The number of Chinese college students at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana has declined, but overall enrollment is up. And some may be surprised by the source of those students: the United States.
Administrators had been exploring different markets at home and abroad in anticipation of the drop in Chinese international students, says Tom Bear, vice president for enrollment management.
“We focused on diversifying our national draw and bringing in new students, especially from states like Texas and California,” Bear says.
Internationally, higher ed recruiters have looked toward India, the Middle East and South America for new enrollment.
Rose-Hulman recruiters did not want “to switch one country for another,” Bear says.
“Students from China should be around students from America, and we also want them to be around students from the Middle East and from Europe,” he says. “When they go into a career field, they need to work with people from different cultures and backgrounds, and we need to be that incubator.”
Read the main news story: How colleges are responding to the drop in Chinese enrollment
