I know it's only four months into the 2019 US government fiscal year (FY19) but I look for trends wherever I can find them, even if they're just beginning to take shape. Based on US State Department statistics, the number of student visas issued from October 2018 to January 2019 by US Mission-Viet Nam, which … Continue reading US Student Visa Update from Viet Nam: So Far, So Good in FY19
study in the USA
The Metamorphosis of International Students Into Honorary US Nationalists: a View from Viet Nam
Follow this link to read my latest article, which is about a phenomenon I've observed over the years, namely, how some young Vietnamese who study in the USA become what I refer to as honorary US nationalists. (If you're not sure what nationalism means, have a look at this 2016 essay. Hint: It's quite different … Continue reading The Metamorphosis of International Students Into Honorary US Nationalists: a View from Viet Nam
Top US 10 States & Leading Host Institutions by Location
689,063 international students in the US in 2017/18, or 63% of the total, studied in 10 states, according to Open Doors 2018 data. You can see a list of 50 states and some US territories by following this link, or click on each state below to see its fact sheet (PDF download). Each fact sheet … Continue reading Top US 10 States & Leading Host Institutions by Location
US Government Form Letter Generates Excitement Among Colleagues. Say What?
A couple of colleagues shared this letter by Marie Royce, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, US State Department, on social media. It was sent to participants in a small international student recruitment conference in early December in the US. I'm not sure what they were so excited about. As … Continue reading US Government Form Letter Generates Excitement Among Colleagues. Say What?
Fewer US Student Visas Issued in Viet Nam in FY18
In the 2018 fiscal year, ending on 30 September 2018, US student (F-1) visas issued to Vietnamese students declined by 971, or 5.7%, over the previous year. Below are the monthly stats starting in October 2017. October 2017: 275 November 2017: 364 December 2017: 1299 January 2018: 1165 February 2018: 207 March 2018: 207 April … Continue reading Fewer US Student Visas Issued in Viet Nam in FY18
Latest IIE Open Doors Data Reveal Shift in Vietnamese Major Preferences in the US
Below is a list of majors - in descending order - that Vietnamese students chose in the 2017/18 academic year. Interestingly, there was a decrease in the percentage studying business/management, down from 30.9% the previous year. This reflects growing interest in non-business majors and perhaps, quite possibly, the dawning realization that one doesn't need to … Continue reading Latest IIE Open Doors Data Reveal Shift in Vietnamese Major Preferences in the US
Water Torture, DC-Style
While the US president lurches from one shit storm to the next, his mouth a fount of filth and lies, his mind a roiling cauldron of chaos, and The White House in a perennial state of (crazy) crisis, there are some nameless yet busy little beavers working in the trenches of the vast federal bureaucracy … Continue reading Water Torture, DC-Style
US Visa Overstays: Is the Sky Falling?
The Trump administration recently proposed (yet another) new rule related to nonimmigrant, including student, visas. This one, if approved, will establish a maximum period of authorized stay for international students and other holders of certain nonimmigrant visas. Why? Is there something broken that needs to be fixed? Are the overstay rates breaking new records? Do … Continue reading US Visa Overstays: Is the Sky Falling?
Proposed Change to Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility
Yet Another Obstacle in the Path of Obtaining a US Student Visa? Sadly, YES, if this proposal becomes law. From the horse's mouth: Section 212(a)(4) of the INA: Any alien who, in the opinion of the consular officer at the time of application for a visa, or in the opinion of the Attorney General at … Continue reading Proposed Change to Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility
#YouAreWelcomeWhere? A Call to Action
This is a post I wrote for The World View, a Boston College Center for International Higher Education blog hosted by Inside Higher Ed (IHE). It is as much a wake-up call as it is a call to action. One of my main points, which obviously went over the heads of some readers who commented, … Continue reading #YouAreWelcomeWhere? A Call to Action
An International Educator in Vietnam 
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