Research Blog #2

1. Topic Idea
• My thoughts have not changed since the first blog post as I am still interested in the topic of international students. I want to focus on the struggles that international students have studying in American universities like cultural differences (between Eastern and Western), financial difficulties, language barriers, and whether being online has helped or made it more difficult.
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2. Key terms & Online Resources
• Key Terms: International Student, International Education, Trump Administration, Tuition
• The key terms listed above are all useful to my research as they give me results of different aspects on the topic. The search using "Trump administration" has brought my attention to how much he has tried to prevent not just international students but immigrants in general from coming to the US. During my search on google, I've begun to realize that international students are paying double what in-state students are paying for tuition but on top of all of that, there is also an international student fee (ISF) at Rutgers that is $250 per semester. This information shocked me as I didn't know just how much financial pressure the parents have just to send their child to globally recognized universities in the US. 
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3. Books & Scholarly Articles
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/12/17/chinas-education-system-produces-stellar-test-scores-so-why-do-students-head-abroad-each-year-study/
• The article lists reasons why Chinese students choose to study abroad in America. It also shows that they struggle with the cultural differences as they are now thrown into a situation where participation is a part of your overall grade. China's education system doesn't allow students to speak up about their own thoughts and opinions. Chinese students can also view this as a second chance as they take a college entrance exam once a year to determine which schools and majors they can apply to. The better the score the more opportunities. 
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2021/02/01/international-student-applications-to-us-colleges-are-rebounding-is-it-a-biden-bounce/?sh=6ab797269e3b
• There is an increase in international student applications for the 2019-2020 school year. While China's numbers have decreased applicants from other countries had increased. Gives numbers and stats on which ways the demographics of international students are shifting. Colleges are looking to expand into other countries' markets for new students and to help diversify their campus cultures.
• https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/international-students-united-states-2020#countries_origin
• This article talked about the decrease in international students due to the pandemic as travel is limited, safety concerns, and visa delays. Adding to the situation was the fact that the Trump administration attempted to keep international students whose university offered only online courses. There are graphs showing enrollment trends, country of origin, and even the types of visas that they apply for.
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4. What issues seem important to the conversation people are having about the topic?
• An important issue that is occurring right now is how the current Presidency and administration are going to do to reverse what Trump has done in his 4 years.
5. Controversies
• I haven't come across any controversies during my research.