Stemming The Brain Drain With International Students

Stemming The Brain Drain With International Students

By Sarah Szurpicki, Model D

With over 23,000 foreign born students, Michigan has the eighth largest foreign student population in the country. And that number is only growing (check out the recent Free Press article about the incredible increase in Chinese students at major Michigan universities over the past four years). Education is something we’re currently "exporting" -- people come to Michigan, pay for education (some $600 million annually) and take it back to their home country or another state.

But what if, instead of exporting all that talent, we did what we could to keep foreign born students in Michigan, contributing to our economy, our culture, and our cities?

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