International students have become a fixture at Fresno State and at many other campuses throughout the country, albeit a declining fixture in recent years..

While seeking an education in a foreign land, international students also have to pay many times more money than most students in order to attend, while also abiding by a myriad of government restrictions on their activities in the United States, which is tied to a clampdown on immigration generally.

One statistic shows that while overall student enrollment at Fresno State has increased in recent years, both the number and percentage of international students has declined over the same period, from 3.6 percent and 775 students in 2002, to 2.5 percent and 547 students in fall 2006, according to the Institutional Research, Assessment and Planning division.

Lucia Hammar, director of International Student Services and Programs (ISSP), said the overall drop in numbers for international students in recent years can be attributed to Sept. 11.

“Visas became harder to get,â€Â Hammar said. “Also, people were kind of scared. Everyone just sort of stayed home.â€Â

Hammar said America’s status as the preeminent place for foreign students to come and study has also changed. Since Sept. 11, Hammar said, international students “started looking at other countries to go study, like Australia, England and Canada, places where visas were easier to obtain.â€Â

Indeed, the number of international student applicants has decreased since Sept. 11, from 856 in 2003 to 608 in 2004, before rebounding up to 738 in 2006.

Although U.S. visas have recently become less restrictive, Hammar said another element has cropped up in the minds of budding international students besides competition from other countries’ institutions — safety.

“If they’re already in the pipeline but wavering, the Virginia Tech shooting may have an impact,â€Â Hammar said. “My guess is that many parents are concerned about safety.â€Â

Hammar said that Fresno State has a strong Asian connection due to its West Coast proximity. In fact, the bulk of international students in fall 2006 came from India (191) and Japan (131). The third highest was Malaysia (35). In all, 56 percent of international students in fall 2006 came from the continent of Asia.

But comparatively few international students come from south of the border — only 10 in fall 2006.

“I’m really interested in Latin America,â€Â Hammer said. “It bothers me that we don’t have more students from our neighbors to the south. They go to places where they can get a better deal.â€Â

Hammar blamed low recruitment from Latin America on a lack of adequate financial support and greater scrutiny given to those entering the United States from those countries, especially Mexico, in relation to the touchy topic of immigration.

Hammar acknowledged a greater interest among international students for such career fields as business, engineering and computer science.

“Parents want to make sure their kids work when they get their degree,â€Â Hammar said.

The three most popular colleges for international students in fall 2006 were the Craig School of Business, with 116 students enrolled, Engineering (113) and Science and Mathematics (94).

Hammar said that full-time international students may get experience working in the Optional Practical Training program. She said students in the program can work for a company in their field for a year after leaving school. If the company is impressed with the former student̢۪s performance, it can lobby the government for an H visa, which extends the student̢۪s stay for employment purposes.

“A lot of students opt to try it out,â€Â Hammar said of Optional Practical Training. “Or they turn around and go into grad school.â€Â

Indeed, international students are far more likely to go to graduate school at Fresno State than the study body as a whole. In fall 2006, 36 percent of international students were in graduate school, with the next highest ethnic category being whites at 10.7 percent. In addition, 34.4 percent of these students were seniors, higher than for any other group.

Hammar said that most international students on campus were male because “more often men come to do graduate work.â€Â

The success rate for international students at Fresno State is probably very high, Hammar said.

“They have to be tenacious to get here in the first place and are more intense about education,â€Â Hammar said of international students. “They tend to make it work. The only other option is to go home.â€Â

One student who seems to be making it work is Associated Students, Inc., (ASI) President J. P. Moncayo, the first international student to preside over the Fresno State student body. He is the only student attending Fresno State from the country of Ecuador as of fall 2006.

Moncayo said he found Fresno State attractive for a number of reasons.

“I was able to get a good scholarship from Fresno,â€Â Moncayo said. “Fresno is also a cheaper place to live, and the fees here are lower than at Cal Poly and San Francisco State.â€Â

Moncayo̢۪s sources of income were his parents, loans and his job as ASI president. He said he enjoyed the chance to work, but noted restrictions for international students in this regard.

“International students have two restrictions with work,â€Â Moncayo said, since work permits must first be obtained, pending approval from ISSP. “The first semester, they can’t work, period. And they can’t work off campus.â€Â

While Moncayo said he goes back to Ecuador for four weeks every summer, circumstances vary widely for other international students.

“Some just want to get it done,â€Â Moncayo said, “and they hang around campus until they get their degree.â€Â

Moncayo said that the international student community includes many graduate students because many are better off pursing a bachelor̢۪s degree back home and a master̢۪s degree here. He said a master̢۪s degree is a valuable asset in the U.S. workforce, while simultaneously presenting better credentials back home.

“Lots of grads consider starting a job and a family here,â€Â Moncayo said. “But the opportunities to stay here are lower than desire.â€Â

Moncayo described the bureaucratic process of entering college as an international student. He recounted his application being accepted, after which he was issued an I-20 visa. Then, with the visa and numerous documents in hand, Moncayo went to the U.S. embassy and had to prove his intention to study only and “then come right back.â€Â

Then there was the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which Moncayo said was hard for him even though he had previously lived in Los Angeles for six years.

As a result of the arduous process and other factors, admittance rates for international student are far less than that of other ethnic groups. Only 47 percent of international student applicants were admitted in 2006, compared to 83 percent of whites, 74 percent of American Indians, 73 percent of Asians and 67 percent of Hispanics.

But before these students can undergo the application and admittance process, they must first seek out which school best serves their needs.

Moncayo said he found out about Fresno State through Carol Munshower, former director of ISSP, during her recruitment swing through Ecuador in 2002. Dean of Student Affairs Paul Oliaro said the university plans to step up the pace in recruiting international students and try new methods in the process.

Specifically, Oliaro said Fresno State will soon have a program in place to formally recruit students in other countries through alumni returning to their home countries.

“We’ll ask them to be ambassadors within their own country,â€Â Oliaro said of a program that will soon start on a trial basis. “We want them to say, ‘This is the degree I got, and it was a good experience.’â€Â

Recruitment works differently for different students. Gary Yang, a graduate student from Taiwan studying industrial technology, said he heard about Fresno State because his aunt lives in Fresno.

“She sent me information about the school and suggested I apply,â€Â Yang said.

Yang went back to Taiwan for the summer before returning this fall.

But one former student who isn̢۪t returning home anytime soon is psychology major Yuko Sako from Japan, who graduated last semester.

“I got a job in New York,â€Â Sako said, proudly. “I still have my student visa, but I can stay and work for one year.â€Â

Sako was accepted into an Optional Practical Training program in her major, and will be working for a Japanese-run consulting firm. Sako started her new job this fall. But she didn̢۪t get the chance to share the good news in person with her family in Japan.

“Due to the Optional Practical Training visa, I don’t receive anything from immigration,â€Â Sako said.

This means she may not be able to re-enter the country if she left for Japan to visit.

Looking ahead, Sako said, “I want to have a family here in this country.â€Â She also said she wanted to continue her education and ultimately become a therapist.

While acknowledging the ups and downs of international student enrollment at Fresno State, Sako said she didn̢۪t believe the university would allow enrollment to dip too low.

“They need our money,â€Â Sako said.