Recruiting and Retaining International Students on a Limited Budget - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Recruiting and Retaining International Students on a Limited Budget

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Thy Yang and Desiree Johnson Center for Multicultural Affairs Dickinson State University Dickinson, ND Introduction What position do you serve on your campus? – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Recruiting and Retaining International Students on a Limited Budget


1
Recruiting and Retaining International Students
on a Limited Budget
  • Thy Yang and Desiree Johnson
  • Center for Multicultural Affairs
  • Dickinson State University
  • Dickinson, ND

2
Introduction
  • What position do you serve on your campus?
  • What do you hope to gain through this program?

3
Dickinson State University
  • 13 Consecutive Years of Enrollment Growth
  • International students make up nearly 15 of the
    total enrollment
  • In 1998, DSU had only 24 international students
    on campus. Today, we have over 400 students
    enrolled at DSU.

4
Global Awareness Initiative
  • Established in 2000 with four main objectives
  • To create a more diverse and invigorating
    learning environment by recruiting and retaining
    international students and faculty
  • To increase student and faculty involvement in
    foreign exchange programs
  • To engage students and area citizens in
    activities which foster a greater understanding
    of the economic issues and opportunities related
    to globalization and
  • To foster the ideal that individuals can
    contribute to world peace through education,
    understanding, tolerance and interaction with
    people from other cultures.

5
Center for Multicultural Affairs
  • Thy Yang, Director of Multicultural Affairs
  • thy.yang_at_dickinsonstate.edu
  • Tracy Peterson, Native American and Student
    Support Specialist
  • Desiree Johnson, Administrative Secretary
  • desiree.m.johnson_at_dickinsonstate.edu

6
International Students
  • 2006-2007 260 international students from 30
    different countries (122 new for Fall 2006)
  • 2007-2008 328 international students (180 new
    for Fall 2007) from over 30 different countries
  • 2008-2009 400 international students (225 new
    for Fall 2008) from over 30 different countries

7
International Student Enrollment2006- Present
8
Diversity InitiativeTuition Assistance
  • Students must maintain a 2.00 GPA and complete a
    minimum of 24 credits per academic year
  • Cultural Diversity Tuition Waiver
  • In 2007-2008, 120 recipients were identified as
    4-year degree seeking
  • 28 identified as Native American
  • 10 Tribal Nations Represented
  • Global Awareness Tuition Waiver
  • In 2007-2008, 170 recipients were identified as
    4-year degree seeking

9
Dual Degree Joint Program (DDJ)
  • Over 160 of this years international students
    enrolled at DSU are DDJ students and will return
    to their home country in 1- 2 years time.
  • DSU has an agreement with schools from China and
    Russia.
  • The principle behind the DDJ Program is
    reciprocal acceptance of credits earned at either
    institution.

10
Chinese Schools
  • Beijing University of Technologies
  • Central University of Nationalities
  • Dalian Jiatong University
  • Sichuan International Studies University
  • Sichuan Normal University
  • Soochow University
  • Taiyuan University

11
Russian Schools
  • Voronezh State University

12
Dual Degree Joint Degree Programs
  • Art
  • Business Administration
  • Finance
  • Communications
  • Computer Science
  • History (VSU)
  • Political Science (VSU)
  • University Studies

13
Disney International College Program
  • Unique study abroad opportunity which enables
    students to experience two unique settings a US
    Residential Campus plus placement with a Fortune
    500 Company
  • Students study at DSU for one semester and then
    live and work at the Walt Disney World Resorts
  • Students can choose to pursue a Certificate in
    Human Resources Management or take credits needed
    for their home university degrees.

14
Disney International College Program Enrollment
Trend
  • Fall 2007--27
  • Spring 2008--32
  • Fall 2008--41

15
Visiting Scholars
  • 8 Visiting Scholars in residence at DSU for Fall
    2008
  • 7 from China
  • 1 from Japan

16
New Initiatives
  • 1-Year Pre-Med Program with students from Japan
  • Fall 2008 4 students bound for medical school
    in Eastern Europe
  • Students will enroll in ESL and pre-med courses
    (Biology, Chemistry, etc)
  • Projecting 20 students for Fall 2009

17
New Initiatives
  • ESL position added in Academic Success Center
  • Alumni Trip to China
  • Led by Executive Director of Alumni Foundation
  • Group of 20 individuals to tour China
  • Reunion and Alumni Gathering to be held in Beijing

18
Challenges
  • Culture clashes between domestic and
    international students
  • Culture clashes among and between international
    students
  • Community and campus misperceptions about
    benefits
  • Tuition Waiver
  • Services provided
  • Preferential treatment of students
  • Classroom management issues (cheating, grading
    curve, etc)

19
Good Problems
  • Fewer ND students to recruit
  • International students supplement lost revenue
  • Increased interest in study abroad by US students
  • Real world global education
  • Economic development
  • Promotes world peace

20
Overview of International Student Recruitment
  • Intensive ESL Programs
  • Attending College Fairs
  • Advertising in magazines or newspapers
  • Retaining Agents
  • Developing Sister School Relationships
  • Armchair Recruitment
  • Web
  • Telephone Calls

21
Dickinson State University
  • Center for Multicultural Affairs
  • Director of Multicultural Affairs
  • Native American and Multicultural Student Support
    Specialist
  • Administrative Secretary
  • Travel Budget is 24,000 per annum
  • We do not have an intensive ESL program
  • We do not advertise in magazines
  • We do not attend college fairs
  • We have limited agency agreements

22
Dickinson State University
  • Sister School Relationships
  • Dual Degree Joint Program
  • Disney International College Program
  • International student and scholar exchange
    program
  • Global Awareness Tuition Waiver
  • Reduces out of state tuition (10,796) by 62
    (6,653)
  • Students only pay 4,143 or 2,071.50 per
    semester

23
Tools
  • Questions to ask
  • How are my students finding us?
  • What are my best international markets?
  • Visa rejection rate
  • English language requirement
  • Financial viability
  • What attracts international students to your
    school?
  • Are you making the most of your strengths?
  • Is your portfolio diversified?

24
Tools
  • What are your short term goals?
  • What are your mid term goals?
  • What are your long term goals?
  • How do your communication strategies address
    these?
  • Emails
  • Telephone Calls
  • Postcards
  • Letters

25
Tools
  • Do you know how many inquiries you receive from
    each country?
  • What do you do that is intentional? What action
    do you want to see?
  • Do you know your conversion rate?
  • Inquiry to application
  • Application to acceptance
  • Acceptance to I-20
  • I-20 to SEVIS Fee
  • SEVIS Fee to Visa
  • Visa to Matriculation

26
Tools
  • Focus on your strengths and duplicate in other
    markets or programs
  • Athletics
  • Dual Degree Programs/ Exchange program
  • Referrals

27
Are you maximizing the Free Stuff?
  • NAFSA membership directory
  • http//www.nafsa.org/member_services.ms
  • Community colleges
  • http//communitycollegesusa.net/
  • TABS (The Association of Boarding Schools)
  • http//www.schools.com/directory/state.cfm
  • US Embassy
  • http//educationusa.state.gov/centers/
  • SEVIS
  • Current Students

28
Question
  • How many of you have a database of current
    students high schools and colleges?

29
Question
  • How many of you use SEVIS to track your students
    progress?
  • Do you email them their SEVIS Number so that they
    can pay their SEVIS Fee immediately?

30
Question
  • How many of you use the NAFSA Membership
    Directory to set up meetings when you travel?

31
Question
  • Do you offer to send support letters to the
    Embassy prior to students interviews?

32
Retention How Do We Do It?
  • Takes a Village
  • Cross-collaboration with other departments on
    campus
  • Residential Life
  • Student Senate
  • Campus Activities Board
  • Food Services
  • Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR)
  • International Student Orientation

33
Retention How do we do it?
  • Residence Life
  • Home away from home
  • Recruit international students to become Resident
    Advisors
  • Assist with training Resident Advisors on issues
    of diversity and global awareness
  • Collaboration on Residence Life Programs
  • Attend Residence Life Programs

34
Retention How do we do it?
  • Student Senate
  • Create a student centered culture
  • Dont ask for a separate programming budget just
    for international students help students
    understand the process of obtaining funding
  • Encourage students to be part of student
    government
  • Assist with campus dialogue on diversity
  • Address the issues in a responsible manner
  • Build campus unity

35
Retention How do we do it?
  • Campus Activities Board
  • Encourage student leaders to view programming
    from international and multicultural students
    perspectives
  • Encourage international students to be active in
    various clubs and organizations on campus teach
    them how to form their own clubs
  • Involved students connect with a campus
  • Weekend programming to help with home sickness

36
Retention How do we do it?
  • Food Services
  • Our student frustrations begin and end in the
    cafeteria
  • Provide a more diverse menu
  • Increase fruits, vegetables
  • Rice available at every meal
  • Help cater cultural events

37
Retention How do we do it?
  • Student Orientation and Registration (SOAR)
  • Parent Forum to discuss Globalization Initiative
  • What is true, what is false?
  • What are the benefits?
  • How can they help?
  • Advise the students of our diversity

38
Retention How do we do it?
  • International Student Orientation
  • Semester long, 1 credit course
  • Meets once a week for an hour
  • Reduces unnecessary office traffic
  • Enables detailed discussion of
  • Roommate issues
  • American customs
  • Differences in cultures
  • Academic policies and procedures
  • F-1 and J-1 visa rules

39
Retention How do we do it?
  • Friendship Families
  • Support of the community
  • Local churches
  • Local organizations
  • Provide support
  • Provide transportation
  • Provide family structure in the absence of their
    actual family

40
Student Development Approach
  • All students need to be coached and treated as
    learners.

41
  • Questions or Comments?
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