International Scholars Enrolment in America Continues to Grow
This is a recovery trend similar to the growth patterns prior to Covid-19. According to Open Doors data from last November, international student enrolment has increased by 12% to over one million for the 2022/23 academic year, as pointed out by Mirka Martel of the Institute of International Education (IIE).
The data for 2022/23 reveals the diversity of the length of stay of fellows. 10 per cent of international scholars stayed in the US for less than three months, 9 per cent for three to six months, 18 per cent for six months to one year, 38 per cent for one to three years, and 25 per cent for more than three years. The researchers suggest that the 6% increase in the proportion of international scholars staying for less than six months may be due to the easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions and fewer institutions suspending new international scholar appointments.
Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, and Yale hosted the most international scholars this year. Of all the international fellows, 78% focused on Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) fields. Although China and India are the two largest source countries, the total number of fellows from China is still far from the peak in 2018/19. In addition, countries such as Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Iran, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan also saw growth above pre-pandemic levels. Nigeria, Bangladesh, and Brazil experienced the strongest growth rates. South Korea, Brazil, and Canada followed China and India as the top five source countries. Among the top 25 source countries, the total number of scholars from Canada fell by 4% in the last academic year to 3,832 scholars.