More than 1,500 new international students will be welcomed to Penn State’s University Park campus during a weeklong orientation, from Aug. 10-17. Penn State President Graham Spanier will address new students and their families during the annual breakfast reception, to be held Aug. 11 in Alumni Hall at the campus' HUB-Robeson Center. Other speakers include Michael Adewumi, vice provost for global programs, and other key members of the University Office of Global Programs team.
“It is challenging to set up a new life in a new country,” said Adewumi. “The orientation is designed to help the new students in a most practical way; we help them not only with university registrations but also bank accounts, cell phones, housing, and all of the important details in life. We strive to make them feel welcome.”
The New International Student Orientation schedule, which can be found at http://www.global.psu.edu/ online, is packed with informational sessions and workshops. In one day students can attend a session titled "Diversity at Penn State," led by Terrell Jones, Penn State's vice provost of Educational Equity, and later travel on an organized shopping trip to Wegman’s and Target.
“Our concern is to make sure the students understand how to stay in good legal status while studying in the U.S., but we also care about the students’ social, cultural, and academic adjustment as well,” said Sandi Richter, special events coordinator for the University Office of Global Programs and organizer of the orientation.
Penn State continues to attract more international undergraduates. In 2010 there were roughly the same number of international students in undergraduate programs as there were in graduate programs. In total, international students now comprise 10 percent of the student body at the University Park campus.
Penn State’s sponsored student numbers also continue to grow; there will be 200 incoming sponsored students this fall, making a total of 700 sponsored students at University Park. Sponsored students are classified as non-U.S. students whose education at Penn State is being sponsored either by a business from their country of origin or by their home government or home university, by an international organization, or by the U.S. government. Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates represent the largest number of sponsored students followed by an increase from Kazakhstan.