Herbert speaks to U.S. Senate

IU President Adam Herbert provided testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, D.C., Wednesday in a congressional hearing on international student visas. \nIn the name of national security, the U.S. State Department and the Office of Homeland Security have implemented several perceived problematic changes in the visa application process for foreign-born students and international researchers since the Sept. 11 attacks. \nAt the request of Committee Chairman and Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), Herbert joined Purdue University President Martin Jishcke and University of Maryland President C.D. Mote, Jr. as witnesses to the disastrous impact the new visa policy has had on foreign student enrollment and spending. \nAll three universities rank in the Top 20 across the country in international student attendance, Sen. Lugar said in a statement.\nCurrently, foreign scholars hoping to study in the United States face a labyrinth of paperwork hurdles, document verifications and security clearance roadblocks. As a result, the U.S. is facing a dramatic increase in foreign competition for international scholars and researchers from other English speaking countries which readily approve student visas to qualified individuals. \nTo study in the United States, international students and researchers must apply and be accepted by an American university, fill-out the proper paperwork and provide proper documentation for a list of qualifications, prove no immigration is intended and meet face-to-face with an American embassy consular in their home country. This process can take several weeks to several months depending on the country, the number of embassy staff and international student applications needing to be processed. \nOffice of International Services Senior Associate Director Lynn Schoch said the real student visa situation is whether current U.S. government policy is reducing the number of scholars studying in the states.\n"It is becoming harder and harder for international students to study in America. The purpose of Herbert's meeting with the Foreign Relations Committee is to determine what might be done to resolve this situation," Schoch said. "The attitude that everyone is a potential terrorist is not an efficient way to protect ourselves. Security checks need to be made more time efficient and concern focused."\nInternational student applications, for instance, have decreased 20 percent and enrollment has decreased more than 4 percent at IU's eight campuses for the last year, according to an IU press release. \nHerbert engaged the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in talk of urgent action to prevent further decreases in international scholar enrollment across the US.\n"Many academic institutions are seeing a significant drop in applications from prospective foreign students," Herbert told the committee, according to a statement. "This trend could have a harmful effect on higher education in American if it is not reversed."\nOf the 12.8 million students enrolled in universities and colleges across the nation, about 5 percent are international students; also, the nearly 600,000 foreign scholars -- about 13,500 in Indiana -- contributed about $12.9 billion dollars to the U.S. economy, which accounts for more than $330 million in Indiana alone, Sen. Lugar said in a statement. \nDirector of IU Media Relations Larry MacIntyre, who was present at the hearing, said Herbert's message to the committee stressed the importance that international students, scholars and visiting researchers are important to the University in many ways.\n"Part of IU's excellence is based on the knowledge these people bring to the University. For example, 30 percent of the IU School of Medicine non-tenured staff is foreign academics," MacIntyre said. "International scholars, instructors, researchers and assistants make such a big contribution year after year. We know the current system is not doing what it is suppose to do -- enable qualified foreign visitors easy access to the United States." \nSen. Lugar requested all three university presidents offer future input to separate the congressional, U.S. State Department and Office of Homeland Security policies considered especially problematic by American universities, MacIntyre said.\nFederal law mandates a $100 charge to each international scholar who applies for a U.S. student visa to maintain his or her personal information, background checks and other security data already entered into the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System, known by the legislature and universities as SEVIS. The system monitors and verifies international student residence and academic status.\nDoctoral student Sung Jin Park, who hails from South Korea, said the time consumption often experienced by many international scholars applying for student visas might dissuade travel to the United States in favor of better-perceived Western countries. \n"To find a school for education is a difficult decision for any student. For the new student, choosing the right school matters much, much more," Park said. "Why not go to the United Kingdom, Australia or other English-speaking countries? Student visas are much easier to obtain, in a shorter time, with less documentation. Applying for a U.S. student visa is laborious -- it takes a lot of time and money."\nHerbert and the other university presidents acknowledged common concerns often voiced by the administrations of most higher-education institutions, MacIntyre said.\n"We've got to have International scholars. We've got to find the best minds around the world. We've got to continue the IU tradition of excellence," he said. "If an international scholar is accepted, cleared and allowed into the United States, he or she should be able to visit home and not have to go through repeated screening processes. We all recognize the need for additional security; the University presidents need to determine what rule changes we need." \n-- Contact staff writer David A. Nosko at dnosko@indiana.edu .