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Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

nytimes.com

101–110 of 112 posts

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#101
post #72
post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

where on earth is it the norm to be living with your parents until you're in your 30s? Kiwi here, a lot of us move out and go flatting at the first possible chance we get - which is right after high school/first year of uni.

Lol. How about pretty much everywhere in Asia? China? Singapore? Korea? The "norm" is to live at home until you get married, when you use all the money you saved living rent-free at home to put down a hefty deposit on a house. I know actual millionaires who still live with their parents! Given the difficulty of affording a deposit for new home buyers who have been renting since 18 (like me - Aussie here), I can see t…

[deleted]

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#102
post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China is a bit of an exceptional case. Student exit visas require classes from the party strongly discouraging making too many local friends.

Source please? Edit: I can't even ask for a reference without getting downvoted again and again. Nice.

Are you asking for a source that confirms that China requires students (and every other national) to have an exit visa to leave the country?

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#104
post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Finland the Erasmus/foreign exchange students of universities also tend to hang out among themselves and the native Finns don't really care about them. One thing I've heard is that the Finns consider many of the exchange students to be a bit juvenile since in their home countries people often live with parents until their 30s. Whereas most Finnish students move out and become fully independent by age 20.

where on earth is it the norm to be living with your parents until you're in your 30s? Kiwi here, a lot of us move out and go flatting at the first possible chance we get - which is right after high school/first year of uni.

“22 percent of people ages 23 to 37 now living with their folks from 11.7 percent of people the same ages back in 2001”

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/more-millennials-are-living-at-...

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#105
post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a double edged sword. For a few reasons. Firstly it maintains an elite who are much better educated, and skilled, than those at home. Secondly, when there's lots of foreign students from the same place, they just clique up. In my university there were a lot of Chinese students that hung around almost exclusively with other Chinese students. One year I represented the student common room, a sort of social club/su…

China is a bit of an exceptional case. Student exit visas require classes from the party strongly discouraging making too many local friends.

What? Do you mean the state sponsored student or student in general? There is no exit visa. And there is no classes.

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#107
post #5

I don't understand the protests. I would expect educating Saudi youth in exceptionally liberal institutions like universities in the Northeast to have a net liberalizing effect on the Saudi government and culture long term. Is this not a better use of Saudi funds then e.g. buying more weapons?

It's a double edged sword. For a few reasons. Firstly it maintains an elite who are much better educated, and skilled, than those at home. Secondly, when there's lots of foreign students from the same place, they just clique up. In my university there were a lot of Chinese students that hung around almost exclusively with other Chinese students. One year I represented the student common room, a sort of social club/su…

The Saudi students are not from an elite class. They had huge abroad scholarship programs open to every high school graduate that includes full tuition, travel, and living expense. Every year grade cutoffs are announced and applicants are awarded scholarships. Most Saudis in US universities are actually low to middle class students who graduated highschool with good grades. This is one of the strongest forces of social mobility I have seen in any country.

In terms of liberalization, Saudis who studied abroad are the leaders of the liberal movements within the country. They don't transform into liberal Americans, but they do shift into liberal Saudis. Liberal Saudis are still on average more conservative than their American classmates, but back home they create the shift we are seeing today in a progressive direction.

Both effects are intended by the government. The social mobility aspect is part of the Saudi welfare state, and it adds great economic value through knowledge transfer. The liberalization is part of a long campaign to loosen the grip of religious leaders on the community and consolidate power.

Source: I went to university abroad on the King Abdullah scholarship program.

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#109
post #5

I don't understand the protests. I would expect educating Saudi youth in exceptionally liberal institutions like universities in the Northeast to have a net liberalizing effect on the Saudi government and culture long term. Is this not a better use of Saudi funds then e.g. buying more weapons?

Most saudi students just come to party.

Re: Why Is There So Much Saudi Money in American Universities?

#110

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As an Asian-American, I have to say that I envied the Chinese who could stay amongst themselves. Just saying.

Can you expand and explain what you mean?

Not asian-american but i have read about their thoughts on things. From what i gather atleast socially, asian americans feel like second class citizens in western societies, no matter how hard they study, they can't rise in management positions (bamboo ceiling), men are emasculated in the media (leading to a lot of their women favoring people of other races) etc... I think this is what the op meant, in chinese soceity, they would be the default, and so wouldn't face problems in areas which they feel are out of their control.
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