A survey of colleges and universities with large enrollments of students from countries affected by the Asian currency crisis shows that institutions have found creative ways to minimize the financial impact on these students in the short-term. Institutions expressed concern, however, about how the crisis would impact enrollments in the coming academic year and about finding long-term solutions to the problem. Based on these concerns and the survey results, leading national organizations involved in international educational exchange issued a statement calling on the Federal Government, higher education institutions, business and financial institutions, and students to take steps to respond effectively to this crisis. The email survey was conducted among institutions that enroll a significant number of students from Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Korea. According to David Arnold, acting president of IIE, the economic, cultural, and diplomatic implications of the crisis could be quite serious.
Foreign students are assets to their host campuses and communities.
We are inclined to believe that the assistance individual institutions have offered these students is having a positive effect on retention. The survey shows that while the principal institutional responses have been delayed tuition and increasing on-campus employment, a wide variety of other accommodations are being made. According to Todd Davis, director of research for the Institute of International Education, the enrollment situation is highly dynamic with some institutions suffering deep enrollment drops and others seemingly unaffected.