Higher education institutions in the US have begun banding together to increase international student interest in their state. Private and public two and four year institutions in 24 states have already formed consortia, with the backing of many local political, business, and education leaders, to market to international students. While additional states are planning to form such consortia, others have also begun regional initiatives for the diverse areas within their state.

This increased focus on increasing the global attractiveness of the individual states and institutions is partly due to the much-needed funding international and out-of-state students provide. Such students typically pay full tuition, thereby subsidizing in-state student costs. According to the State Higher Education Executive Officers’ latest annual report, state and local funding is the lowest it’s been in over two decades at an average of $6,290 per student. Meanwhile, in US institutions, as a whole, tuition now accounts for more than 43% of educational revenue.

Some policymakers are concerned that recruiting more international and out-of-state students could be a threat to the number of in-state students accepted at an institution. Since international students currently make up 3.7 per cent of total U.S. higher education enrolment, however, other policymakers believe that such concerns are not yet justified. Writes Suzanne Weiss for National Conference of State Legislatures.