MSU was the first university to create a high-level position to support international education and boasts a top study abroad program. About 1,200 to 1,500 MSU faculty regularly are engaged in international research or research in another country, and MSU students come from 130 different countries.

“Projects will come and go, activities will come and go, but the commitment to being a broad-base international engagement will remain,” MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon said.

With a longstanding, broad international presence, MSU now is looking to expand in two areas — India and Brazil — to further the university’s foreign affairs.

Into India

MSU has its sights on India as a target of further expansion, but there currently is a law preventing foreign universities from being established in the country.

Riedinger said India’s recent economic and educational growth is one of the reasons MSU has targeted the country.

Instead of establishing a university — or even an office — MSU began a consuls general program last year.

The consuls general serve as ambassadors of sorts on MSU’s behalf and are working to create new ties between educators and students in India, and those in East Lansing.

“The consuls general are people that are not necessarily MSU alumni,” Riedinger said. “But they know MSU well and know our values.”

The position usually is filled by someone who has experience with the country they serve in, Riedinger said.

“We’re trying to be a bit more strategic and have more alignment between where our faculty do research and where students go to study,” Riedinger said.

The newest consul general in India, Srinivasan Thyagarajan, obtained his degree in India before coming to the U.S. to obtain a Ph.D and become a professor at several universities. He has been engaged in talks about the program since last year and visited MSU in March.

“MSU has a long history of doing international programs … and I think they can really tap into this,” Thyagarajan said.

“India is changing fast and it needs to expand, especially in the education field, because the population is growing exponentially.”

The number of consuls general in India is expected to grow modestly throughout the next several years, Riedinger said. If the program is successful in India, a similar approach will be used in various other countries, including MSU’s next target: Brazil.

Sights on Brazil

Riedinger currently is in Brazil with MSU Provost Kim Wilcox and several other faculty members.
The group is meeting with partner universities to begin identifying and appointing consuls general for the country.

“A key part of what we’re trying to do is not so much expansion, but was more strategic alignment in Brazil,” Riedinger said. “We already have more than 20 faculty members who have long been involved with research in Brazil.”

Riedinger said at least part of the university’s interest in Brazil comes from the country’s work with biofuels and other green energy methods.

“Some problems, Brazil has in common with us,” Riedinger said.

“There’s also some things we can learn from them.”

The consuls general approach also is more cost effective for the university. MSU has allocated $50,000 annually for its activities in Brazil, including the consuls general.

That dollar amount is one-third of what is annually spent on China, whose costs include rent for building space and full-time staffing.

The consuls general model also is appealing for Brazil as it could cover more of the country and not limit the university to an office in one region.

“If we have partnership in the northeast and in the north central (part of Brazil), that’s a lot of geography to cover with a single office or some other model,” Riedinger said.

Across the world

MSU has a series of centers in the Latin Americas, Caribbean, China and Africa. These centers are engaging in research projects with the university and identifying priority issues to collaborate with MSU.

But MSU’s largest international project is MSU Dubai. Recent financial troubles in Dubai might have a negative impact on the university, but Riedinger said there still is reason for MSU to remain in the country.

“A long-term presence in the gulf coast and in the greater Middle East region I believe remains quite strong,” Riedinger said.