On behalf of International Student and Scholar Services, welcome to the University of Illinois!

By the time you read this, you will no doubt have heard ‘welcome’ from many different people in many different settings, but the reason for this is that you are truly welcome here and we are genuinely delighted to have you. The University of Illinois has a long-standing reputation of being a leader in international education, and your presence greatly enhances our campus. Make no mistake; this is a partnership. While you will learn and grow during your time here by utilizing our world-class facilities and faculty, so will the campus community benefit from your unique experiences and knowledge.

Both the Vice Provost for International Affairs and I are former international students who studied here at the University of Illinois. We understand the bravery it took to come to the U.S. to study, and ISSS stands ready to help in any way we can. We also want to remind you that this should not just be an academic experience. International education involves both academic and cultural exchanges of ideas, and we hope we can assist you by providing numerous social and cultural programming opportunities over the coming year.

This year you will be joining a record incoming class of almost 3,500 new international students on campus, and an overall international student population of over 12,000. We are incredibly proud of these impressive numbers and feel they demonstrate the ongoing commitment the University of Illinois has toward creating global citizens. You are now a crucial part of this mission, and a member of the Illini family forever. So, one more time – welcome!

Martin McFarlane
Director, International Student and Scholar Services