Caroline Lozano/ Assistant Opinion Director
FIU has prided itself for being one of the most global institutions in the U.S. with students from all 50 states and 142 countries attending each year, according to FIU’s undergraduate admissions page.
Along with hosting cultural festivals and offering numerous services to international students, the university has made it easier for these students to transition into college life.
Clubs such as the International Student Club have also helped introduce students from other countries to the general student body, preventing them from becoming lonely.
However, the question still remains — is FIU as international as it claims to be?
FIU is considered one of the more popular colleges to attend for international students, according to College Factual. In 2015, FIU was home to about 3,619 out of the 1,064,582 international students who came to the U.S. to study at American colleges and universities. It also ranked 57th out of 1,205 on the site’s Most Popular U.S. Colleges & Universities for International Students.
Fortunately, the number of students from outside the U.S. attending FIU is quickly increasing every year, proving the institution’s claim that it is global — number-wise at least.
In fact, this fall semester, FIU expected to “welcome over 900 new international students from 90 different countries…with 54 percent of them entering as graduate students and the rest (46 percent) making up the group of new undergraduate students,” according to FIU News.
Many of these students will come from countries such as China, Colombia, Venezuela, Jamaica, Peru, and more.
It’s not hard to find a reason why international students are checking off FIU as their preferred university to attend. FIU has done much to embrace its diverse range of students through its implementation of events that celebrate multiculturalism and diversity.
These actions have aided in attracting more students who may feel unsure about studying in the U.S. because of the current social climate or intimidation of American culture. This proves that FIU cares not just for its American students, but for its non-American students as well.
It’s definitely exciting to see such a growth in diversity in FIU’s student population. This will keep pushing the university to the top.
FIU’s efforts in being welcoming and embracing all of its students, regardless of where they came from, has paid off and will continue to do so.
DISCLAIMER:
The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of Panther Press Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
Photo taken from Flickr.
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