A Primer on Emergency Funds for International Students

A parent dies unexpectedly. A hurricane rips through a student’s hometown. A Ukrainian student studying in the United States learns of war back home.

Events like these can upend an international university student’s schooling, leaving her anxious, depressed, or unable to study.

But she doesn’t have the money to get to that parent’s funeral or her storm-ravaged hometown, and it’s not safe for her to return to her home country during the most terrible of situations.

To assist international students in times of need or crisis, more universities are establishing emergency funds. “After a number of years of natural disasters around the world, the university had become unfortunately accustomed to students facing environmental and human security issues that we felt a need to step in and help,” says Aaron D. Clevenger, assistant provost and dean for international programs at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. “Our strategic plan gave us the opportunity to allocate emergency funds for these students, helping to ease their burden and continue their studies.”

But there are important considerations for institutional leaders to take into account as they explore the possibility of setting up one of these funds, including eligibility standards, governance, funding sources, and application processes, to name a few.

The Impetus

There are many reasons institutions create international student assistance funds—from global pandemics to geopolitical turmoil and smaller needs in between—but all are based on student need.

COVID-19 was the impetus at Katie Tudini’s school, the University of Buffalo, where the institution launched its fund in March