Mason Galemore
Contributing Writer
[email protected]

The world didn’t know a pandemic would hit and shut down nearly all travel. For many international students, the gates to education abroad have been closed. Now, they are beginning to open.

Murray State has experienced a steady decline in international enrollment. According to the Murray State Fact Book, the percentage of international students compared to the entire student body decreased from 7% to 4% from Fall 2019 to Fall 2020.

Officials with Murray State’s Institute with International Studies said COVID-19 caused one of the biggest decreases of international students at Murray State in recent memory. To combat this decrease, the International Enrollment Office along with English as a Second Language (ESL) have used virtual methods. 

Tyson Manering, director for International Recruitment, said he was already proficient with ZOOM even before the pandemic. Manering said he regularly gives virtual tours to international students.

“Traveling to and actually being with the students helps us make connections and gain trust with students,” Manering said. “The pandemic has made it harder to make those connections.”

The lack of in-person activities also eroded a sense of community among international students with the rest of the university.

The Institute of International Studies at Murray State helps these students with academic and immigration matters. They also help them become acclimated and comfortable in a new living environment.

Maxie Heppie, former international admissions assistant, was a part of the International Admissions Office when the pandemic hit. Before 2020, Heppie processed hundreds of I-20s (Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Student Status) per year. In 2020, the number of I-20’s decreased by almost 50%.

“It was hard to see these students, some of them with their families, to get an amazing experience here and then they couldn’t,” Heppie said. “Just getting food and a warm place to stay was hard for them.”

Post-Gazette reporter Bill Schackner found that the number of new international students currently studying in the U.S. has dropped by 46%. Schackner also found that overall enrollment for the 2020-2021 academic year was down by 15%.

As the pandemic and resulting travel policies have eased, international students are more interested in coming to the U.S. Manering said the amount of recruitment has quadrupled from last year.

Murray State is among the thousands of universities in the U.S. are expected to see a sharp increase in international enrollment in Fall 2021 and the coming semesters.

According to Forbes magazine, the vast majority of colleges have experienced a bounce-back to normalcy with their foreign education programs. Micheal T. Nietzel with Forbes said recruitment was one of the reasons international programs in universities were able to survive the pandemic.

Nietzel found universities had several methods to keep international students. Many have cited extensive outreach and advising to sustain a stable international community with universities.

Dr. Guangming Zou, assistant vice president for international studies, said it is essential that enrollment has a large web of resources. These resources include recruitment and ESL.

“It’s very important to stay current with a changing world to maintain decent enrollment,” Zou said. “We have many sources of enrollment. If one source does not work it may influence us but it will not kill us.”

International and ESL students are optimistic about the future of international enrollment. Jinsoo Kim, an ESL student from South Korea, said the South Korean and U.S. governments made it easy to get vaccinated.

“I am hopeful Murray State will make it safe for all students,” Kim said. “I am not worried at all.”