Surge in Indian International Students Fuels Return to US Colleges

International student enrollment at U.S. universities experienced a significant rebound last year, following a slump caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. A study released on Monday by the State Department and the Institute of International Education revealed that the number of international students in the U.S. grew by 12% during the 2022-23 academic year, marking the largest single-year increase in over four decades. The surge was driven in large part by a 35% jump in students from India, with over 1 million students coming from abroad, the highest since the 2019-20 school year.

Allan E. Goodman, the CEO of the Institute of International Education, stated, “This reinforces that the U.S. remains the destination of choice for international students wishing to study abroad, as it has been for more than a century.” The study showed that American colleges enrolled nearly 269,000 students from India, surpassing previous records and ranking second only to China. Most Indian students pursued graduate programs, particularly in the fields of science, technology, and business.

While China still accounted for the highest number of foreign students in the U.S. at 290,000, its numbers have declined for the third consecutive year. This shift can be attributed to various factors, including strained international relations, increased competition from universities in the United Kingdom and Canada, and prolonged travel restrictions in Asia due to the pandemic.

In response to the changing landscape, U.S. universities have intensified their recruiting efforts in India, aiming to tap into a growing population that is projected to surpass China as the world’s largest this year. Students from India now outnumber those from China in 24 U.S. states, including popular destinations like Illinois, Texas, and Michigan.

The study also revealed that graduate programs in the U.S. continued to attract the majority of international students for the second year in a row, with a 21% increase in enrollment. In contrast, undergraduate numbers only saw a slight uptick of 1%. This trend represents a reversal from the previous decade when undergraduate students constituted a larger proportion of international enrollments.

Math and computer science programs emerged as the top choices for international students, experiencing a 20% increase in enrollment compared to the previous year. Engineering and business programs followed closely behind. Collectively, these three fields accounted for over half of all international students in the United States.

The recent surge in international student enrollment brings the numbers close to pre-pandemic levels. In 2018, there were nearly 1.1 million international students studying in the U.S. However, due to the impact of COVID-19 on academic exchange, enrollment plummeted in the subsequent two years. The current rebound appears to be continuing, with an 8% increase in international enrollment reported for this fall.

While international students only make up 5.6% of all college students in the 2022-23 academic year, they play a crucial role in U.S. higher education. University leaders emphasize their importance for global exchange and acknowledge their significant financial contribution. International students typically pay higher tuition rates, effectively subsidizing college education for domestic students.

In addition to China and India, other countries that sent substantial numbers of students to the U.S. included South Korea, Canada, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Nigeria. Notably, the past school year witnessed a record number of students from Bangladesh, Colombia, Ghana, India, Italy, Nepal, Pakistan, and Spain.

While international student enrollment has rebounded, many colleges are struggling to attract domestic students. Overall enrollment across all colleges has remained sluggish following pandemic-related decreases, with freshman enrollment seeing a 3.6% decline in fall 2023, according to a separate study by the National Student Clearinghouse.

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