ATHENS, Ohio – When Xiaoxi Li, a 20-year-old from Beijing, decided she should go to college in the United States, she applied only to Ohio University – not that she knew much about it.
“I heard of Ohio, of course,” Li said. “I knew it was in the middle, and has agriculture.”
What brought her here was the recommendation of a Chinese recruiting agent, JJL Overseas Education Consulting and Service Co. For about $3,000, JJL helped Li choose a college, complete the application and prepare for the all-important visa interview.
“Everyone I know used an agent,” she said. “They are professionals. They suggested Ohio University might be the best for me. They have a good relationship with Ohio University.”
JJL has more than a good relationship with Ohio University. Unknown to Li, it has a contract, under which the agent gets a $1,000 commission for each undergraduate it sends.
British and Australian universities for years have paid commissions to overseas recruiting agents, and as a result have attracted a growing share of international students. The practice is spreading in the United States, especially at community colleges and public universities eager to enroll more international students, who may pay several times the in-state tuition.
The use of agents is raising uncomfortable questions and strong feelings, with some education officials queasy about a system in which those who advise students on their college selection have a financial stake in the choice, an approach they fear could make the college-admissions process into a global bounty hunt.
Like JJL, many agents collect hefty fees from both sides – the students they advise, and the universities they contract with – leaving some to question whose interest is being served. Even some advocates of recruiting agents see a need for an ethics code.
“We should be doing this, but we should be doing it right,” said Mitch Leventhal, vice provost of international affairs at the University of Cincinnati, which has contracts with agents. “And I don't think it's right for students to have to pay a lot if the agent is also getting paid by the university. I don't think it's ethical.”
JJL, licensed by the Chinese government, sent about 2,000 students to U.S. colleges over the past year, and many more to Australia and the United Kingdom. JJL helps students apply anywhere they want, including universities that pay no commissions.
