International Affairs Committee 2005-2006
Faculty Members: Student Members:
1. Deborah Smith, EEB/Entomology (Chair) 7. Stephanie Craig, Vice Chair
2. Tamara Falicov, Theatre (2006) 8. Carleen Roberts
3. Jane Gibson, Anthropology (2007) 9. Mark Wine
4. Ron Hui, EECS (2007) 10. Nathan Ladd
5. Maria Velasco (2008) 11. Mark Langston
6. Yong Bai, Civil Engr (2008)
Staff members:
11. Dee Steinle, Business – UPSA Rep (2006)
12. Bette Luther, Grad. School/Internat’l Programs, USS Rep (2006)
Ex-officio members:
13. Hodgie Bricke, Assistant Dean, Office of International Programs (OIP)
14. Joe Potts, Director, International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS)
15. Chuck Seibel, Director,
16. Susan Gronbeck-Tedesco, Director of Study Abroad
17.
18. Farashta Sediqzad, President of International Students' Association
19. Stephanie Craig, Chair of Student Senate Multicultural Affairs
Meetings
It proved impossible to find a single meeting time that fit the schedules of all 20 members. Instead, the committee met in two sessions, November 4 and November 7. Minutes of these meetings are attached. At these meetings we discussed the charges to the committee and established four sub-committees to act on them. Members in attendance selected which of the four subcommittees they preferred to join. Members unable to attend either meeting notified me of their preference by email.
Subcommittee 1. Help identify the needs of international
students by working with the Office of International Scholar and Student
Services. Dee Steinle, Yong Bai, Jane
Gibson
Subcommittee
2. Explore with the
Subcommittee 3. Continue to monitor student support for
international programs, whether from tuition enhancement or other fees. Stephanie Craig, Mark Wine, Susan
Gronbeck-Tedesco, Nathan Ladd, Joe Potts, Francisca Velasco
Subcommittee 4. Continue to provide input on factors
affecting international students’ decision to attend institutions other than KU. Deb Smith, Joe Potts, Bette Luther, Daphne
Johnson.
Summaries of the
two large group meetings and reports of the sub-committees are attached. Important themes and recommendations are
summarized below.
Findings, Recommendations
(1) The chair
(Deborah Smith) suggests that the committee include fewer members next year, or
that a meeting time be established before people agree to serve on the committee,
similar to the procedure for CUSA. We
discussed informally the option of email or web-based meetings, but most people
felt that face-to-face meetings are valuable and for real discussion and
exchange of ideas.
(2) Faculty members are often unaware of the legal and educational needs of international students. We recommend an addition to the fall teaching summit, perhaps in conjunction with CTE, addressing “What advisors need to know to recruit and advise international graduate students”.
(3) Support in
the form of teaching assistantships for international graduate students is
contingent on passing tests of spoken English.
Many faculty and departments hesitate to accept students whose first
language is not English, because they will not be eligible for a TAship if they do not pass the SPEAK test. The new Internet-based TOEFL (the
TOEFL iBT) includes a speaking score that can be
substituted for a SPEAK score. Departments
should recommend that students take the iBT, or if
that test is not yet available in their area, the Test of Spoken English (TSE)
and include these scores with
application materials or supply them as soon as possible. This will greatly aid departments in
allotting student support and selecting students for admission.
(4) KU has no English proficiency requirement for undergraduate ADMISSIONS, although students must achieve a sufficiently high TOEFL score for ENROLLMENT in KU classes. Thus, we currently have de facto provisional or conditional admissions, although these terms are not used. Students are confused. Many cease to consider KU before applying. If they apply and are admitted, they are understandably distressed when they learn they cannot enroll in any courses in their degree program. Some leave at this point. Additionally, KU’s TOEFL requirements for undergraduate enrollment are high compared to Big 12 schools and many other institutions.
These problems could be alleviated by requiring a clear
minimum TOEFL score that would make students eligible for full admissions (including
enrollment), and provisional admissions for students with no or low TOEFL
score. The minimum required TOEFL score
could remain the same as currently required, or as another option, be lowered
to 550, in line with other Big 12 Schools.
The committee recommends that this issue be brought to the attention
of the Faculty Senate, as it is Faculty Senate Rule, Article 3, Sections 4.1
and 4.2 which governs this policy
(5) Funds for
recruitment of international students are inadequate.
Funds are needed for
(1) priority or express mail shipping,
(2) hiring temporary staff during times of
peak activity, when regular staff are swamped, &
(3) a regular line item budget that includes funds to plan on-going marketing
strategies and effective recruitment
activities.
The current recruiting budget for ISS is $50,000. This is quite low, considering that most
schools our size have an “international recruiter” on staff. In addition to a full-time recruiter, faculty and staff from academic
departments should be encouraged to come along on recruiting trips. A fund to encourage this travel would be most
helpful. Surveying the other Big 12 Schools about recruiting budgets is a
logical next step.
(6) The true cost of tuition and fees is not
known in advance. Changes in tuition
are not made known until July; students who are admitted do not know what their
costs will be, only that they are certain to increase. Many decline to attend at that point. The provost’s new plan to lock in guaranteed
4 year costs for new, incoming students will help solve this problem.
(7) Undergraduate
degrees from foreign universities.
The EU and
(8) Issues related
to payment of stipends and salaries, withholding taxes.
Students cannot be
paid stipends, salaries, or awards without a Federal ID number. Students also need a Federal ID number to
avoid withholding on stipends and awards (ranging from 19% to 35%), even if
their home countries have taxation treaties with the US. It takes 6 weeks to 6 months to receive these
numbers, leaving the students in reduced circumstances. Most international students do not have the
means to recover the money withheld.
This year Central
Accounting agreed to use a temporary, dummy “general student” number, though
the students still need to apply for a real Federal ID. A
written statement from CASPUR much earlier in the application cycle, stating
what they will and will not accept would be very helpful. In addition, it would be helpful if central
accounting could communicate changes in requirements relating to pay and
withholding to the offices preparing paperwork for international students.
Summary of International Affairs committee
meetings, November 4 and 7, 2005
(a) Provisional
sub-committee assignments were made. If
you were unable to attend one of the two meetings, please look over the
sub-committees and charges, and select a sub-committee to join. Inform me (debsmith@ku.edu) and I will
contact the appropriate committee.
(b) No
subcommittee chairs were appointed. Each
subcommittee can determine if a sub-committee chair would be helpful, and
select one from its members.
(c) Each
subcommittee will meet (as many time as necessary) to address its charges.
(d) A
summary of the subcommittee meetings should be forwarded to Deborah Smith (debsmith@ku.edu)
and Stephanie Craig (vice chair, secraig@ku.edu).
(e) at the
end of the Spring 2006 semester, the full committee will assemble a report on
International Affairs activities.
Sub-committees
and charges:
Charge1.
Help identify the needs of international students by working with the Office of
International Scholar and Student Services. Young Bai (Civil Engineering) and
Dee Steinle (Business), Jane Gibson
e.g., problems obtaining
visas, problems finding housing, selecting academic programs, social problems,
academic problems
Charges 2-3.
Work with
e.g., effectiveness of SPEAK
test and others; effectiveness of applied English classes;
Charge 5.
Monitor student support for international programs. Nathan Ladd, Joe Potts, Stephanie Craig, Mark
Wine, Susan Gronbeck-Tedesco
e.g., revisit the issue of a
fee to support Study Abroad; assess number of students who want to study
abroad, versus those who actually do; barriers to study abroad
Charge 6. Provide
input on factors affecting international student’s decisions to attend institutions other than KU. Bette Luther, Deborah Smith, Daphne Johnson,
Joe Potts, (Hodgie Bricke)
e.g., slow admissions procedures; financial support; university reputation
International
Affairs Committee
Minutes of
meeting held November 4, 2005.
Attending:
Yong Bai, Nathan Ladd, Bette Luther, Chuck Seibel, Deborah Smith (chair), and
Dee Steinle
Meeting was
called to order at 9:05.
Attendees
introduced themselves, followed by general discussion of the standing and
additional charges to the committee.
Regarding
charge 5, “monitor student support for international programs”, Nathan Ladd
(Undergraduate representative) reported on a proposal made to the student body
in the 2004-2005 academic year, to charge a $2 per credit hour fee to support
international programs and study abroad.
This was narrowly defeated by student vote; Ladd attributed this in part
to a lack of time to advertise and promote the proposal.
Bette Luther
(Grad school/International programs) explained the pros and cons of requesting
tuition enhancement funds or a fee per credit hour to support study
abroad. Tuition enhancement funds may be
an uncertain support for study abroad programs, because tuition enhancement
only continues for one more year, and because requests to use tuition
enhancement funds must be approved by the provost.
Chuck Seibel
(director, Applied English center) explained the new version of the TOEFL test
that will be in use this semester at the Applied English center.
Minutes of
meeting held 7 November 2005, 2:00-3:00 p.m.
Attending:
Hodgie Bricke (Assistant Dean OIP), Stephanie Craig, Vice Chair (student), Susan Gronbeck-Tedesco (Director, Study
Abroad), Ron Hui (EECS), Joe Potts ( Director, ISSS), Deborah Smith, Chair
(EEB), Mark Wine (student).
Meeting was
called to order at 2:10.
Attendees
introduced themselves, followed by general discussion of the standing and
additional charges to the committee.
Ron Hui
expressed concern over the SPEAK test, feeling it did not always reflect a graduate
student’s ability to communicate effectively.
He also described a model for undergraduate study in which students
spend 2-3 years at non-US institution, and complete final 2-3 years of an
undergraduate program at an English-speaking institution (in
Joe Potts
suggested an additional person, Viviana Yaluk, to work on charge 1. Stephanie Craig suggested an additional
person, Mutsa Kajese, to
work on charges 2-3. Hodgie Bricke
indicated that Daphne Johnson (OIP) is already gathering data pertinent to
charge 6.
International Affairs Sub-Committee
1
Members: Dee Steinle, Yong Bai, Jane Gibson and Joe Potts
Charge: To Identify the Needs of International Students
I. Visa Issues-
Other countries provide more flexibility for student visas. The
II. Working on Campus- Lots information exists about student employment opportunities
through the ISS office. The ISS office regularly sends emails about how to comply with visa regulations while taking advantage of opportunities, but there is a problem with students actually reading emails. Students are not allowed to work off campus.
III. Funding- The law presumes that international students have enough funding to pay for their entire program, but in reality, they must only demonstrate enough funding to pay for one year. It also doesn’t account for things that “come up.” The ISS has some limited funding that can help.
1. Tuition Grant- Students with financial need may apply. Maximum amount possible is $2000 over two semesters.
2. Loan Fund- Students may apply for up to $1500. Must pay back prior to graduation.
3. Emergency Fund- Students may apply for small increments in cases of emergency.
IV. Scholarships- Departmental scholarships have varying rules when it comes to international students. Many units have unwritten rules that favor domestic students. Departments should be reminded that unrestricted funding should be available to all students, including international students. Alternatively, the University should attempt to raise funds specifically for international scholarships.
V. Tuition- Many international students do not understand how the KU tuition structure works. Some are under the impression that they are charged a higher fee than out-of-state students. We need to do more education about the tuition structure for students.
VI. Recruiting- KU needs to get
competitive in recruiting top flight international students.
VII. Career Services- How organized is University Career Services and the Career Services Alliance to deal with the unique needs of international students? There is a sense that UCS and the other units are doing a good job with international student issues, however what else could be done? How comfortable are career advisors with visa and related employment issues?
VIII. Value- What is the overall value of international students to KU community? Clearly different people have different perceptions. What can we do to raise awareness about the value that international students bring to KU?
International
Affairs Sub-committee 2.
Members: Chuck Seibel, Ron Hui, Deborah Smith
Charges: Explore with the
I. The AEC and other units on campus provide a number of services to International graduate students, among them:
(A) The
(B) Support course through the graduate school, such as GS 750 Professional writing, GS 700 Thesis and Dissertation Writing class and a new course on Professional Presentation Skills
(C) The Applied English center offers AEC 082 Classroom communication for international teaching assistants.
However, many students and departments are unaware of
them. This information could be disseminated to departmental graduate
secretaries each year.
II. An addition to the fall teaching summit, perhaps in conjunction with CTE, could address, “What advisors need to know to recruit and advise international graduate students”.
III. Tests of Spoken English. Although this is more relevant to charge 4, a point came up in our discussions that would make admissions to KU easier for international graduate students. In many cases students are not accepted because their source of support is uncertain—a teaching assistantship cannot be offered until after the AEC’s SPEAK test or the equivalent has been passed. .
The new Internet-based TOEFL (the TOEFL iBT) includes a speaking score that can be substituted for a SPEAK score. Departments should recommend that students take the iBT, or if that test is not yet available in their area, the Test of Spoken English (TSE) and include these scores with application materials or supply them as soon as possible.
Another alternative is to arrange for oral interviews of students deemed admissible via Internet.
Students who do not achieve a high enough score on the TSE or TOEFL iBT should be encouraged to come to KU during the summer preceding their first fall semester to take English classes at the AEC. This would not guarantee that they would pass the SPEAK test, but it would speed up the process considerably.
International
Affairs Sub-committee 3.
Members: Stephanie Craig, Mark Wine, Susan Gronbeck-Tedesco, Nathan
Ladd, Joe Potts, Francisca Velasco
Charges: Continue to monitor student support for international programs,
whether from tuition enhancement or other fees.
There is little enthusiasm among the undergraduate students for
additional fees, particularly ones that would benefit only a subset of students
(e.g., those participating in Study Abroad).
International Affairs Sub-committee 1
Members: Daphne Johnston, Bette Luther, Joe Potts,
Deborah Smith
Charges: Continue to provide input on factors affecting international students’
decision to attend institutions other than KU, such as:
a. KU procedures for
processing admission applications.
b. Opportunities at
universities in other countries and elsewhere in the
MONEY
There are very few
scholarships available. Many students do
not even compete for the few available, because the application form requires them to demonstrate sufficient
financial resources for the first academic year of studies. Many
abandon the application at that point.
Slow processing
of applications, slow transfer of documents
The
Office of international Students and Scholar services has no budget for
postage, so shipping and postage costs come from general resources. This
means that the admissions letter, welcome packet and the documents required to
obtain the student visa are sent by regular airmail, not by priority mail, DHL
or another express carrier, unless the students pay for the extra cost themselves.
Funds are needed for
(1) priority or express mail shipping, and
(2) hiring temporary staff during times of
peak activity, when regular staff are swamped.
(3) a regular line item budget that includes funds to plan on-going marketing
strategies and effective recruitment
activities
.
English
proficiency
Problems revolve
around the fact KU has no English proficiency requirement for undergraduate
ADMISSIONS, although students must achieve a sufficiently high TOEFL
score for ENROLLMENT in KU classes.
(Undergraduates must achieve 570 or 57 in each sub-score for paper TOEFL exam, 230/23 for the computer-based TOEFL exam and 4.5 on the test of written English, a 6.5 or 6 in each sub-score on the IELTS exam or equivalent scores on
the AEC proficiency examination. Thus, we currently have de facto provisional or conditional admissions, although these
terms cannot be used. Students are
massively confused and many
cease to consider KU before even applying due to this confusion or if admitted,
upon arrival are understandably distressed when they learn they cannot
enroll in any courses in their degree program.
Some leave at this point.
Additionally, our TOEFL requirements that
allow for undergraduate enrollment are high when compared
to Big 12 schools and many other institutions.
These problems could be alleviated by requiring a clear minimum TOEFL
score that would make students eligible for full admissions (including
enrollment), and provisional admissions for students with no or low TOEFL score. The minimum required TOEFL score could remain
the same as currently required, or as another option, be lowered to 550, in
line with other Big 12 Schools. The committee recommends
that this issue be brought to the attention of the Faculty Senate, as it is
Faculty Senate Rule, Article 3, Sections 4.1 and 4.2 which govern this policy
Degree programs in
European and Asian universities typically do not require the extensive general
education hours that KU requires.
Several KU Schools are
known for accepting few or no
transfer credits from foreign universities for their undergraduate programs. As
a result, coming to KU as an
international transfer student often means completing extensive distribution requirements, repeating course
work, and prolonging the degree process by 1-2 extra years.
The true cost of
tuition and fees is not known in advance
Changes in tuition
are not made known until July; students who are admitted do not know what their
costs will be, only that they are certain to increase. Many decline to attend at that point. The provost’s new plan to lock in guaranteed
4 year costs for new, incoming students will help solve this problem.
Competition
Other
nations are investing heavily in educational infrastructure and retention of
their own students (e.g.,
II. Issues for graduate students
Undergraduate
degrees from foreign universities
The EU and
MONEY and Lack of support for first year
graduate students.
International graduate students must pass the
SPEAK test to be eligible for a teaching assistantship. If they are not eligible for a teaching
position their first year, they must be supported by research assistantship on
a faculty member’s grant. This entails
paying stipend, fringe benefits, tuition and fees, plus 45% grant
overhead. This makes accepting an
international graduate student both expensive and risky.
Sub-committee two
made a useful suggestion on this topic: Require or strongly encourage
applicants to take the TOEFL Test of spoken English (TSE), or the new online
TOEFL (which incorporates tests of spoken English and comprehension) and
include these scores in the application to graduate school or supply them as
soon as possible.
III. Issues for both:
Payment and
Taxation of stipends and awards.
Students cannot be
paid stipends, salaries, or awards without a Federal ID number. In addition, State and federal taxes on
stipends and awards range from 19% to 35%.
Some students’ home countries have taxation treaties with the
Intra-university
communication regarding federal and state rules
The standard
procedure for central accounting appears to be to inform offices of changes in
rules or requirements for paying students, tax treaties, etc. at the time
paperwork (not meeting new regulations) is submitted. Although they may learn of changes to rules
or policy, this information isn’t transmitted to offices preparing paperwork
for international students. This results
in delays, frustration, and difficulty in providing funds in a timely manner.
Miscellaneous
University
interpretations of State and Federal Tax codes—are they stricter than is really
required?
Voluminous and
confusing paperwork discourages departments from giving awards and fellowships
to international students. The large
fraction of awards consumed by taxes means departments have to give fewer,
larger scholarships to achieve the desired level of support.