NAFSA reported on colleges in each Missouri congressional district, finding that the total benefit from international students was $58 million for District 8. Southeast was responsible for $27.8 million of that total.

“Each of our 1,153 currently enrolled international students is infusing that much money directly into the local economy in the forms of tuition, housing, cell phones, restaurants, insurance, and groceries,” said Kevin Timlin, executive director of International Education and Services at Southeast. “Besides the economic impact, international students play other important roles on a college campus. We are an educational community where we all have the ability and responsibility to learn from one another.”

The report found that Southeast international students also support 127 jobs in the state. NAFSA reports that international students studying in the U.S. contribute $40.1 billion to the U.S. economy. NAFSA conducts an annual state-by-state and congressional district analysis of the international education economic benefits.

Southeast is currently at an all-time high in international enrollment, hosting 1,153 students from 65  countries.

“Travelling abroad is typically the best way for a person to gain that understanding, but not all people can travel. SEMO’s international students bring the world to our educational community so that everyone here has the opportunity to learn and create global bonds.”