Posted on 08/20/2010 11:20:24 AM PDT by epithermal
U.S. students had a much harder time getting into American graduate schools this past year than did their peers from China and the rest of the world. And while 1 year is far from a trend, a new report by the Council of Graduate Schools raises the question of how well Americans stack up against international students.
Overall, the report says, 3% more international students received offers of admission for the 2010–11 academic year than in the previous year. That's the fifth increase in the past 6 years. But the survey from the Washington, D.C.,–based organization also found that 1% fewer U.S students than last year have received acceptance letters. The number of applications rose by 9% for each group.
It's the first time the council has used its international survey to collect information on U.S. citizens, so it's hard to know what the different numbers mean. The report doesn't try to provide an answer, although it highlights the data as "a striking difference."
(Excerpt) Read more at news.sciencemag.org ...
You being a professor, I have a question for you.
I suspect it’s because foreign students have better math skills. To often I’ve seen students treat college as a vocational school. They think it’s better to have “hands on” work. That fine I think, if one is leaving soon. However without learning basic advanced mathematics, beyond the fourth semester of calculus, they are ill prepared for graduate school. What do you think of that idea?
Because foreigners pay full freight....no in-state discounts.
I would tend to think foreign pre-post-secondary(LOL, that just happened) education is better. Even a country like Iran has better schools than us.
Case in point. Haha
Americans should stop paying taxes in this global Utopia. This land is not our land anymore.
No question that many foreign students have better math skills, but their communication skills in English are pathetic and their analytical skills are about even with domestics. In the biosciences, where advanced math is less important, the written/spoken language requires greater emphasis. It is an extra burden on advisors to have to rewrite anything put forward by most foreign grad students who can neither speak nor write effectively.
Because foreigners pay full freight....no in-state discounts.”
This is a misconception. Most foreign students receive stipends just like domestic students and fees are often waived.
That’s far from true, at least for doctoral programs in the biomedical sciences. Most of those PhD students don’t pay tuition and get an annual stipend of $20-25,000 for living expenses. WE are covering those costs, basically paying them to come here and get degrees. It’s sick.””
Didn’t see your post before I made a similar statement. You are exactly right.
Thanks for the response.
I like your point about analytical skills. I think it’s like drafting a player into the NFL. I can check a students grades, other stats, published papers, etc. but it’s not until I give him work to do can I figure out if he can figure things out on his own. Just like one has to see a running back run in the NFL before he can be satisfactorily evaluated. So, if I get a student with good mathematical skills and he turns out to have good analytical skills, I can give him any assignment. If he has an experimental background but lesser mathematical skills, then he’s limited. Unfortunately, the students from Chin Hau and IIT typically have a stronger mathematical background.
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