Hunter
11/20/21
The University of Iowa’s international student population has dropped for the fifth straight year.
The Daily Iowan reports that international student enrollment dropped by 9.6 percent from fall 2020 to fall 2021, and by 49 percent in the last six years. The trend is occurring across secondary education institutions across the country.
Russell Ganim is associate provost and dean of international programs at the UI. He tells the newspaper that the department is trying to reverse the trend by recruiting from countries other than China, and hope to do in-person recruiting in countries like the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman.
Ganim says several factors are responsible for the drop in international enrollment. They include increased competition for students, the UI’s rankings, the country’s reputation regarding international students, and the effects of COVID-19. He expects the numbers to turn around, but stresses that the University of Iowa needs to keep supporting the international student population they currently have.