International Scholars : El Camino Is Among Colleges Actively Seeking Foreign Students

Frank Levi’s dream is to improve his understanding of American football by playing on the University of Arizona’s team, but first the burly Australian has to adjust to living away from home--and get better grades.

So he applied to El Camino College’s International Students Program and has spent the last year and a half polishing his study skills at the two-year college. When he finishes his associate of arts degree this spring, he hopes to go on to Arizona, or another big football school.

“Going to a (junior college) is just a little slower. . . . When we do have problems, they can always advise us or direct us to people who can help us,” Levi said.

El Camino College, like other California community colleges, has found that catering to the needs of international students improves the school’s reputation around the world--and creates a windfall for the college’s budget.

Eight El Camino administrators from various departments used $200,000 in seed money three years ago to create a program that brought in 266 students whose tuition is generating more than $800,000 this school year. About 25,000 students attend the school each semester.

College staff researched which countries typically sent the most students to American schools and then used the money to travel to these areas to recruit students in person. They passed out pamphlets describing the campus and talked to hundreds of parents.

“One father literally put his daughter’s hand in mine--he was giving her to me to take care of,” said Mary Ann Keating, one of the administrators who run the program.

Of the top 20 countries sending students to the United States, El Camino recruited students in 15 of them, including Japan, Taiwan, Germany and France. Most of the students from these countries want to become fluent in English and study business, Keating said. But students from other countries, including English-speaking ones, may apply on their own just as Levi did.

Loyola Marymount, a four-year school, Marymount College in Palos Verdes and Santa Monica College have all expanded their recruitment of international students in recent years. Santa Monica actually leads the nation in enrollment of foreign students at community colleges with more than 2,000.

At El Camino, international students pay $124 per unit. Out-of-state students pay $117 per unit. By comparison, California residents pay $13 per unit for courses at any of the state’s 106 community colleges. In addition to charging foreign and out-of-state students higher fees, community colleges deposit tuition and fees paid by those students directly into their general funds, and can spend the money any way they wish. The money generated from California residents goes to the state, and is then disbursed to each campus according to enrollment.

Even though the international students pay more per unit than American citizens, public community colleges are still a bargain--about $3,000 a year for a full course load while private universities often charge more than $15,000. International students do not qualify for any federal or state financial aid, and immigration laws do not allow them to work.

With their families or sponsors back home providing financial stability, speaking and writing English becomes the most difficult hurdle for many international students.

El Camino requires applicants to score at least 470 points on the Test of English as a Foreign Language to qualify for the school’s programs. Students also take English as a Second Language classes when they arrive at the school.

Keating said the additional students don’t overtax the school’s ESL program, but make it more cost-effective by filling seats that would otherwise remain empty.

But school officials know that too many international students could be too much of a good thing, Keating said. The school has room for 400 to 500 foreign students; any more than that would require hiring additional ESL teachers, she said.

Typically, international students work hard and stay focused on their education, said Susan Nickle, one of the program’s coordinators.

“These are serious students. They have to send their grades back home--and in some of these cultures you don’t want to be sending C’s home,” Nickle said.

Program administrators get frequent updates from all of the students’ teachers, and Nickle arranges conferences with the students to help sort out their problems.

She even helps out when they run short of lunch money.

“I can’t tell you how many times $20 bills go back and forth across the counter,” Nickle said. “But they always pay it back.”