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International Education MattersA
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Open Doors 2005 Report
To launch International Education Week this morning, the Institute of International Education (IIE) presented its Open Doors 2005 Report on International Educational Exchange at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The new report shows a “slowing decline” in international student enrollment in the U.S. for the 2004-05 school year, and an increase in the number of American students studying abroad in 2003-04. Open Doors 2005 reports that 565,039 international students attended U.S. higher education institutions in 2004-05, a decline of 1.3 per cent from the previous year. The rate of the decline is smaller than that of the previous year. The report indicates that the leading five places of origin of students studying in the U.S. are: India, China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, and Canada. It shows that enrollments from India, the leading place of origin, increased almost one per cent, to 80,466 students. The report indicates that international students in the U.S. study in all regions and states, but tend to be concentrated in a relatively small number of higher education institutions. It notes that 54 per cent of the 565,039 international students attended the 146 institutions which hosted at least 1,000 international students. California was the top state hosting international students, followed by New York, Texas, Massachusetts, and Florida. The study shows that the two leading fields of study, accounting for 34 per cent of all international students, are business/management, and engineering. Open Doors 2005 indicates that international education contributes over $13 billion to the U.S. economy. It shows that “over two-thirds of international students rely upon personal and family funds for their primary support.” With regard to international scholars, the report shows an increase of 8.1 per cent, for a total of 89,634 in 2004-05. This reverses two consecutive years of decline in the number of international scholars in the U.S. The five leading places of origin of international scholars, representing 49 per cent of all scholars, are: China, the Republic of Korea, India, Japan, and Germany. The report indicates that the leading four fields of specialization, accounting for 68 per cent of all international scholars, are: health sciences, life/biological sciences, physical sciences, and engineering. A recent online survey conducted this past October by IIE in conjunction with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), the American Council on Education (ACE), the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS), NAFSA: Association of International Educators, and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (NASULGC), provides a snapshot survey of fall 2005 enrollments and suggests growth in new international student enrollments. In terms of U.S. students studying abroad, Open Doors 2005 reports a 9.6 per cent increase, for an all-time high of 191,321 students in 2003-04. While Europe remains the leading host region for U.S. students studying abroad, the study indicates that U.S. study abroad has grown to destinations outside of Western Europe since the mid-1980s. It shows the highest growth in the number of students studying abroad in Oceania, the region that includes Australia and New Zealand, an increase of over 700 per cent from 1985-86 to 2003-04. The report indicates that over half of the U.S. students who study abroad major in the social sciences, humanities, and business/management. In addition, it shows that study abroad programs of shorter duration, including summer programs, January term programs, and programs of eight weeks or less, represented 52 per cent of study abroad in 2003-04. “Study abroad” is defined by IIE as “U.S. citizens and permanent residents who have studied abroad for academic credit towards their degree at a U.S. higher education institution, and/or towards their general education requirements at a community college. For more information on the Open Doors 2005 report, please visit
IIE's
website at: http://opendoors.iienetwork.org International Education Week will be celebrated today through Friday, November 18. Copyright 2005 by This file was updated on November 16, 2005 |
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