Return of International Students

The Institute of International Education conducts an annual study of international education and American higher education.  Entitled “Open Doors,” the study documents the trends in international students attending American colleges and universities and American students studying abroad.
 
The number of international students coming to America declined significantly in the years immediately following the September 11 terrorist attack.  American students studying abroad declined in number as well.  The reasons for these declines were both perceptions and real challenges.  The perceptions regarding safety and attitudes towards foreigners likely affected the number of students willing to leave their homeland.  But for international students wanting to study in America, tougher visa rules and increased competition from other countries had an impact as well.
 
The good news in this year’s “Open Doors” report is enrollment of international students stabilized in 2005-06 and the Institute of International Education predicts that there will be significant increases in the coming years.  In fact, the number of new international students increased by 8% this past year and more than half of the American colleges and universities that participated in the study reported an increase in international enrollment.  There was a similar increase in the number of American students studying abroad.
 
Why is this issue so important?  For some colleges and universities it is a practical issue.  They depend on international students to meet their enrollment goals and students from other countries typically pay a higher portion of their tuition (only 26% receive significant financial aid from American colleges and universities).  The return of international students in greater numbers will impact enrollment and revenue.
 
But there are much more important reasons to applaud this return of international students and study abroad participants.  The fact of the matter is that our students need to be better prepared to live and function in a global environment.  They need to better understand the differences in culture and beliefs that exist in other parts of the world and with other people.

While students can be taught the tenets of the Muslim faith, Asian and Middle Eastern history and culture, or the traditions of India in a classroom, their understanding is deeper and richer when they interact with students from other countries who have different experiences.  This happens best when they sit in classrooms and live in residence halls with international students and/or spend a semester or a year studying abroad in a foreign country.

One of the goals of liberal education is the development of critical thinking skills and reflection as students search for truth.  American colleges and universities provide a better learning environment when students and faculty are multicultural and diverse and bring to the conversation the myriad of views, traditions, values and beliefs that reflect the global family.
 
We tell our new students at Ohio Dominican that their time on our campus is a great opportunity to explore new ideas and the meet different people.  We encourage them to consider a study abroad experience or an international travel program.  We welcome international students and value their contribution to the Ohio Dominican community.  We expect our students to maintain their values and beliefs.  But we also expect them to respect and appreciate other cultures and people.  After all, this is consistent with the objectives of a whole person education, which results in open-mindedness and respect for the diversity of worldviews in our global society.