MSU goes to London to meet prospective students

MSU was one of 500 universities invited to have a booth at the Top Universities Exhibition in London last month. The invitation list was based on the QS World University Rankings. QS is a world-wide higher education network that develops rankings based on peer and employer reviews, faculty-student ratio, citations per faculty, and proportion of international faculty and students.

Karen Klomparens, dean of the Graduate School, and Eric Freedman, assistant dean in International Studies and Programs (ISP), represented MSU. Three other U.S. universities were among the eighty that accepted the invitation. Almost 4000 students registered to attend the recruitment fair—twice what the organizers expected. Klomparens estimates that she and Freedman spoke to more than 300 participants, about 80 percent of them prospective undergraduates and 20 percent potential graduate students.

OVPRGS, the Graduate School, ISP, and University Relations collaborated to produce graphics for the booth and a related brochure and Web site. “People didn’t know where Michigan is,” Klomparens reports, “but they loved our handout materials.”

The Web site highlights MSU research activities in several key areas. “We know this list isn’t exhaustive,” says VP Gray. “It’s meant to offer a sense of the breadth and depth of our research activity.” The OVPRGS will continue to update and expand the list.

(Photo courtesy Eric Freedman)