FROM INDIANA NEWS SERVICE

As people head back to college soon, professors may notice an increase in the number of international students.

A new report finds these enrollment numbers are increasing and may be influenced by politics.

Almost 27-thousand international students are enrolled at Indiana’s universities. The survey of almost 25-hundred foreign students found 44-percent would be more likely to choose the United States as a college destination under a Democratic administration, which they perceived as a more welcoming cultural environment.

But Caitlin Andersen, founder of a graduate admission consulting firm, says others would feel more at ease with a Republican administration.

About one-third of the respondents said politics won’t make a difference in their college choice.

Andersen says many foreign students come here to pursue STEM degrees.

More also are seeking graduate business courses at Ivy League universities – that are, in turn, actively recruiting international students.