MSU among top universities for study abroad participation, international student enrollment Contact: Kathleen Fairfax, Office of Study Abroad: (517) 432-4346, cell (517) 230-4061, kfairfax@msu.edu; Peter Briggs, Office for International Students and Scholars: (517) 353-1720, pbriggs@msu.edu; or Kent Cassella, University Relations: (517) 353-1772, cell (517) 599-8537, cassella@ur.msu.edu
Nov. 12, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. — For the first time, Michigan State University is in the top 10 for both study abroad participation and international student enrollment among U.S. public universities, according to Open Doors 2007, the annual report on international education released today by the Institute of International Education.
For the third year in a row, MSU leads the nation in study abroad participation among public universities in the United States. During the 2005-06 academic year, the most recent year for which data are available, 2,558 MSU students studied abroad, second only to New York University among all colleges and universities.
In addition, MSU ranks 10th in the nation among public universities in total international student enrollment with 3,526 students, according to data from the 2006-07 academic year. Among all universities, MSU ranked 16th in international student enrollment.
“As Michigan State continues to progress from land-grant to world-grant, what we do within the international arena remains an integral part of our mission,” said MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon. “We are very proud, not only of the numbers of students we send abroad, but also of the many international students who enhance our lives by studying on our campus.”
MSU also led all universities – both public and private – in undergraduate study abroad participation, with 2,247 in 2005-06. Nationally, the Institute of International Education data reflect a growth in study abroad participation to more than 223,000 students.
“The extraordinary combination of institutional commitment and faculty involvement is what makes MSU’s study abroad program as valuable and successful as it is,” said Kathleen Fairfax, director of MSU’s Office of Study Abroad. “Our wide variety of opportunities for students truly helps to enrich the undergraduate experience by providing them with academic and personal skills.”
With more than 245 programs in 62 countries on all continents, study abroad at MSU helps students stay on track for graduation by offering credits in a diverse selection of courses, including unique programs such as international credit-bearing internships, comparative study of disability and related services, and intensive master classes for clarinetists and pianists. In addition, MSU was the first U.S. university to introduce Freshman Seminars Abroad, a program that takes place the summer before first-year students arrive on campus.
MSU is successfully diversifying its study abroad program locations. Nationally, 28 percent of study abroad students went to nontraditional locations in Africa, Asia and Latin America in 2005-06. At MSU, that number was 35 percent, including 159 students studying in Africa.
In terms of fields of study, MSU also sends a larger proportion of “nontraditional” majors abroad than the national average. In 2005-06, 46 percent of MSU study abroad participants were majors in business, engineering, science and agriculture. Nationally, only 29 percent of study abroad students came from those fields.
Recently cited by U.S. News & World Report as a “stellar example” of an academic program “linked to student success,” study abroad participation at MSU continues to skyrocket. Enrollment has increased by 230 percent over an 11-year period with almost 30 percent of graduating seniors having participated.
MSU has long been a national leader in attracting international students to its campus. This year, 907 students came to MSU from Korea, 787 from China, 233 from Taiwan, 393 from India and 120 from Japan.
It’s estimated that the presence of international students contributes as much as $90 million to the local, mid-Michigan economy.
The Open Doors report is published by the Institute of International Education, the leading not-for-profit educational and cultural exchange organization in the country.
For more on the Open Doors report, go to http://opendoors.iienetwork.org.
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Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years. MSU is known internationally as a major public university with global reach and extraordinary impact. Its 17 degree-granting colleges attract scholars worldwide who are interested in combining education with practical problem solving.
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