International Students and College Admission

International Students and College Admission February 4, 2012 For those Americans who believe that international students are taking slots at our nations top universities away from deserving American students, they should know that these very international students are the reason why many American students can afford to attend college. Hows that, you ask? Well, international students pay the full cost of tuition. They dont receive financial aid. And many American students do indeed get financial aid. How do you think a university can afford to let students attend for reduced costsor even for free? Full-pay International students (which is essentially redundant) indeed help offset these costs! A piece in The New York Times published today about international students and college admission by Tamar Lewin points out that more than a quarter of the class at the University of Washington gets a free ride largely because of the full-pay tuition from international students. And thats how the University of Washington can continue to admit low income students from the state of Washington! Does it seem unfair for applicants from China to take slots away from Americans at our universities now? Not so much, were guessing youre thinking. At the University of Washington, like many universities across the nation, international students who pay the full ride offset the cost of American students who cant afford full tuition. According to the same college admission piece in The New York Times, There is a widespread belief in Washington that internationalization is the key to the future, and Mr. [Michael K.] Young, [the university president], said he was not at all bothered that there were now more students from other countries than from other states. (Out-of-state students pay the same tuition as foreign students.)Â  Is there any advantage to our taking a kid from California versus a kid from China? he said. You’d have to convince me, because the world isn’t divided the way it used to be.' Mr. Young at the University of Washington isnt alone either. The University of Washington isnt the only state school more inclined to admit a full-pay international student over a partial-pay student from another state. And theyre not wrong to do it. It just makes simple financial sense. While youre here, if youre an international student, check out this post on the Student Visa Interview.