The fellowship’s goal was to introduce American students to all aspects of Saudi culture, and Cournoyer said the experiential learning opportunity left him much wiser, inspired and globally enlightened.

Cournoyer was selected as one of nine current college students — all Model Arab League standouts at their respective universities — to participate in the 10-day fellowship. The trip, June 7 to 16, was organized by the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, an American nonprofit that strives to improve Americans’ knowledge and understanding of Arab culture. It was co-sponsored by the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission to the U.S.A. and the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Higher Education.

In his group’s guided travels across the country, Cournoyer had some memorable experiences. He shared tea and coffee with Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Zamil, a Saudi billionaire. He met Prince Turki bin Faisal Al Saud, longtime director of the Saudi Arabian intelligence agency, who shared his views on Saudi Arabian history and the Kingdom’s foreign affairs policies. And he heard John Sfakianakis, a leading economist and group general manager at Banque Saudi Fransi, discuss the oil industry’s place in Saudi Arabia’s economic future.

The fellowship also included visits to several universities and museums showcasing the country’s history, scientific advancements, and oil drilling and production process.

“It strengthened my interest and appreciation for society in the Middle East,” said Cournoyer, a political science and international affairs double major.

Cournoyer said he discovered there are more opportunities for women than is commonly believed in the West, and the fellowship strengthened his understanding of how closely religion is integrated into every element of Saudi life.

“What we saw was much more dynamic and had much more depth to it than the perception that the only thing going on over there is exporting oil,” he said.

Cournoyer, who said he is eager to return one day to learn more about the culture, has been selected as the secretary-general of the 2011 National Model Arab League Conference in March in Washington, D.C.

Story courtesy of Northeastern University. To view the original release, click here.

The funding is being made available through the Prime Minister’s Initiative for International Education. The launch of the Fund coincides with the release of figures, which show that the UK is once again the top destination for US students studying abroad and the US is still the top destination for UK students studying abroad.

Commenting on the launch of the Fund, Higher Education Minister David Lammy said:
“The UK and the USA have excellent higher education systems, and for many years students from both countries have benefited from the close working relationships that have developed between our two countries. These new partnerships, funded through the Prime Minister’s Initiative for International Education, will build on this and encourage even more links between universities and students across both our systems. The relationship between the UK and US is important, and we remain committed to that and to building on it for the future.”

The Fund is linked to extensive research carried out in cooperation with the US Institute of International Education earlier in the year on higher education partnerships between the UK and the US. There is a long history of collaboration between the UK and US on joint research initiatives across many disciplines, as well as an abundance of staff and student exchanges. There are currently more than 5,000 UK university staff with research links to the United States and more than 3,500 US research students currently working in the UK. Joint UK-US research projects currently underway include: exploring stem cell therapy for macular degeneration; conducting an extensive study of the Earth’s atmosphere; identifying materials that act as superconductors; and studying the role of sugar in cell-to-cell communication.

Sharon Memis, Director of British Council North America said:
”Education links are crucial for increasing long term cultural relations and this new initiative represents a continued investment into the development of transatlantic education partnerships.

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The British Council’s UK-US Universities and Colleges New Partnerships Fund is introduced as education partnerships receive a growing spotlight in US foreign policy. In recent weeks, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has emphasised education and higher education partnerships on her state visits. In Russia, Clinton remarked, “…Part of our approach in the Obama Administration is to reach out to form more partnerships with not just governments but people-to-people partnerships that we think are going to provide a strong foundation for our future cooperation.

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The UK is the top destination for American students who choose to study outside the country for a semester or year-abroad as well as full degree programmes.

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This year, the United Kingdom once again took the top spot, rising almost 2% with 33,333 Americans studying here in the 2007-2008 school year (14% of overall study abroad students). Conversely, the United States is perennially the top destination for British students who study outside the UK with 8,701 studying in the US during the 2008-09 academic year.

The president’s announcement is part of a long term initiative to improve the relationship between the US and China. A US and China joint statement noted that nearly 100,000 students go to the US every year to study, whereas less than 20,000 American students go to China. Latest figures from the Institute of International Education Open Doors report show this number to be considerably lower at 13,165 US students in China in the academic year 07–08.

You can view the full Open Doors International Education Exchange report on the IIE Network website.

Obama plans to increase the number of US students in China to 100,000 over the next four years but has not yet announced a plan for this initiative.

“China will have a much more important voice in world affairs in the coming years, and we need more Americans who can speak the language, who understand China, and who can do business more effectively with the Chinese.” A State Department spokesperson told The Chronicle.

However, some of the commenters on The Chronicle discussion forum following the article were dubious about how this initiative would work. Jeff1 wrote:

“I have spent much time for my institutions working on partnerships in China and they are wonderful people, smart and hard working. The big challenges, and it is a biggie, is that we do not speak Mandarin and they do not, speak English. If that challenge can be met the Chinese present us with an incredible market and opportunity and we for them.”

This week is officially International Education week. The event is a joint initiative of  US Department of State and the US Department of Education, which aims to promote programmes that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States.

NAFSA Association of International Educators is celebrating International Education Week (IEW) with the release of new data on international education, including their annual Economic Impact Statements.  The statements reveal that international students and their dependents continue to make significant contributions to local and state economies.  Despite the economic downturn, they spent a notable $17.6 billion in the United States during the 2008-2009 academic year, an increase of nearly $2 billion over the 2007-2008 academic year.  Read about the other new data and resources.

The Economic Impact Statements are a valuable tool for making the case for the positive impact of international students on campuses, at the state level, and nationally.  Stay tuned for more blog posts this week as we break down the data region by region.  You can expect to hear from NAFSA members from the West, Notheast, South, and Midwest throughout the week on how international education makes a positive impact on their communities.  Feel free to chime in with your own stories!

You can also share what you are doing for IEW on NAFSA’s Facebook event page.  All week, colleges and universities around the USA are offering activities and events to showcase how international education advances learning, builds understanding, and enhances constructive leadership in our global community.  The government is getting involved too – IEW is a joint initiative of the US State Department and Department of Education and over 30 governors have issued proclamations honoring IEW.  Learn more at www.nafsa.org/iew and enjoy the week.

See original story on the NAFSA blog.

Find out more about international education week, get involved, submit videos and photos and take quizzes on the International Education Week website.

Kristof has dedicated himself throughout his career to shedding light on some of the most profound humanitarian crises of our time, writing movingly and with personal conviction about poverty, injustice, and violence. This will be a very unique opportunity for international educators to hear from an extraordinary thought leader and human rights activist.

Last month, Kristof and his wife, former New York Times writer Sheryl WuDunn, published a book about what they have called “the cause of our century.” Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide has been hailed as a moving and action-inspiring account of the plight of women in many parts of the world. Kristof and WuDunn make a compelling case for not only the human rights imperative of fighting for women’s rights and education, but also for the enormous economic and social benefits that accrue to countries when women are empowered, able to support their families, and assume leadership roles in their families and communities. “The world is awakening to a powerful truth: Women and girls aren’t the problem; they’re the solution,” the authors write.

Kristof has been a columnist at the New York Times since 2001. He joined the paper in 1984 and has held several key positions over the years. He is also an avid participant in online journalism and social media and was the first blogger on the Times Web site.

In 2006, Kristof created a contest that caught the eye of the international education community. Called “Win a Trip with Nicholas Kristof,” it invited American college students to submit essays describing why they should be selected for an opportunity to travel with Kristof on a reporting trip to Africa. Describing in a column the value of such an opportunity, Kristof speaks directly to today’s college students, writing: “One of the failures of the American education system is that it rarely exposes students to life around the world…Let’s hope that Barack Obama’s presidency makes public service more appealing. But if you want to save the world, you first must understand it. So, embed yourself deep within a developing country for a summer or a year. I wish colleges would offer credit for such gritty experiences — and extra credit for getting intestinal worms.”

Learn more about Nicholas Kristof and the rest of NAFSA’s conference plenary lineup over the coming weeks and months at www.nafsa.org/conference and on the NAFSA blog.

This comes from a report released on August 20th from the Council of Graduate Schools showing that the number of international students applying to gaduate schools in the USA has dropped 3% since 2008.
There were 16% declines in offers to students from both India and South Korea, after offers to students in each country fell 2% last year.

Although the survey also found a final one-year 4% increase in international applications, the total number of international applications received in 2009 remains 5% below 2003 levels.

The report additionally includes findings on domestic student admissions trends.  The change in domestic applications at responding graduate schools was a median 8% increase.  Offers of admission to U.S. students grew by a median 2%.

Growth in U.S. applications was more widespread than growth in international applications. While 75% of graduate schools received more applications from prospective U.S. students in 2009 than 2008, just 55% received more international applications.  Institutions were also
more likely to report growth in offers of admission to domestic applicants than to international students.

“The decline in admissions of international students this year, after several years of slowing growth, is a concern for US graduate education,” said Debra W. Stewart, CGS President.

“For the past few years growth in first-time graduate enrollment has been driven by international students.  However, the fact that so many schools reported strong growth in admissions to U.S. students this year may signal a reversal of that trend,” she added.

Click here to read full press release from the Council of Graduate Schools.

The initiative led by Bloomberg and named ‘the gateway to middle-class’ supports President Obama’s plans to boost the popularity of community colleges in the United States. By 2010 President Obama wants five million American students to have graduated from community colleges across the country.

The report in the New York Times stated how Bloomberg’s funding would elevate the number of graduating students to 120,000 a year, a “43% increase over the 84,000 students that are currently expected to graduate by that time.”

“It’s going to be an exciting new era for our community colleges,” said Bloomberg. “We have some of the best community colleges in the country here in New York.”

Plans for a new community college in New York are currently under development. To date, New York City has six community colleges in The City University of New York (CUNY) network including Borough of Manahattan Community College, Bronx Community College and La Guardia Community College. The new development would see this figure rise to seven. “This will be the first new two year institute of higher education to be built in New York City in 37 years,” said Bloomberg.

To learn more, visit the CUNY Newswire website at: www1.cuny.edu/forum/?p=4221

This new effort to allow academic exchange programmes between the US and Cuba has come as a result of Obama’s willingness to forge new ties with Cuba when he proposed an “equal partnership” with all nations of the Americas at the Summit of the Americas in April.

In the letter, signed by NAFSA and seventeen other organisations, the organisations praise Obama’s plans of a new beginning with Cuba and urge him to change the restrictions on exchange programmes between the US and Cuba as a vital step in this new relationship. The letter states:

“As you recently noted in your address to a group of students in Turkey, “exchanges can break down the walls between us.” However, Cuba currently remains the only country in the world where the United States government restricts study by American students, as well as academic travel by bona fide teachers and researchers….One way in which to advance opportunities for young people to engage internationally would be to lift the current restrictions and permit academic travel to Cuba via general license. We would also welcome a trend of granting US visas for Cubans coming for exchange purposes”.

The full letter is available to view and download here. NAFSA have also published details of the legislation and will update any changes on the Public Policy page of their website.

According to the Associated Press the two cases of swine flu were discovered on Sunday evening. The students, a 23-year-old male from New Jersey and a 23-year-old female from Florida lived in a building with 234 people, which includes 110 international students. An assistant Health Minister, Nasser el-Sayyed confirmed, “The building and the people inside it have been put under supervised quarantine”.

The American University in Cairo, which has a student body of 5,500 announced that classes will be suspended until Sunday, however the planned graduation ceremony will go ahead on the 16th and 18th of June.

i-studentadvisor reported back in April that the NAFSA Association of International Educators launched an emergency resource page for international education professionals in regards to the swine flu outbreak. We would like to hear from you if you have any comments about this issue, especially if you are a student or education professional who has been affected by the swine flu outbreak.