nternational students, who pay the same tuition as those coming from other states are the slowest to graduate.
Only 44 percent of new freshman from abroad who started fall 2007 graduated in four years, whereas 55 percent of the overall student population graduated in four years.
Jason Jonely, assistant director for International Student Services, said although coming to a university is challenging for any student, it is difficult for some international students who are further from their families.
But many international students find community in different organizations like BRIDGE, which pairs international students with American students, or Greater University Tutoring Services, which provides English language tutoring to non-native speakers.
“People who find connections tend to do better and stay to complete their degrees,” Jonely said. “That is our hope with different support services, that international students will find places where they can connect with others, [and] become a part of the campus culture.”
Ahbinav Prashant, a student from India, noted the flexible United States education system gives him more freedom to choose classes. It contrasts largely with India’s universities that require students to know exactly what they want to study when they start.
“There’s no course selection. You can’t take more than four years to graduate in India, Changing the major after 2 years after undergraduation is completely unheard of.” he said. “I’m amazed by how flexible the [U.S.] system is. It’s a good opportunity for us to try out some new courses.”
He suggested international students might take longer to graduate because for the first time many can take their time in deciding what to study.
