IIE Releases Open Doors 2013 Data; Study Abroad and International Student Numbers Up

Today, the Institute of International Education (IIE), together with the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, released the latest news on international students in the United States and U.S. students studying abroad. The Open Doors findings will also be a topic of a briefing tomorrow morning, November 12, at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, with Assistant Secretary of State Evan M. Ryan and IIE President Allan E. Goodman, in conjunction with the worldwide observance of International Education Week.

The Chronicle of Higher Education has a special section in this week's paper and online today with feature coverage highlighting key data related to international students in the United States and study abroad. We expect to see press coverage in Inside Higher Education as well as major news outlets in the United States and around the world beginning today and throughout the week.

To access the new data and background information to help explain the trends, go to www.iie.org/opendoors. You can also find results of a Fall 2013 online International Student Enrollment Survey that the IIE conducted jointly with seven other major higher education organizations (American Association of Community Colleges, American Association of State Colleges and Universities, American Council on Education, Association of American Universities, Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, Council of Graduate Schools, and NAFSA: Association of International Educators).

We encourage you to share this information with the press office on your campus and to work with them to publicize your institution's success in hosting international students and sending your students to study abroad. You can localize the story by providing details about the students coming to and going from your campus, such as where they come from, where they go, what they study, and what effect this has on your campus and community.

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• The number of international students at colleges and universities in the United States increased by 7 percent to a record high of 819,644 in the 2012/13 academic year. 
• This 2012/13 data marks the seventh consecutive year that Open Doors reported expansion in the total number of international students in U.S. higher education; there are 40 percent more international students studying at U.S. colleges and universities than there were a decade ago. 
• New enrollments in fall of 2012 were up 10 percent from the prior year.
• Chinese student enrollments increased by 21 percent in total and by 26 percent at the undergraduate level.
• Top 5 countries of origin: China, India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Canada. 
• The state of California hosted more than 100,000 international students for the second time this year, followed by New York, Texas, Massachusetts and Illinois.
• A fall 2013 snapshot survey on international student enrollments also reports on what is driving the growth, what new recruitment efforts they are undertaking, and what steps they are taking to serve their international students.

• The number of Americans receiving credit for study abroad in 2011/11 increased by 3 percent to a total of 283,332.
• The number of U.S. students studying abroad increased in 18 of the top 25 destination countries.  
• Study abroad by American students has more than tripled over the past two decades, from only about 71,000 students in 1991/92.  
• American students studying abroad still represent a small proportion of total enrollment in U.S. higher education. Less than 10 percent of American students receiving undergraduate degrees this past year have studied abroad at some point during their undergraduate programs.
• Top 5 destination countries were: UK, Italy, Spain, France and China.
• 36 campuses had undergraduate study abroad participation rates of more than 70 percent of their student body.
• The number of students going to Japan to study increased by 28 percent, as programs resumed there after being closed following the tsunami of March 2011.

Read full announcements and access data from the new Open Doors Report and fall snapshot surveys at www.iie.org/opendoors.