OSU showcases its offerings in Saudi Arabia

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

In an effort to boost international enrollment, Oklahoma State University officials met more than 2,000 prospective students in Saudi Arabia last month at the inaugural International Exhibition for Higher Education in Riyadh. 

The visit by Craig Satterfield, assistant dean of the OSU Graduate College, and Tim Huff, manager of the OSU Office of International Students and Scholars, was in response to an invitation to OSU President Burns Hargis by the assistant cultural attache` of the Saudi Arabian Embassy in D.C. OSU was the only public institution from the state of Oklahoma to participate.

“The event provided OSU the opportunity to solidify its brand internationally and showcase our high quality programs,” Satterfield said. “We have strong interests in recruiting more students from the Middle East, which has been an area of the world so far underrepresented in our large international student population. We are highly confident that they will find programs which match their educational goals.”

The exhibition involved hundreds of higher education institutions from around the world and was intended to showcase the interest that Saudi Arabia has in globalization and international education.  

“OSU also has a strong alumni presence in Saudi Arabia in both the education and business sectors,” Huff said. “Many of the Saudi alumni dropped by the OSU booth during the exhibition in order to pay their respects to their alma mater and fellow alumni.”

According to Satterfield, they also had the opportunity to visit with several currently enrolled students who are participating in distance education degrees.

“One even brought his son to our booth to discuss sending him to OSU and possibly trying out for the track team,” Satterfield said. “The citizens of Saudi Arabia were very welcoming and extremely interested in U.S. schools. So great was their interests that we hope to return next year.”

OSU currently has more than 1,700 international students enrolled who represent more than 110 countries.

“As a land-grant university, we are committed to providing access to all qualified individuals,” said Gordon Emslie, dean of the OSU Graduate College. “We hope that this and similar endeavors will lead to the future enrollment of students from all over the world, students who will, through their participating in our degree programs, help spread the research mission of our university.”