WASHINGTON: After a slump during the pandemic, international students have returned in large numbers to US colleges, with Indian students leading the surge.
More than ever before and second only to China, colleges recruited approximately 269,000 Indian students; the majority are enrolled in graduate programmes in business, science, and technology. Findings from the State Department and the nonprofit Institute of International Education indicate that this equates to a 35% increase in the number of students from India.
“The US maintains a strong relationship with India on education, which I think is getting even stronger and even more connected,” said Marianne Craven, the State Department’s acting deputy assistant secretary for academic exchange.
According to the survey, the total number of foreign students enrolled at US universities increased by 12% during the 2022-23 academic year, marking the biggest annual growth in over 40 years. The largest number of international students since the 2019–20 academic year was over one million.
“This reinforces that the US remains the destination of choice for international students wishing to study abroad, as it has been for more than a century,” said Allan E Goodman, CEO of the Institute of International Education.
For the third year running, China was the country with the most number of international students studying in the United States. Interest has decreased due to frigid international ties after years of explosive demand from China.