International Students and Community Colleges
International students can play a vital role in globalizing the campus and enhancing international awareness among American students. Community colleges have witnessed a dramatic increase in international student enrollment, which has risen 60 percent in the last decade.
We encourage you to optimize the opportunities that international students on your campus offer, or to consider recruiting international students if your college does not already do so. To help, this issue of World View's College Updates presents articles and books on international students at U.S. community colleges.
Definition of International Student
An international student is one who has come to the U.S. on a visa specifically for educational purposes and is registered at an accredited institution. Immigrants, refugees, and foreigners that are permanent residents of the U.S. are not included in this definition.
Benefits to Having International Students on Campus
Perhaps the most commonly cited benefit to having international students on campus is that their presence broadens the global and cultural perspectives of American students. International students provide a learning opportunity for American students regarding global awareness, cultural sensitivity, and diversity. Faculty can use international students as resources in the classroom. Outside of the classroom, international students offer cultural awareness and learning experiences to the college community.
In addition to cultural awareness, international students bring financial benefits to community colleges. Non-resident tuition can be a significant source of revenue. Seventy-five percent of international students are supported from non-U.S. sources. As Richard Romano outlines in his book Internationalizing the Community College, foreign students typically spend $20,000 per year for tuition, fees, and living expenses.
Literature on International Students and Community Colleges
Following are excerpts concerning international students and community colleges from The Impact of Community Colleges on International Education by Hey-Kyung Koh. After this article are abstracts of a book and a few articles that provide additional information on international students and U.S. community colleges, as well as advice on how to recruit international students.
International Students and Community Colleges
U.S. higher education has been the preferred destination for increasing numbers of international students each year since the Institute of International Education began publishing the Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange. In 2002-03, there were 586,323 international students in U.S. colleges and universities. The U.S. higher education system is large and characterized by a diversity of institutional types and programs. It is also a flexible system, allowing students the opportunity to study at various types of institutions and programs, including degree as well as non-degree programs. This flexibility makes U.S. higher education an open system, whereby an institution or program exists for anyone who wishes to pursue a higher education, including international students.
In recent years, Associate Institutions have been attracting growing numbers of international students. And in particular, these institutions have seen the largest percentage increase of all the Carnegie Institutional Types (57.9%). This is not surprising, given the nature of community colleges. Community colleges fill a certain niche in U.S. higher education. International students are attracted to community colleges for the same reasons that American students are: a low-cost and quality education that offers flexible and innovative programs of study not found at the traditional four-year colleges and universities. Community colleges also present different educational opportunities to international students, since they are not found in most countries.
These international students impact the community colleges they attend by adding to the educational experiences of the American students with whom they come in contact with in classes and in campus activities. This is especially true for those American students who may not have the opportunity or the interest to study abroad and experience a different culture and get to know the people of a different country.
Facts on International Students at Community Colleges
· 96,785 international students were studying at community colleges in the 2002-03 school year.
· Associate Institutions were the third largest host institutional type, following Research I Institutions and Master I Institutions.
· Since 1993-94, international student enrollment at community colleges has increased 57.9 percent, the largest increase of all institutions of higher education regardless of type, and higher than the 30.4 percent increase of total student enrollments in this time period.
· Community colleges in California, Florida, New York, and Texas host the largest numbers of international students and have the largest numbers of institutions hosting international students among the leading 40 Associate Institutions. One community college, Houston Community College System, is represented among the leading 25 institutions hosting 1,000 or more international students in Open Doors.
· The top three countries from which international community college students come are countries in Asia; Mexico is number four. There were five Latin American countries of origin among the leading 20 places of origin.
· International students in the U.S. studying at the associate degree academic level were 72,494 or 12.4% of total international student population in 2002/2003, up 7.1% from previous year.
· The leading field of study of these students is "Other," enrolling 23.5% of international students at community colleges. Business & Management is the next leading field of study (19.2%), which is the leading field of study for international students in general at all institutions, followed by Undeclared (14.6%), Mathematics & Computer Sciences (13.6%), and the Health Professions (6.1%).
· Personal & family funding makes up the largest proportion of international students' funding (81.4%) for their studies at community colleges. For this reason, community colleges are an attractive option for international students and provide an opportunity for those who can't afford to study at more expensive U.S. higher education institutions.
For more information, visit the data tables on the Community College Data Resource or the general Open Doors Data Tables on the Open Doors section of IIENetwork, the membership website of the Institute of International Education.
Abstracts
Community Colleges in the United States
Richard Lundberg, Ed. June 2002.
This issue contains six articles discussing the importance of the community college to higher education in the United States. Article 3, "The Global Linkage," by Michael J. Bandler, examines the international impact of community colleges, both as models for institutions abroad, and as destination institutions for foreign students.
Internationalizing the Community College
Richard Romano, Ed. 2002.
The workforce in the United States is becoming increasingly international, and community college students who have a higher level of global competency will certainly become more effective and valuable employees in this environment. In addition, student involvement in international activities provides opportunities for personal diplomacy and adventure. The economic benefits of having international students on college campuses and in the local community are outlined. Foreign students typically spend $20,000 per year for tuition, fees, and living expenses. Curriculum in initiatives, study-abroad programs, global fairs, and college partnerships are ways in which community college leaders can build global connections. An ESL program is a crucial element of the recruitment process. Community colleges should have a Web site linked to search engines. The colleges should advertise in reliable markets such as Japan and Western Europe by sending mailings to these countries. They should also attend overseas fairs. A list of federal funding sources and AACC international sources is included.
International Community College Students: The Neglected Minority?
Linda Serra Hagedorn and Mi-Chung Lee
A study of F-1 visa students in the Los Angeles Community College district, this study compares the academic success of international students with respect to GPA, course completion, and other measures. In addition, the study looks at the age of students, and how long they remain enrolled. The study also provides details on the types of courses in which these students enroll as well as the proportion of courses that are developmental/remedial. (Contains 10 tables.)
The Recruiting Game: Community Colleges Step up to the Plate
Ken Bus. February 2002.
This paper offers advice for ways in which community colleges can approach the challenge of recruiting international students. Colleges that recruit foreign students must be prepared to provide services for these students. Services include sending pre-arrival information; implementing an adequate orientation program; making health insurance available; providing assistance in finding housing; and offering academic and immigration advisement, ESL classes, social and cultural adjustment help, and personal counseling. Spending large amounts of money on marketing is not always necessary; word of mouth can be a powerful recruiting tool. Brochures and other school materials can be given to traveling professors and domestic and international students. In addition, there are dozens of Web sites that will carry an institution's homepage for a nominal charge.
