NOFO: Survey of International Educational Exchange Activity in the United States

Deadline: 29-Jun-23

The Office of Global Educational Programs in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), announces an open competition for the FY 2024 Survey of International Educational Exchange Activity in the United States.

Purpose

• International educational exchange is sat the intersection of diplomacy, education, innovation, industry and workforce development. Contributing nearly $32 billion to the U.S. economy annually, international students also contribute to U.S. classrooms and communities and support future business, scientific, cultural, and diplomatic ties with the United States.
• American students who study abroad build intercultural and professional skills and networks, positioning themselves to be leaders in an increasingly interconnected world. In order to assess and analyze international educational exchange to and from the United States, the recipient organization, in consultation with ECA, will administer a series of sequential surveys to accredited U.S. higher education institutions focusing on four main sectors:
  • foreign students,
  • foreign scholars,
  • U.S. students studying overseas in credit-bearing and non-credit bearing programs, and
  • foreign enrollees in intensive English language programs in the United States.
• The recipient should also include data on numbers of foreign students enrolled at minority serving institutions and community colleges. The recipient may partner with relevant national agencies and/or academic mobility researchers to collect and report accurate and timely data on global student mobility, providing an important comparison point for U.S.-focused educational exchange activity.
• A requirement for the execution of this survey is collaborating, under ECA’s guidance, with the U.S. Department of State’s EducationUSA network, which promotes U.S. higher education in countries around the world. This includes sharing of data to include numbers of students enrolled at U.S. institutions by state, academic level and field of study, with EducationUSA Program Officers, Regional Educational Advising Coordinators (REACs) and EducationUSA advising centers. EducationUSA representatives may provide feedback and verification on country specific mobility data and support collection of data on foreign student perceptions of study abroad. EducationUSA centers operate in variety of physical locations including U.S. embassies and consulates, Fulbright commissions, binational centers, non-governmental organizations, universities and libraries.

Funding Information

• Approximate Total Funding: $500,000, pending the availability of funds
• Approximate Number of Awards: 1
• Approximate Average Award: $500,000 pending the availability of funds
• Minimum “Floor” of Award: None
• Maximum “Ceiling” of Award: $500,000 pending the availability of funds
• Anticipated Award Date: October 1, 2023, pending the availability of funds
• Anticipated Project Completion Date: September 30, 2025

Recipient Responsibilities

• Development of surveys and other analytical tools/methods to collect data on four main sectors:
  • foreign students in the U.S.,
  • foreign scholars in the U.S.,
  • U.S. students studying overseas in credit-bearing and non-credit bearing programs, and
  • foreign enrollees in intensive English language programs in the United States;
• Preparation and submission of a comprehensive project timeline to the program office for approval;
• Collection, analysis and presentation of data on international students and scholars and on U.S. study abroad participants;
• Produce a publication and present data survey results clearly and succinctly in print and electronic media; scholarly analyses of survey data addressing pertinent policy issues should be included, taking into consideration a wide range of prospective readers and policy-makers in government, academia, and private and nonprofit sectors;
• Implement the collection and analysis of detailed individual-level data on international students studying in the United States to allow for cross-tabulations by place of origin, field of study, academic level, and other relevant variables;
• Enhance data analysis by using SEVIS data from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security if available, to conduct policy-relevant analysis of emerging issues in consultation with ECA and to provide trend data pertaining to international students in the United States;
• Report on foreign students’ use of opportunities such as Optional Practical Training;
• Report on trends in Intensive English Language program enrollments by foreign students in the United States;
• Report on participation rates by U.S. students and international students with disabilities;
• Report on higher education trends overseas on a regional basis, following U.S. Department of State-defined overseas regional definitions, in addition to individual country data, and on country-by-country rankings according to academic level and type of institution, in consultation with ECA;

Eligibility Criteria

• U.S. public and private academic and cultural institutions, exchange-of-persons, and other not for-profit organizations meeting the provisions may submit applications for this competition. Applicants must have nonprofit status with the IRS at the time of application.
• All applicants must also have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number and be registered in SAM.gov.
• Other Eligibility Requirements
  • ECA’s grant guidelines require that organizations with less than four years of experience in conducting international exchanges be limited to $130,000 in ECA funding. ECA anticipates making one grant/cooperative agreement, in an amount of $500,000 to support all costs required to implement this exchange program. Therefore, organizations with less than four years of experience in conducting international exchanges are ineligible to apply under this competition.
  • All proposals must comply with the requirements stated in the NOFO and the PSI; non-compliance will result in your proposal being declared technically ineligible and given no further consideration in the review process.
  • Only one proposal will be considered by ECA from each applicant organization. In cases where more than one submission from an applicant appears in grants.gov, ECA will only consider the submission made closest in time to the NOFO deadline; that submission would constitute the one and only proposal ECA would review from that applicant.

For more information, visit Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).