Origin of International students studying in the United States

The United States is the preeminent global hub for education and is home to many world-renowned educational institutions. America’s global networks of students and professionals and high-level research and innovation activities combine to attract hundreds of thousands of students from various countries each year.

 The majority of international students studying in the United States are originally from China and India, totaling 369,548 students and 202,014 students, respectively in the 2018/19 academic year. In 2018/19, there were 377,943 international graduate students, which accounted for over one-third of the international students in the country. Typically, engineering, math, and computer science programs were among the most common fields of study for these students.

Colleges and universities with the largest populations of international students are New York University, the University of Southern California, Columbia University, Northeastern University, Arizona State University, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, University of California-Los Angeles, Purdue University, University of Texas-Dallas, and Pennsylvania State University.

Foreign students in the United States pay some of the highest fees with an average of 24,914 U.S. dollars. U.S. students belonging among high-income families paid an average of 30,706 dollars for college whereas the average for all U.S. families reached only 26,226 U.S. dollars. Typically, 30 percent of families paid for college tuition through parent income and savings, while 31 percent relied on grants and scholarships.

Despite the high fees, below is the list of America’s top 20 international student origin countries:

China

It is the no. 1 in the ranking of international student place of the origin country. In the year 2018/19 China accounted for 369,548 international students in the U.S. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 148,880 students and in the year 2017/18, it was 148,593.  This saw a positive % change i.e. 1.7. The no. of graduate students in 2018/19 was 133,396 compared to 2017/18 was 130,843.

India

Ranked no. 2 in international student place of origin country ranking, the year 2018/19 there were 202,014 international students compared to 2017/18 where it was 196,271. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 24,813 compared to the year   2017/18 it was 23,346 students whereas the no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 90,333 compared to 2017/18 where it was 95,651 students.

South Korea

Placed at no. 3 in the ranking international student place of the origin country. In the year 2018/19, there were 52,250 international students. The no. of undergraduate students in 2018/19 and 2017/18 was 25,161 and 27,638 respectively. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 15,518 compared to 2017/18 it was 15,572 students. This saw a negative dip in students this year compared to the last academic year.

Saudi Arabia

Holds the rank of no. 4 international student place of origin country ranking. In the year 2018/19, there were 37,080 international students compared to 2017/18 it was 44,432. This a massive dwindling change of -16.5%. The no. of undergraduate students in 2018/19 was 21,778 compared to the year   2017/18 it was 27,646 whereas the no. of graduate students in 2018/19 was 9,418 compared to 2017/18 was 11,022.

Canada

It is no. 5 in the ranking of international student places of the origin country. In the year 2018/19, there were 26,122 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 12,470 and in 2017/18 it was 12,581 students whereas the no. of graduates in 2018/19 and 2017/18 was 9,471 and 9,517 students respectively.

Vietnam

Placed at no. 6 in international student place of origin country ranking. In the year 2018/19 there was 24,392 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 17,048 students compared to the year   2017/18 was it 16,933. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 3,714 students compared to 2017/18 it was 3,703.

Taiwan

It is no. 7 international student place of the origin country. In the year 2018/19, there were 23,369 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 7,262 compared to the year 2017/18 was 7,003. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 9,348 compared to 2017/18 was 9,236. There was a positive % change in the no. of both no. undergraduates and graduates.

Japan

Ranked at no. 8 in the ranking of international student place of origin country. Japan accounted for 18,105 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 9,001 compared to the year   2017/18 it was 9,190. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 2,875 compared to 2017/18 it was 2,918.

Brazil

Ranked at no. 9, the year in 2018/19 saw16,059 international students compared to the 2017/18 where it was 14,620. This accounted for 9.8% change from the previous academic year. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 7,768 students compared to the year   2017/18 where it was 7,359. The no. of graduate students in 2018/19 was 4,732compared to 2017/18 where it was 4,208.

Mexico

At no. 10, there was 15,229 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 8,549 students compared to the year   2017/18 was it 8,802. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 3,760 students compared to 2017/18 it was 3,839.

Nigeria

At no. 11, in the year 2018/19 there were 13,423 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 5,689 students compared to the year   2017/18 it was 5,887 students. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 5,274 students compared to 2017/18 it were 4,762 students.

Nepal

It is no. 12 in ranking international student place of the origin country. There were 13,229 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in the year 2018/19 and in 2017/18 was 7,471 and 7,378 students respectively. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 4,037 students compared to 2017/18 it was 4,537 students.

Iran

With a position of no. 13 in international student place of origin country ranking, there were 12,142 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 726 students compared to the year 2017/18 it was 808 students. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 9,017 students compared to 2017/18 were 9,695 students. Therefore it can be implied that more Iranian students opted for graduate than an undergraduate program.

United Kingdom

Holding a position of no. 14 in the ranking of international student place of origin country, there were 11,146 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 5,472 students compared to the year   2017/18 were 5,691 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 2,618 students compared to 2017/18 were 2,614 students.

Turkey

Placed at no. 15, in the year 2018/19 there were 10,159 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 3,440 students compared to the year 2017/18 was 3,474 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 4,409 students compared to 2017/18 was 4,760 students.

Kuwait

At no. 16, Kuwait accounted for 9,195 international students in the year 2018/19. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 7,480 students compared to the year   2017/18 was 7,871 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 864 students compared to 2017/18 was 908 students.

Germany

Ranked at no. 3 international student places of the origin country. In the year 2018/19, there were 9,191 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 3,094 compared to the year   2017/18 was 3,294 students. The no. of graduate in 2018/19 was 2,480 compared to 2017/18 was 2,574 students.

France

At no. 18 there were 8,716 international students in the year 2018/19 studying in the U.S. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 2,911 students compared to the year   2017/18 was 2,915 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 2,305 students compared to 2017/18 were 2,363 students.

Indonesia

It is no. 19 international student places of origin country ranking. In the year 2018/19, there were 8,356 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 4,852 students compared to the year 2017/18 were 5,183 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 1,589 students compared to 2017/18 was 1,689 students.

Bangladesh

Last but not least, Bangladesh ranks at no. 20 in the international student place of origin country ranking. In the year 2018/19, there were 8,249 international students. The no. of undergraduate in 2018/19 was 1,710 students compared to the year   2017/18 it was 1,766 students. The no. of graduates in 2018/19 was 5,278 compared to 2017/18 was 4,649. This shows that most students go to the U.S. to pursue their post-graduation degrees.

Conclusion

The United States has remained the leading destination for foreign students worldwide. The no. of international students studying in the U.S. kept increasing and is more to increase by 2020. Even the number of foreign students in university or college is also rapidly increasing as higher education becomes an increasingly global venture.

Lastly, this is not always a fixed list of international student origin countries. With more inflow of foreign students, the statistics will definitely change for 2020.\

Reference

https://www.iie.org/research-and-insights/open-doors/data/international-students/places-of-origin