The University of Pennsylvania Experiences 50% Increase in International Students Compared to 2020

It is a fact that Covid_19 has had a significant impact on the education industry of all countries as most of the countries are experiencing a decrease in the number of international students. In the academic year 2019 – 2020, the United States has been able to host 1 million international students. A beneficial positive result regarding international students’ interest in continuing their study from this place can be evidenced in Pennsylvania. By considering the number of applications that Penn has obtained from international students, it can be stated that there is an increase of 50% concerning the number of applications of international students that the universities of Penn have been received. For the educational session of 2025, Penn has already received 11,000 applications from international students. It is considered the United States colleges are facing a drastic decrease concerning international applications. Concerning regular decision rounds and early decision rounds, the university is seeing an increase in international applications. The Dean of admission of the university, John McLaughlin, has said that 13% of the overall students who have been enrolled their names for early decision rounds for the 2025 session are international. It has been possible to find out that they belong to 56 countries. It means that students from a significant number of counties throughout the world are showing interest in completing their studies at Penn University. It is an achievement for the management team and the university faculty members as their offering. Their education structure seems to be attractive to international students. However, several factors contribute to the increase, and these factors are going to be highlighted in the following section.

Factors that are contributing to the increase of the number of international students

By considering the Dean of administration of the university, it can be stated that there may be several factors working as contributors in this regard. He has said that Penn’s test-optional policy is expected to work effectively in this regard. Apart from that, it is a fact that the university has created several opportunities for international students, and these opportunities are effectively attracting international students. The university has provided students with such facilities so that international students can get access to virtual programming in the Covid_19 phase. It has been beneficial for students, and it may influence students’ trust in the university, and somehow it has influenced students to be a part of this university. The Dean has stated that this kind of policy has better affected international students than domestic students. International students have obtained a significant benefit with the application of these policies. These factors have contributed to an effective increase in overall applications for 2025, and the university has received almost 56,000 applications. It is the highest number of applications that the company has ever received. If this factor can be compared with other universities’ overall situation in the United States, it would be possible to understand Penn’s success in attracting more international students more transparently.

The overall situation of U.S universities regarding the number of international students

It is a fact that the record-breaking increase regarding international applications of the University of Penn is in contrast to recent trends that are about the decreasing number of international students interested in studying in the U.S universities. A survey has been conducted to get a clear idea regarding this matter. It has been possible to identify that the total number of students studying in U.S universities has been decreased by 16%. In this regard, it is essential to state that the statistic has been provided by considering the total number of students, whether they are from the United States or any other foreign country. Seven hundred colleges have been surveyed here, and it means that the result is highly considerable. The survey has also been able to find out that there was a significant drop regarding the admission of international students, and the fall is about 43%. There are several reasons why the number of international students in the United States has been dropped, and safety considerations and travel restrictions can be regarded as practical reasons. However, Penn’s vision and concepts are found to be effective in attracting international students. Here, a discussion regarding the plan that Penn has developed for international students will be elaborated.

Internal students-related plan for Penn

It is a fact that Penn is interested in attracting students who have international curiosity. In this regard, it is essential to state that the university has developed an in-disciplinary mindset, and it has influenced the plan that it has designed for international students. The university desires to contribute something to the world and wants to help people who have a genuine passion and an interest in turning their ideas into actions. However, Penn’s admission decision is made before the announcement of several national examinations. However, to get admission to the University of Penn, all international students need to have a strong command of English, and applicants must meet any of two following criteria. In this regard, either they have to have English as their native language or have to have English as the primary language of high school duration. It is expected that most of the students who have been applied for 2025 will meet these criteria, and the university would start its session of 2025 with an adequate number of international students.