Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship

Earning a college degree is a huge investment — and at Central Michigan University, it’s an investment with great returns for international students. This month, CMU was ranked No. 5 in the nation for international students by F1 Hire, a career management company focused on supporting international employees.

“Take a look at our peers in the rankings — CMU ranks right alongside prestigious private institutions like Stanford and Princeton Universities,” said Ling Zhang, executive director of the Office of International Affairs and Graduate Recruitment. “We are helping international students achieve outstanding personal and professional outcomes at a fraction of the cost of the tuition at those schools.”

F1 Hire’s methodology considers factors such as tuition and fees, the career outcomes rate for graduates is nearly 95% annual salary of graduates, and number and percentages of Permanent Resident applicants. To be included in the rankings, institutions must be accredited four-year institutions offering bachelor’s and/or higher degree programs with at least 500 actively enrolled international students. 274 schools were included in the rankings survey.

In an interview with the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Latitudes newsletter, Andrew Chen, CEO of F1 Hire, said the career outcomes rankings are intended to help international students, who often face more restrictions than their domestic student peers, make choices about where to enroll.

“The primary concern of international students, career outcomes, should be a priority {for American universities},” Chen said.

CMU currently enrolls more than 1,600 international students representing more than 70 countries worldwide, Zhang said. CMU has taken significant steps in recent years to make applying and enrolling at CMU easier, she said, and CMU’s overall career outcomes rate for graduates is nearly 95%, among the best in Michigan. 

“Central Michigan University’s mission statement says that we are defined by the success of our students and our graduates, and that includes our international students,” Zhang said. “While some might be surprised to find a regional public university like CMU listed among these prestigious institutions, we are not at all surprised. We have made our international students’ success a top priority.”

CMU offers international students opportunities to pursue both undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Information about international student enrollment is available on the international admissions webpage.