A Second Life for Intensive English Programs

Five years ago—which, in international education, seems like yesterday and also like a lifetime ago—international student enrollment in intensive English programs (IEPs) was at an all-time high. In February 2015, more than 105,000 international students were enrolled in an IEP in the United States. By February 2020, that number had dropped by about 45 percent to approximately 58,000 students, according to data from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). 

IEPs are often seen as a foreshadow of things to come in the international education industry; they are typically the first programs on most U.S. campuses to feel the impact of ebbs and flows in international enrollment. Educators say that IEPs have long weathered these ups and downs, and, recently, have pivoted their expertise and offerings in creative ways to stay afloat.

To offset potential enrollment and revenue declines, IEPs are pursuing new partnerships with institutions abroad, offering customized programs, and rethinking the role that they can play—and value proposition they have to offer—in higher education. 

A Fundamental Shift

Scott Stevens, director of the English Language Institute at the University of Delaware, has been involved with teaching English as a second language (ESL) for more than 40 years. “It’s always been a wild ride for IEPs,” he says. “We’ve always had these huge rises and falls in market trends as different countries become leading countries in sending students and then sort of fall by the wayside.”

Over the course of his career, Stevens has seen markets such as China