Importing students: why Indiana is a top choice for college kids from elsewhere.

• Author: Kronemyer, Bob
• Position: Education

GREAT DIVERSITY, prestigious academic programs, relatively inexpensive costs and active alumni groups lure out-of-state students to attend Hoosier institutions of higher learning.

"We find that many students desire a totally different experience than they had in high scbool," says Jeff Rickey, dean of admissions and financial aid at Earlham College in Richmond. "For example, the typical student from Boston doesn't want to attend college in a large metropolitan area on the East Coast. Many colleges in Indiana offer a marked contrast to an urban setting Students are looking for a diverse experience, whereby they can study with people different from themselves. Hoosier attitudes tend to be different. This results in a more balanced perspective."

Of the 1,189 undergraduate students at Earlham College, approximately 77 percent are from out of state (and that figure has been as high as 87 percent). "Here at Earlham, as well as Notre Dame, Purdue and Indiana University, we are well respected nationally by people in higher education," Rickey says. "These schools also have a large number of alumni all over the country. These alumni tend to be very loyal to their schools and continuously share information about their schools to people they come into contact with."

In addition to offering traditional liberal-arts programs, Earlham College "has a collection of interdisciplinary majors that is very appealing. These include peace and global studies, and human development and social relations," Rickey notes.

However, to stem the flow of graduates leaving the state, "there needs to be job opportunities, as well as attractive recreational and artistic outlets," he says.

According to the National Information Center for Higher Education Policymaking and Analysis, for the year 2002 the import/export ratio of college-going students for the state of Indiana was 2.19. In other words, there were 13,217 students from elsewhere attending Hoosier colleges, but only 6,035 Indiana students who ventured out of state.

"We have high-quality colleges with national reputations, both in the public and private sectors," states Start Jones, Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education. "Both Indiana University and Purdue University attract a lot of students--more so than their counterparts in other states. Private schools like the University of Notre Dame, Earlham College and DePauw also attract a large number of out-of-state students."

Jones notes that Purdue has one of the...