“A lot of students come with their families … (and bring) everything in their dorms that they need,” said Mursalzade, a finance senior and president of the International Student Association. “We just don’t have anything except our clothing, so all (that) stuff we need to buy from local grocery stores.”

In 2010, MSU had 5,351 international students who contributed an estimated $160 million to the local economy, according to data from the Office for International Students and Scholars and NAFSA: Association of International Educators.

When the international students from all U.S. universities were combined that impact added up to more than $18.8 billion flowing into the nation’s economy last year.

Worldwide wisdom
The economic impact of international students begins the moment they step on the plane, having to buy the airline ticket to make it to MSU, said Peter Briggs, director of the MSU Office for International Students and Scholars.

Traveling with two — maybe three — suitcases means they might wait until their arrival in East Lansing to buy a laptop, cell phone or other college student necessities, he said.

“Anything they can’t pack they either have to buy or figure out how to get,” Briggs said. “They have to be kind of disciplined in what they pack.”

International students pay out-of-state tuition and are not eligible for any federal financial aid assistance since they are not U.S. citizens — which typically boils down to an average cost of about $30,000 per year, he said.

MSU also requires its international students to buy health insurance in case of any medical emergency they might experience during their time in the U.S., he said.

Studio art senior Gaukhar Nurseitova has her tuition, housing and books paid by a scholarship from the government of her home country — Kazakhstan. The country annually selects about 1,000 students to sponsor to study abroad in a country of their choice, she said.

“Kazakhstan is a developing country,” Nurseitova said. “That’s why the education over there is not as good as it is here.”

There are about 3 million students studying outside their home country across the world — a number that is expected to triple within the next 10 years, Briggs said. The U.S. receives about 22 percent of the international student market, he said.

What sets the U.S. higher education system apart is its emphasis on the liberal arts, Briggs said.
In countries such as England, students are allowed to begin studying their major of choice their freshman year instead of being required to take general education classes, which increase analytic and critical thinking skills, he said.

“I do believe that the U.S. is the destination of choice,” Briggs said.

Although some countries, including Kazakhstan, give students money to study at international universities, they also often designate a certain field — such as finance or graphic design — that students need to study during their time away, Briggs said.

“They’re looking at how they develop a nation, how they develop a country,” Briggs said.

On the rise
Undergraduate applications from international students at MSU increased by 15 percent between 2010-11, Briggs said. As an increasing number of students across the globe are in the market for a college degree, MSU and the U.S. also must compete with an increasing number of countries that are striving to become hubs of higher education, he said.

“We do see ourselves in a global competition for brainpower,” Briggs said.

East Lansing City Councilmember Nathan Triplett said international students provide a “tremendous amount of investment” in East Lansing while they study at MSU — everything from going to the movies to starting their own businesses.

But economy-wise, after graduating, U.S. immigration laws do not make it easy for foreign students to remain in the U.S. and enter the workforce if they wanted to, said Ursula Oaks, a NAFSA spokeswoman.

Many countries also aggressively recruit their students to return and work.

“Businesses and organizations and governments are looking for globally-minded people,” Oaks said.

Home country differences
During winter and spring breaks, most students hit the highways to spend the time at home, but many international students cannot afford to make the trek if going home requires crossing an ocean or two.

“For a lot of international students they have to stay in East Lansing, meaning they have to eat here, shop here,” Nurseitova said — funneling more dollars to the local economy.

The differences in buying habits of Americans compared to citizens of other countries also is evident during the holidays, Musralzade said.

“Back home, holidays have more of a value of getting together with family and just cooking some food — not buying any gifts or anything,” he said.

All international students are required to prove they can afford to live in the U.S. when they apply for a student visa to ensure they will not be a burden on the U.S. government, Briggs said.

Although some students come from wealthy families, not all of them have money to burn, he said.
“I think there’s a lot of middle class families that are literally selling the farm, like (many American students’) moms and dads are doing, to get (them) through school here,” Briggs said.

Musralzade said he’s noticed MSU’s efforts to market itself as a global university — making it important for campus to continue to attract talented international students and be a leader in study abroad programs.

And for him, the value he has received during his time in East Lansing is one that can’t all be measured in dollars and cents.

“When I look at myself from freshman year, I could not recognize myself compared to today,” he said.