Rice University welcomed a group of EducationUSA advisers and regional educational advising coordinators in May as part of a Houston higher education visit aimed at strengthening connections between international students and U.S. institutions.
The visit brought advisers representing countries and regions, including Hungary, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Egypt, Peru, Poland and the Middle East and Central Asia region to Houston, where Rice Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies joined Rice Undergraduate Admissions, the University of Houston and Lone Star College in hosting the group. The week began with a welcome dinner at The Pit Room, offering guests an introduction to Houston’s collaborative higher education community and a taste of Texas hospitality.
EducationUSA is a U.S. Department of State network that works with international students pursuing higher education in the United States. Advisers help students explore U.S. colleges and universities, understand application requirements and navigate the process of studying abroad at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels.
“EducationUSA is really a very important network sponsored by the State Department,” said Kornelia Litkei, an EducationUSA adviser from Hungary based at the Fulbright Commission in Budapest. “We help our students find their best school, the best fit, and we also help them through the application process.”
Litkei said the visit offered a strong look at Rice and the broader Houston higher education landscape.
“Rice set the bar high, very, very high,” she said. “We got so many details, we got so much information here. I learned a lot.”
For Rice, the visit was an opportunity to introduce advisers to the university’s undergraduate and graduate programs, research culture and campus community while highlighting Houston as a destination for international students. The advisers toured Rice on the third day of their visit after stops at Lone Star College and the University of Houston.
“It was wonderful to be part of this collaborative effort with Rice Undergraduate Admissions, Lone Star College and the University of Houston to promote higher education and studying in Houston,” said Jennifer Hunter, assistant dean of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. “EducationUSA advisers play such an important role in helping students around the world find the right academic fit, and this visit gave us the chance to showcase not only Rice, but also the strength, warmth and opportunity of Houston as a destination for international students.”
In a fitting Houston welcome, Hunter also made the EducationUSA advisers honorary Texans, recognizing their role in connecting students around the world with opportunities to study in the United States.
Teklemichael Wodorfa, an EducationUSA adviser from Ethiopia, said advisers play an important role in helping students understand both the opportunities available in the United States and the steps required to access them.
“For international students, the first thing we do is promote U.S. higher education and the quality of education that is available over here,” Wodorfa said. “The next thing is how to access it, and the steps. We explain the steps, how to access higher education in the United States.”
Wodorfa said interest in U.S. higher education remains strong among Ethiopian students. He noted that more than 3,000 Ethiopian students studied in the U.S. last year, and an annual college fair in Addis Ababa drew more than 6,500 students and family members, with about 30 U.S. colleges and universities participating.
He said many students are drawn to the United States because of the quality of education and the opportunity to engage in hands-on research.
“One of the most common themes is quality of education and the opportunities to do practical research,” Wodorfa said. “Not just theoretical learning processes, but practical aspects of their education.”
Isa Spoerry, an EducationUSA adviser based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, said the organization’s work is especially important because applying to college or graduate school abroad can be overwhelming for students and families.
“We’re here to ease that transition,” Spoerry said. “We provide end-to-end comprehensive support. That means introducing students to the U.S. higher education system, walking them through the steps of the application and working with them all the way to when they get accepted, enroll and land on campus.”
Spoerry said the group felt welcome in Houston and was impressed by how Rice connects its campus experience to the city.
“As a group of international advisers representing nine different countries, we have felt so welcomed and at home here in Houston, which is such an incredible multicultural city,” she said. “We’ve loved the way Rice takes advantage of Houston’s resources and contributes to its incredibly rich landscape.”
She also pointed to Rice’s “culture of care” as a standout during the visit.
“Everyone is so committed to the Rice culture of care and making this campus feel like a home for anyone who shares that same intellectual drive and passion for learning,” Spoerry said.
For Veronica Munoz, an EducationUSA adviser from Argentina, the visit underscored the importance of international education in building lasting relationships across countries and cultures.
“International education is the perfect venue, particularly today when so many things are challenging,” Munoz said. “What I learned here in Houston through the visit to several institutions is that this is much more than building community. It’s caring about people.”
Munoz said the experience showed how Houston institutions are approaching international education with purpose and warmth.
“Many institutions are going beyond doing tasks or duties,” she said. “They are putting heart and soul into it. Through that, the result is that you fall in love with Houston, and you fall in love with these people.”
The visit reflected Rice’s ongoing commitment to international graduate recruitment and to building relationships with advisers who help students worldwide identify opportunities that match their academic and professional goals.
As Rice continues to expand its global reach, visits like this one give international advisers a firsthand look at the university’s research environment, student support systems and place within one of the most diverse cities in the United States.
“I'm very thankful to Houston and all the institutions for receiving us here this week,” Munoz said. “What moves me is the strong belief that if you want to know yourself, you know yourself when you meet others.”