Around the world: Trends, opportunities and challenges Part 1
If you are recruiting international students to your campus, you will be interested in the following:
Recent changes in the U.S. visa policy regulations stipulate that universities may issue I-20s for academic programs only after students have met all of the admission criteria for degree programs. Students studying English offered by a college or university will require a separate I-20 for all preparatory courses, and an additional I-20 for degree study programs.
After a recently released audit of the University of San Diego and Berkeley revealed that preferential admission criteria were applied to out-of-state- and international students, the California Assembly voted unanimously to phase in a 10 percent cap on nonresident applications.
Expect other states to impose similar bans on nonresident applicants.
German higher education institutions are dominating the rankings of innovative European universities and concurrently, Germany is attracting an increasing number of international students. There are over 300,000 international students studying in Germany, or 12 percent of the country’s student body. Much of the growth has been at the graduate school level.
In a Reuters released ranking of Europe’s 100 most innovative universities, the country with the highest number was Germany, with 24. Something positive is going on in German higher education. I would take a look for potential collaboration.
In a British Council report published in May, Malaysia and Germany were singled out as the best in research that explores the impact of national policies on openness to international higher education. Further information may be obtained from “The Shape of Global Higher Education: National Policies Framework for International Engagement.”
The demand for higher education in South Asia is exploding. With a population of more than 600 million under the age of 18, and with the rapid pace of social and economic changes taking place in the region, this is an area for current and future international recruitment outreach.
More than 300 million students are enrolled in higher education in South Asia, yet the unmet demand is estimated to be three to four times this number.
By 2020, India will have the largest university age group cohort in the world. According to the “Indian Students Mobility Report 2016,” the growth of Indian students studying abroad has been faster than any other country, including China. In the U.S. alone, Indian student numbers increased by almost 30 percent last year. Currently 360,000 Indian students are studying abroad. The most popular destinations: U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. Two surprise destinations: destinations China and Germany.
My next blog will continue scanning the globe for international trends, opportunities and challenges.