With Congress and the Biden administration working on a number of issues that touch international education, there is no better time to submit your institution’s information for the fifth edition of the ACE Mapping Internationalization on U.S. Campuses survey.
As the international education community begins to emerge from more than a year of disrupted mobility, both new and older challenges require data-driven advocacy.
Most recently, the higher education community has been working with policy makers to help students and scholars impacted by the crisis in Afghanistan. On more long-standing concerns, the balance between openness and national security continues to be a major focus as Congress considers a number of bills addressing competition with China. Ongoing efforts to reduce visa processing time scored a victory last week when the State Department announced that some student visas can now be adjudicated without an in-person visa interview through the end of 2021. In another new development, COVID-19-related travel bans for foreign nationals entering the United States from certain countries will be lifted in early November and replaced with a vaccine requirement, which could help create a more welcoming environment overall for international visitors.
As the comprehensive source of data and analysis on internationalization efforts conducted every few years, the Mapping Internationalization survey provides important benchmarks and data points that can inform these efforts at ACE and on campuses across the country.
This year’s responses can help answer questions such as:
- How important are international students, scholars, and exchanges to U.S. institutions of higher education for educational and research activities?
- How might the U.S. government better support international students here in the U.S.?
- Is the Biden administration’s more welcoming message to international students and scholars, such as the Department of Education and Department of State’s recent Joint Statement of Principles in Support of International Education, encouraging international students to study in the U.S.?
- What countries and regions are colleges targeting to build partnerships with, and what advocacy and structures could help facilitate those partnerships?
- What should legislators and immigration officials working on visa policy know about barriers to attracting international students and scholars to U.S. institutions?
- How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the priorities for internationalization among U.S. institutions?
The 2021 survey was first launched in March and sent to chief academic officers nationwide, and then to senior international officers and institutional researchers. ACE is now reaching out to presidents of those institutions that have not yet responded.
ACE wants to hear from all U.S. institution types and about all types of internationalization activities, even if you think your campus does not engage in many. If your institution has already completed the survey, thank you. If you are not sure whether your institution has participated, please complete this form to ensure your institution is included.