Odessa National Maritime University has been training specialists for the maritime industry from foreign countries since 1950. The first students and postgraduates were representatives from Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Korea and China.

In 1978, the OIIMF was awarded the Vietnamese medal of «Friendship» training specialists from Vietnam. In 1985, the Institute was awarded the Commemorative sign of the Ministry of Higher Education of the Republic of Cuba for training specialists for the Republic of Cuba.

In 1958 was established an evening correspondence faculty as the branch of OIIMF in Baku. It was headed by the dean, associate professor A.M.Hajiyev. The faculty has trained more than 1,600 ship mechanics, shipbuilders, mechanics, hydraulic engineers and operators for the Caspian Sea transport.

During the period from 1950 to 2020, more than 2,000 specialists were trained for 73 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, not including graduates from the former Soviet republics.

Graduates, current students, teachers of Odessa National Maritime University are proud of their Alma Mater, and a star named OIIMF is burning in the sky - this name was given in 1998 (at the initiative of the Ventspils port management) to the star from the constellation of Auriga by International Star register.

An important point in the modern educational preparation of foreign students is that the Maritime University is a member of:
• Charter of European Universities (Magna Charta Universitatum);
• International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU);
• European Universities Association (EUA);
• Central European Initiative (CEI);
• outh East European Association of Transport Researches (SETREF);
• United Nations Academic Impact.

In 2017 the first in Ukraine a Research Center of Social Development of the Belt and Road along countries was established in ONMU, and in 2018 CASS-ONMU: Center of China Studies together with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Beijing, China).

From the beginning of 2000s, foreign students have been trained at all ONMU faculties and supported by the Department of International Cooperation and later by the Department of International Relations. These structural subdivisions of the University were responsible for admission of foreign citizens, international activities of the university, conclusion of international agreements, participation of the University in international projects and programs of academic mobility, reception of foreign delegations in ONMU.

Due to the increase of the foreign students contingent, on January 1, 2020, the Faculty of Foreign Students was established in ONMU. The Faculty has been headed by Glovatska Svitlana - Candidate of Engineering Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Logistics Systems and Projects Management, ONMU. She headed the Department of International Cooperation and the Department of International Relations in ONMU since 2004.

Today the Faculty is the educational, scientific and administrative subdivision of ONMU, which conducts education (internships) for foreigners and stateless persons at different levels of education in accredited specialties of ONMU.

The system of education of foreign students meets the requirements of state standards and the states from which students study at ONMU. It should be noted that in 2018 ONMU began training foreign students in English language.

The Faculty includes:
• Department of Pre-University Training;
• Department of Natural and Technical Disciplines;
• Training laboratory and laboratory of audiovisual teaching methods.