IIE Covid-19 Snapshot Survey Series: From Emergency Response to Planning for Future Student Mobility

The Institute of International Education (IIE) is studying the effects of Covid‐19 on global student mobility on U.S. higher education campuses through a series of Covid-19 Snapshot Surveys. IIE's first Covid-19 Snapshot Survey was launched on 13 February 2020 and focused on the effects of Covid‐19 on academic student mobility to and from China. IIE's second Covid-19 snapshot survey was launched on 16 April 2020, and the survey report 'From Emergency Response to Planning for Future Student Mobility,' was released last week. This report takes a broader look to analyze Covid-19 effects on U.S. campuses in spring 2020, as well as looking ahead to inbound and outbound student exchange in summer and fall 2020.

The three main sections of the report present the effects of Covid-19 on
1) campus life;
2) international students, both those that could not come and those already on campus in the spring semester; and
3) U.S. students studying abroad

599 U.S. higher education institutions completed the survey.

Here are some of IIE's findings, which documents US higher education sector's response to the Covid-19 pandemic so far:

-Over 74% of respondent institutions altered their grading policies for spring 2020 (e.g., moving to pass/fail, universal pass)

-85% of respondent institutions replied that no decision has been made about the mode of instruction for fall 2020.

-84% of respondent institutions have put new measures in place for international student recruitment, including allowing online testing results in lieu of in-person testing, waiving transcripts and/or other academic credentials, waiving standardised testing requirements, extending application deadlines, and more.

-88% of respondent institutions anticipate that international student enrollment will decrease in the 2020/21 academic year. IIE's analysis indicates that these institutions anticipate that approximately 16% of their international student body will not be able to come to campus in-person in fall 2020.

-Most institutions (75%) are giving international students the option to defer enrollment to later in the fall or to spring 2021.

-Similar to how institutions have not finalized decisions on whether fall 2020 classes will be held on campus or virtually, colleges and universities are still waiting to decide whether fall study abroad programs will
proceed. A relatively small proportion (17%) of institutions has made the decision to cancel all or some of their study abroad programs in the fall.

IIE will continue the Covid-19 Snapshot Series in the coming months, with a third survey in June to understand plans U.S. institutions have made for fall 2020.

You can access IIE's Covid-19 Snapshot Survey series here: https://www.iie.org/Connect/COVID-19/COVID-19-Snapshot-Survey-Series