PHOTO BY JOSEPH MEHLING
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Rodwell Mabaera ’02, an Oak Scholar from Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe, graduates from Dartmouth Medical School this June with an M.D./Ph.D. He concentrated on hematology in medical school and will fulfill his residency at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. That geographic and economic diversity that international students provide is sought after by U.S. colleges, and for good reason, Colby officials say. International students’ contributions to the intellectual climate has been well documented. Some are among Colby’s top science, mathematics, and international studies students. In the last five years, four valedictorians and two class speakers have been international students. Two of the last three Colby students to receive Watson Fellowships have been UWC international students. In a response echoed across the campus, History Professor James Webb said the most important contribution of international students has been to broaden the range of human cultural experience in the classroom. “The results,” Webb said, “have been refreshing and unpredictable,” with contributions that have “cast different patterns of light and shadow across virtually all issues broached in seminar.” Colby’s “traditional” students, he said, “have often been astonished by what the international students were willing to explore and willing to ignore.” Sui Kim Cheah ’99, a former international student from Malaysia and now a Colby admissions officer, said international students bring even more than global perspectives. “I think their biggest contribution to our campus is a reminder [to other students] of the fact that it’s a privilege to be here,” Cheah said. “It’s not an entitlement.” These students then take that privilege out into the world: Jayadev Vadakkanmarveettil ’07 now works for Google, building the Web in Indian languages; Emma James ’04 is an attorney in New York and an alumna trustee; Rodwell Mabaera ’02 is finishing an M.D./Ph.D. program at Dartmouth this spring. Dean Beverage came up with this list off the top of his head, and on it went as he recounted international students’ accomplishments at Colby, in professional and graduate schools, in careers in medicine and law and finance. “We give [international students] a lot, but they have an incredible amount to give to us,” he said.
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xtending the privilege to the top UWC scholars was easier when Colby was one of five, or as Beverage puts it, “the only game in town.” The second phase of the Davis grant included more colleges, and Colby had to gear up its recruiting efforts or be left behind. Colby admissions officers—for the most part Beverage, Director of Admissions Thomas, Cheah, Dory Streett, and Nancy Morrione ’65—visit UWC campuses from New Mexico to Swaziland. In 2009 the department spent about $35,000 on international travel, less than the four-year grant for a single UWC student. “While you’re developing relations with the United World Colleges, you’re also developing relations with other international schools and the people who work there—face to face,” Thomas said. “That makes a very big difference in the international community.” Conversations with current and prospective students bear that out. Svein Magnason ’13, from the Faroe Islands, interviewed with Streett at Red Cross Nordic and applied regular decision. “They’re all very nice when they come,” Magnason said, referring to visiting admissions officers. After his acceptance, Streett kept up a steady stream of correspondence, which led him to choose Colby out of the five colleges where he was accepted. “It was the personal attention,” he said. “We really know they read our applications.” Khoa Thanh Nguyen ’11, from Vietnam, first learned of Colby from his chemistry teacher, Tim Newhouse ’05, at United World College of the Adriatic in Trieste, Italy. Nguyen, an economics and mathematics major, said visits from Beverage and Streett convinced him that Colby “was the place I would grow academically and personally.” “Colby stood out because Dory was so friendly,” Nguyen said. “And Parker the year before. And Tim Newhouse. I decided that if people are that nice, the College must be a great place to be.” He hasn’t been disappointed. “I love every day,” he said. But if he didn’t, word would get out. Facebook and e-mail have helped create an instant network of UWC alumni, most of whom are scattered among prestigious American colleges and universities. Experiences are conveyed back to younger students, who keep them in mind as they watch the procession of college recruiters. “Some say basic things,” said Allen Martinez, a Costa Rican student at the Costa Rica UWC. “You don’t see that much more from the college than you can get from the Internet.” Martinez gave Streett high marks, though, saying she seemed
“We can be in a very strong position if we don’t cut back on our commitment. Not cutting back on it is going to create even more distance between us and our peers.” —Steve Thomas, director of admissions