includes those students who were enrolled at a U.S. college or university and who stayed in the nation afterward for optional practical training.
SAU saw a precipitous drop in international students this fall with 644 students, largely because of a decline in its Indian student population, which dove from 1,031 to 539, the university said. Indian students mostly enroll in the university’s graduate program in computer science.
The trend is similar nationwide with colleges and universities still experiencing an increase in Indian students but at a slower rate, the institute’s officials said.
Students from India typically enroll in U.S. institutions because of “word of mouth,” Berry said, adding that that population is particularly sensitive to national policies. Indian students were particularly shaken after the Feb. 22 shooting in Kansas bar that left one Indian immigrant dead and another injured, Berry said.
“That had a lot of ramifications,” he said. “Our provost went to India last summer and the most common question he was asked was, ‘Can you really tell me that the United States is safe?’ That’s coming from that one incident.”
Officials try to reassure prospective students that those incidents are not the norm, he said. Anytime university officials see national policy changes or anything else that may affect students, Berry said they get online quickly and start talking to applicants, helping them parse out any true ramifications.
Other factors contributing to international student enrollment include the White House’s proposed travel bans, visa delays or denials and the rising costs of U.S. higher education, the institute’s leaders have said about the survey results. But it’s important to note the “push factors” from the countries sending its students abroad, said Rajika Bhandari, head of research, policy and practice for the institute.
As an example, the Saudi Arabian and Brazilian governments changed their scholarship requirements for students studying abroad, she said. A handful of countries, including Germany and Canada, are also now competing with the United States in the international student market, the institute’s leaders have said.
During times of uncertainty in international education, UA typically sees a drop in applications from undergraduate prospective students rather than graduate hopefuls, said Michael Freeman, director of the graduate school and international education. He added that graduate students are more self-determined and more likely to pursue professional dreams, and it helps that northwest Arkansas is home to Fortune 500 companies such as Wal Mart, JB Hunt and Tyson.
UA reported a decline in international students from 1,546 in fall 2015 to 1,469 in fall 2016 and 1,461 in fall 2017. In the institute’s report, the enrollment counts are 1,781 in fall 2015 and 1,722 in fall 2016.
This fall, the university drew students mainly from China, Panama, India, Saudi Arabia and Bolivia. Many international students come to UA for fields in science, technology, engineering or mathematics, Freeman said.
“I think the institutions across Arkansas are really seeing how we can make our education known around the world,” he said. “That’s something we’re looking forward to is [determining] what ways Arkansas can be known across the world as a good place to complete higher education.”
The institute’s fall 2017 survey also reported steeper declines in new international student enrollment among associate’s and master’s degree institutions, less selective colleges and universities — those that accept 75 percent or more of those who apply — and schools in the Midwest. The big takeaway for U.S. higher education institutions — especially those who are less selective or somewhere in the middle — is that they need to continue building their brand overseas, Bhandari said.