International Student Recruitment
Issues and Resources for Minnesota State Colleges and Universities
Office of General Counsel
September 2013
Many Minnesota State Colleges and Universities engage in some type of international student
recruitment activity – whether it is as simple as keeping in contact with international alumni to
contracting with agents in targeted countries. To-date, the system has not adopted a specific
policy addressing these recruitment activities and thus, each college and university determines
how best to accomplish their objectives consistent with general policies and procedures, as well
as their institutional mission and resources. The following information is offered to assist
campus representatives in considering some of the options available for international student
recruitment and make thoughtful and effective decisions.
NAFSA Virtual Toolkit for Recruiting International Undergraduate Students: links to
numerous practical resources, many available to non-members, regarding international
recruitment strategies including articles on considerations about using agents.
http://www.nafsa.org/Resource_Library_Assets/Networks/RAMA/Virtual_Toolkit_for_Rec
ruiting_International_Undergraduate_Students/
AIRC System colleges and universities who wish to engage the services of agents who charge
the institution per-student fees should contact the OGC or AGO for assistance in drafting an
agreement. The American International Recruitment Council (AIRC) is a membership
organization that develops certification standards for foreign recruiters; when considering a
relationship with a recruiting agent, it may be useful to review AIRC member lists. http://airceducation.org/
National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) in September 2013 voted
to approve a change to its ethical standards permitting the use of commissioned agents in the
recruitment of students outside the U.S. (federal law bars the use of commissions in recruiting
American students). The newly amended Section 1.A.3. of NACAC’s Statement of Principles of
Good Practice: http://www.nacacnet.org/about/Governance/Policies/Documents/SPGP.pdf
(October 2012 version) stipulates that member institutions will “not offer or accept any reward or
remuneration from a secondary school, college, university, agency or organization for placement
or recruitment of students in the United States. Members who choose to use incentive-based
agents when recruiting students outside the U.S. will ensure accountability, transparency and
integrity.”
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NEW! NACAC in September 2014 published its Counseling Guide on International Student
Recruitment Agencies. NACAC describes risks and concrete steps to ensure accountability
when working with foreign recruiters.
EducationUSA https://www.educationusa.info/about.php
Education USA is a cost-free program of the US Department of State available to assist US
institutions of higher education in various ways, including providing objective and
comprehensive information about regions of the world in which recruitment is being considered.
From its website:
EducationUSA is a network of hundreds of advising centers in 170 countries, where
millions of international students each year find accurate, comprehensive, and current
information about how to apply to accredited U.S. colleges and universities. The
EducationUSA network is supported by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of
Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), which strives to foster mutual understanding
between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. EducationUSA
advisers and staff work with U.S. higher education professionals to promote international
student enrollment. EducationUSA also helps promote study abroad opportunities for
U.S. citizens. U.S. and international students alike can prepare for leadership roles in
today's world through an international education.
The U.S. higher education community collaborates with EducationUSA to attract
qualified international students to U.S. campuses. EducationUSA assists U.S. college and
university recruiting and admissions staff by providing information on trends in higher
education overseas, foreign education systems, the importance of recruiting international
students, how to utilize the network to recruit effectively, and how to maintain an
international-student friendly campus and website. The U.S. Department of State funds
the annual IIE Open Doors Report, which provides statistics about rates of tertiary
international student mobility to and from the United States. Advisers host college and
university visits to their centers and at EducationUSA college fairs. More than 1,000
accredited U.S. institutions access a wide range of services and tools for recruitment
advice through the EducationUSA website.
Study Minnesota is a newly forming nonprofit corporation organized by the U.S. and State of
Minnesota Trade Offices; it will be operated in accordance with the IRS tax exempt regulations
of Section 501 (c) (6) for “business leagues.” The first official meeting occurred in June 2013.
The general purpose of Study Minnesota is to internationally promote educational and training
opportunities in the state; it is modeled on similar organizations that have been developed in
other states. Study Minnesota is envisioned to complement international marketing and
recruitment by member institutions. Promotion is anticipated to be accomplished primarily via a
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common web-site that will include links to institutional member web-sites. Other possible
activities may include:
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Developing joint marketing materials to promote state educational opportunities more
generally;
Sponsoring foreign educational advisors to visit colleges and universities in person;
Participation in state-supported educational missions to foreign countries;
Sharing template resources such as international student orientation and programming;
Presence at NAFSA conferences (national and regional).
Membership is open to all educational organizations within the state, including public and
private institutions of higher education. It is expected that annual membership fees will be
approximately $350.00.
MnSCU colleges and universities interested in exploring membership in Study Minnesota may
contact: David Edmiston, US Commercial Service Minnesota david.edmiston@trade.gov 612
348-1644; Tim Odegard, Minnesota Trade Office tim.odegard@state.mn.us 651 259-7491.
Campus officials may also contact the following for further information:
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Todd Harmening, Academic Affairs todd.harmening@so.mnscu.edu 651 201-1856
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