Augustana is excited to welcome 43 new international students this spring — approximately double the number the university typically enrolls for the second semester.
“I'm so thrilled that a growing number of international students are choosing to study at Augustana. They bring such life and diversity of perspective to our campus. They graduate and go on to do amazing things — from getting into top-tier graduate programs to landing jobs that would be the envy of most students, American or international,” said Augustana’s Director of International Programs & Enrollment Ben Iverson ‘04. “It's a testament to the hard work of my team in the International Programs Office (IPO), ensuring that students have an exceptional experience from the point of application through graduation to the faculty that teach and mentor them, as well as the Augustana community as a whole that provides such a warm welcome to these adventurous students from far away. The Augustana community is a special place and I'm excited that more international students will get to experience it and contribute to it this spring.”
Augustana’s new international student enrollment for Spring Semester 2022 consists of nine one-semester exchange students and 34 degree-seeking students. The students represent 17 different countries — a sizable number of the students coming to Augustana from Nepal.
“We had a nice-sized recruitment class from Nepal in Fall 2021 as well. It appears that they're telling their friends that Augustana is a great place to study! The other students come for a variety of reasons, mostly due to Assistant Director for International Enrollment Wade Gemar's hard work, and the maturation of some of our investments of time and relationship development around the world. For instance, there are three students in our nursing exchange program with a university in Norway, our coaches are recruiting an increasing number of international student-athletes (five in this cohort), two are in our new graduate programs and six come from our work with a U.S. State Department-sponsored program called UGRAD, among other things,” said Iverson.
“It isn't always easy given our unknown location and brand to most people overseas, but that's changing — international students are discovering what we've known here locally for a long time. Augustana is an incredible value when you consider the quality of our teaching faculty, the success of our graduates and the amazing number of hands-on opportunities from undergraduate research and meaningful internships at businesses in Sioux Falls.”
The spring enrollment numbers bring Augustana’s total international student enrollment in Academic Year 2021-22 to 150 students from more than 50 countries — nearing AU’s all-time record of 153 international students on campus.
“We couldn't be more excited to welcome such a great group of new Vikings to campus,” said Gemar ‘08. “International students are change-makers and impact our campus community in countless ways. The opportunity to learn alongside those who have had different life experiences from our own is a gift, and it makes us all better neighbors in our increasingly small, interconnected world. By investing in international education, we are fostering understanding and creating ethical, globally-minded leaders right here in our little corner of the world. And, I'm proud to be a small part of that.”
For more information on Augustana’s International Programs Office (IPO), visit augie.edu/international.