Latest stats on international students - on the up and up!

Up or down? What is happening with international students worldwide? According to the latest stats from the Institute of International Education (IIE) in their annual "Open Doors" report, the answer is quite clear - UP! 
More and more young people worldwide are going on the life-changing journey of studying in another country.

In this post, we will focus on the trend of international students traveling to the US - the largest destination for international students. Note that the trend is similar for the other global market in general. The upward trend is strong in other major study abroad destinations, such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Germany.

The growth trend is strong and getting stronger
The number of international students has more than doubled since the year 2000, and continues to grow. In 2013/2014, the number of international students in the US grew by 8.1%.  

Source: IIE Open Doors 2014

The countries that showed the largest growth in terms of students going to study abroad were Kuwait, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, China, Iran and Venezuela. 

Source: IIE Open Doors 2014

The gender gap is closing

In terms of gender - the gap is closing, with more and more females going abroad for studies. In 2013/2014, women comprised 44% of international students.

Source: IIE Open Doors 2014

International students contribute to the local economies

International students contribute significantly to the economies of the countries they are studying in. In the US alone, they contributed $27 billion to the local economy in 2013/2014.

The vast majority (81% for undergraduates and approximately %95 for graduate students) of the funding for the cost of living and tuition comes from the international students themselves. This is vastly different than for American students, where only 40% pay full tuition.

Source: IIE Open Doors 2014

What does the future hold?

All of the research indicates that the number of people worldwide who will move to other countries to enhance their education will continue to rise. At the current rate, the number will double itself once again by the year 2025.

Source: OECD and UNESCO data

To sum things up, the value of gaining international experiences, especially through international education is becoming more evident to more people worldwide. Even with the virtual technologies and MOOCs that enable people to take courses online, there is no viable replacement for the real-life experience of physically travelling to another country and immersing oneself in the local culture. 

Are you thinking of studying abroad? Not sure what path to take? Check out www.gradtrain.com and talk to someone from a similar background to yours who is now studying abroad or has done so in recent years.

For the full data from the IIE Open Doors report, check out this link:
http://www.iie.org/research-and-publications/open-doors/data