International students in the U.S. face a complex array of challenges, from navigating fluctuating exchange rates and rising costs to grappling with cultural expectations and academic pressures. As interest in the U.S. as a study destination grows, universities and colleges must adapt to ensure these students thrive. By addressing financial strain, fostering cross-campus understanding, and offering tailored solutions, higher education institutions can help international students overcome obstacles and fully realize their academic potential.
These were some of the insights to come from Flywire Fusion, Flywire’s inaugural U.S. client conference held in September of 2024. Speakers and audience members alike shared insights (some surprising) on the student journey that gives a deeper understanding of what international students are up against and how institutions can enhance the support they provide to improve overall experience.
1. Education agents critical to recruitment efforts in some countries
International students face an almost incomprehensible number of options when choosing what and where to study. As they may only be aware of larger or prestigious institutions, many rely on the expert knowledge of education agents to explore options, help make decisions and determine the best path to undergraduate or post-graduate success.
For institutions, engaging with education agents helps boost awareness among students and impacts success, whether the goal is quantity or quality. As University of Arizona Assistant Dean of International, Daniel Saud explained, “[institution] staff cannot bring 5,000 to 10,000 applications from one specific country. That's where agents can help you tremendously.” Equally, he said, “High-achieving students are going to defer to those consultants and agents for their intelligence on your institution.”
2. Double-whammy of foreign exchange fluctuations and inflation creates significant financial challenges
Affordability tops the list of challenges for most international students, and it has a significant impact on student retention. But what is perhaps less well understood is how their finances are impacted by a double-whammy of relatively small foreign exchange (FX) fluctuations and then inflation.
For instance, Ivor Emmanuel, Director of the Berkeley International Office, University of California, Berkeley, discovered that a fluctuation of just one Yuan in the Yuan/Dollar exchange rate could increase a Chinese student’s tuition bill by $10,000. Naturally, this puts additional pressure on families who have saved hard to pay for their child's education. But, when the student or their family is incurring debt to pay tuition fees, as is often the case for Indian and Latin American students, the pressure is amplified.
It’s no surprise then, Katie Van Wyk, Director of International Admissions and Enrollment at the University of Arizona remarked, that “international students are very, very aware of what their dollar exchange rate is at [any given] moment and how it impacts their family, even at age 16.”
Inflation only adds to the financial strain international students face. Increases in the cost of necessary expenses, such as food, gas, and textbooks, often result in students going to great lengths to make ends meet by sharing rooms with multiple roommates, taking extra courses to accelerate their graduation, or even skipping meals, for example. While a job can help, it may also create additional stress as students try to juggle their studies, work commitments, and adjusting to a new culture.
Rob Reddy, Vice President of Enrollment Management at Saint Louis University emphasized the importance of institutions working with students to find a resolution to financial difficulties. As he reflected, “putting [an international] student on hold and not letting them register [because of non-payment] jeopardizes their visa. That's vastly different than telling a [domestic] student to work for a semester and come back.” In his opinion, it is essential for institutions wanting to recruit students from overseas to have a financial aid strategy in place, whether that be needs- or merit-based.
3. Some challenges have cultural, social, or political roots
Very often “complex cultural expectations or norms that [students] must live by”, underpin the challenges international students are experiencing, pointed out Emmanuel. For example, their college fund may have been redirected to pay for the care of an ill or elderly relative, or they may be struggling financially, despite having a scholarship or job because they are under pressure to send money home, which is particularly common among students from African countries.
This can also be the case with some of the more “unique and unusual challenges that institutions don't necessarily think about”, observed Reddy. Examples included students arriving woefully unprepared because they have never experienced cold weather or those who have to withdraw to complete mandatory military service. Some students will also be at the mercy of economic, political, and social events happening at the global level and crop up with little to no warning; for example, Russian and Ukrainian students impacted by the outbreak of war.
4. Cross-campus understanding and tailored solutions essential to providing support and boosting international student retention
The experiences of international students in the U.S. are shaped by a unique set of challenges—financial, cultural, and others—that demand greater attention and support from universities and colleges. The pressure these students are under is immense—whether it is to achieve high grades to maintain a scholarship, or to graduate as quickly as possible to save on tuition fees. But it’s not often recognized that “affordability [goes] hand in hand with the [other] mental health challenges that students might be facing", Van Wyk observed.
For her, it's important that everyone on campus understands what the student went through to be standing there, explaining their situation, and asking for help. It is only with a broader awareness of the issues international students experience that an institution can provide robust, comprehensive support.
As Emmanuel stressed, “to ensure the highest level of graduation rates or retention, we must understand the student experience from the standpoint of affordability.” By understanding this, in combination with the academic pressure students are under, he continued, will give institutions a sense of how challenging the student experience is. As their enrollments continue to rise, institutions should look to adapt, to improve retention, and ensure international students can fully realize their academic potential without undue hardship.