International Students in US Higher Education

Investigations

Total number of international students enrolled in higher education or doing optional practical training (OPT) on an F-1 student visa in the US: 1,126,690

Total number of international students currently enrolled in US higher ed: 883,990

Total number of students on Optional Practical Training (OPT) (defined below): 242,700

% of US enrollment that are international students: 6%

International student contribution to U.S. economy: $44 billion

Percent increase between 2000-2001 and 2023-2024: 66.7%

Number of colleges/universities tracked in Defending Ed report: 125

Summary

The United States hosts the largest share of international students across the globe. This report is a snapshot of the varying levels of international or foreign student enrollment in our colleges and universities.

*Important note: Data on international students in higher ed in the United States can be confusing and a bit hard to nail down because of the different ways the students are defined and counted. We decided to use data that is primarily sourced from the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) Open Doors report. The IIE conducts an annual statistical survey of approximately 3,000 accredited U.S. institutions with support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

In November, IIE released its findings for the 2023-2024 school year in its Open Doors® 2024 Report on International Educational Exchange.

Our figures include both undergraduate and graduate students as well as students who are on Optional Practical Training (OPT) — raw numbers and percentages reflect the total student population, including OPT (explained below.)

International student enrollment in the United States has been steadily increasing in recent years and the IIE report found that the total number of international students at U.S. colleges and universities reached an all-time high with 1,126,690 international students in the 2023-2024 school year, a 6.6% increase from the 2022-2023 school year. Around 242,700 of those students are on OPT which means they are temporarily employed in their major area of study on an F-1 student visa either during or after completing their studies in the US.

The 1.1 million international students enrolled at U.S. higher education institutions or here on OPT working on an F-1 student visa account for about 6% of the total U.S. enrollment and contributed $43.8 billion to the U.S. economy during the 2023-2024 school year, according to the IIE and the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Additionally, the number of international students studying at U.S. higher educational institutions has steadily climbed since 1948, when the IIE first started collecting the data. In the 2005-2006 school year, for example, there were 564,766 international students, making up 3.2% of the total student population. In just two decades, that number has doubled.

Key Takeaways

  • India took the top spot with 331,602 students enrolled at U.S. institutions, replacing China for the first time since 2009. China was a close second with 227,398 students studying in the U.S., while South Korea trailed behind in third place with 43,149 students studying at American universities.
  • New York University (NYU), with 27,247 international students, has the most of any U.S. institution. NYU is followed by Northeastern University and Columbia University at 21,023 and 20,321 students, respectively.  California, New York and Texas hosted the most international students, while schools in less populous states like Montana, Alaska, Vermont, North Dakota, South Dakota and Maine all had the fewest numbers of foreign students.
  • Notably, international students make up a significant share of enrollment at some universities, especially when broken down by percentage. At NYU, for instance, 27,247 international students comprise 44% of the total student body of 61,890 while at Carnegie Mellon, 9,607 international students represent over 58% of its 16,335 students.
  • Over half of all international students (56%) enrolled in U.S. institutions chose STEM disciplines. Among them, 25% focused on mathematics and computer science, while 19% pursued engineering. STEM schools like the Stevens Institute of Technology (63%), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (45%) and the Illinois Institute of Technology (70%) saw a higher percentage of international students, whereas schools of similar size like George Mason University (14%) and George Washington University (18%) had much smaller percentages, respectively.
  • International student enrollment in the US has grown significantly in recent years. For some context, here are the enrollment numbers and percentages for past years:
    • 2000-2001 547,867 international students, 3.6% of total student enrollment
    • 2009-2010 690,923 international students, 3.5% of total student enrollment
    • 2014-2015 974,926 international students, 4.8% of total student enrollment
    • 2019-2020 1,075, 496 international students, 5.5% of total student enrollment
    • 2022-2023 1,057,188 international students, 5.6% of total student enrollment
    • 2023-2024 1,126,690 internationals students, 6% of total student enrollment
  • By absolute numbers, the US has the greatest number of international students but, by share of enrollment, it trails quite a few countries including Luxembourg (50 %), Australia (23 %), UK (22 %), Canada (approx 20 %), Germany & France (approx 12–14 %).

This list of colleges and universities is compiled in order of raw international student numbers, highest to lowest. Scroll down to see our top 50 listed by %.

  1. New York University
    • 27,247 students (44%)
  2. Northeastern University
    • 21,023 students (64%)
  3. Columbia University
    • 20,321 students (58%)
  4. Arizona State University
    • 18,430 students (13%)
  5. University of Southern California
    • 17,469 students (36%)
  6. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
    • 15,376 students (27%)
  7. Boston University
    • 12,853 students (34%)
  8. University of California – Berkeley
    • 12,441 students (27%)
  9. Purdue University
    • 12,181 students (23%)
  10. University of North Texas
    • 11,917 students (25%)
  11. University of Michigan
    • 11,766 students (22%)
  12. University of Washington
    • 10,720 students (20%)
  13. The University of Texas – Dallas
    • 10,491 students (33%)
  14. University of California – San Diego
    • 10,467 students (24%)
  15. University of California – Los Angeles
    • 10,446 students (22%)
  16. Johns Hopkins University
    • 10,054 students (33%)
  17. Carnegie Mellon University
    • 9,607 students (58%)
  18. University of Wisconsin–Madison
    • 9,526 students (19%)
  19. The Pennsylvania State University – University Park
    • 9,093 students (19%)
  20. Cornell University
    • 9,091 students (35%)
  21. University of Pennsylvania
    • 8,956 students (32%)
  22. University of California – Irvine
    • 8,748 students (24%)
  23. The University of Texas – Arlington
    • 8,407 students (20%)
  24. University at Buffalo
    • 8,380 students (26%)
  25. Georgia Institute of Technology
    • 8,148 students (18%)
  26. Harvard University
    • 7,805 students (30%)
  27. Texas A&M University – College Station
    • 7,635 students (10%)
  28. Rutgers University
    • 7,400 students (11%)
  29. University of South Florida – Tampa
    • 7,249 students (16%)
  30. Ohio State University
    • 6,984 students (12%)
  31. The University of Chicago
    • 6,982 students (37%)
  32. The University of Texas at Austin
    • 6,956 students (13%)
  33. University of Maryland – College Park
    • 6,627 students (16%)
  34. Northwestern University
    • 6,503 students (27%)
  35. University of Florida
    • 6,396 students (12%)
  36. Indiana University – Bloomington
    • 6,336 students (14%)
  37. University of Cincinnati 
    • 6,276 students (13%)
  38. University of Minnesota – Twin Cities
    • 6,228 students (12%)
  39. University of Central Missouri
    • 6,069 students (44%)
  40. Duke University (includes Medical Center)
    • 5,949 students (35%)
  41. Washington University in St. Louis
    • 5,820 students (35%)
  42. Syracuse University
    • 5,703 students (26%)
  43. University of Illinois – Chicago
    • 5,662 students (16%)
  44. North Carolina State University
    • 5,475 students (15%)
  45. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
    • 5,344 students (45%)
  46. George Mason University
    • 5,284 students (14%)
  47. Stevens Institute of Technology
    • 5,234 students (63%)
  48. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
    • 5,160 students (14%)
  49. University of Massachusetts – Amherst
    • 5,160 students (16%)
  50. Michigan State University
    • 5,081 students (10%)
  51. Illinois Institute of Technology
    • 4,890 students (70%)
  52. Yale University
    • 4,849 students (33%)
  53. The George Washington University
    • 4,631 students (18%)
  54. Savannah College of Art and Design
    • 4,458 students (29%)
  55. University of Arizona
    • 4,452 students (9%)
  56. University of Utah 
    • 4,335 students (13%) 
  57. Georgia State University
    • 4,267 students (12%)
  58. Georgetown University
    • 4,063 students (19%)
  59. University of Connecticut
    • 4,038 students (13%)
  60. University of Pittsburgh 
    • 3,868 students 
  61. New Jersey Institute of Technology 
    • 3,759 students (31%)
  62. University of Colorado – Boulder
    • 3,512 students (10%)
  63. University of Central Florida
    • 3,511 students (5%)
  64. Iowa State University
    • 3,474 students (12%)
  65. Saint Louis University
    • 3,415 students (23%)
  66. University of North Carolina – Charlotte
    • 3,393 students (11%)
  67. Emory University
    • 3,163 students (20%)
  68. University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill 
    • 3,153 students  (10%)
  69. University of Maryland – Baltimore County
    • 3,107 students (22%)
  70. University of Virginia
    • 2,997 students (12%)
  71. Wichita State University
    • 2,856 students (18%)
  72. University of Georgia
    • 2,759 students (7%)
  73. University of Miami
    • 2,736 students (14%)
  74. Drexel University
    • 2,725 students (12%)
  75. Oregon State University 
    • 2,722 students (8%)
  76. Princeton University
    • 2,637 students (30%)
  77. Brown University 
    • 2,542 students (24%)
  78. University of Delaware
    • 2,527 students (11%)
  79. University of Notre Dame
    • 2,408 students (18%)
  80. Vanderbilt University 
    • 2,301 students (17%)
  81. University of Alabama – Birmingham
    • 2,244 students (10%)
  82. University of Iowa
    • 2,178 students  (7%)
  83. University of Memphis 
    • 2,134 students (21%)
  84. Brigham Young University
    • 2,083 students (6%)
  85. Clemson University 
    • 2,071 students (7%)
  86. Oklahoma State University 
    • 2,068 students (8%)
  87. University of Kansas
    • 2,020 students (8%)
  88. University of Oklahoma
    • 2,018 students (7%)
  89. University of Nebraska – Lincoln
    • 1,994 students (9%)
  90. University of South Carolina
    • 1,971 students (6%)
  91. University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee 
    • 1,932 students (9%)
  92. Colorado State University
    • 1,884 students (6%)
  93. Dartmouth College 
    • 1,879 students (28%)
  94. Louisiana State University and A&M College 
    • 1,873 students (6%)
  95. Auburn University
    • 1,782 students (6%)
  96. Minnesota State University
    • 1,716 students (12%)
  97. Brigham Young University – Idaho
    • 1,702 students (4%)
  98. University of Kentucky 
    • 1,690 students (6%)
  99. American University
    • 1,627 students (12%)
  100. Washington State University 
    • 1,550 students (6%)
  101. University of Arkansas – Fayetteville
    • 1,549 students (5%)
  102. University of Tennessee
    • 1,522 students (5%)
  103. Portland State University 
    • 1,432 students (7%)
  104. Tulane University 
    • 1,426 students (10%)
  105. Brigham Young University – Hawaii 
    • 1,356 students (42%)
  106. University of New Mexico 
    • 1,356 students (6%)
  107. Rhode Island School of Design 
    • 1,279 students (50%)
  108. University of Alabama – Tuscaloosa
    • 1,273 students (3%)
  109. Kansas State University
    • 1,213 students (6%)
  110. University of Hawaii 
    • 1,184 students (6%)
  111. University of Oregon 
    • 1,125 students (3%)
  112. West Virginia University 
    • 1,097 students (5%)
  113. Wake Forest University 
    • 1,041 students (9%)
  114. University of Nevada – Las Vegas 
    • 1,015 students (3%)
  115. Mississippi State University
    • 975 students (3%)
  116. University of North Dakota 
    • 857 students (7%)
  117. University of Mississippi
    • 825 students (4%)
  118. University of Idaho
    • 782 students (6%)
  119. University of Wyoming 
    • 653 students (4%)
  120. University of Maine
    • 647 students (4%)
  121. University of South Dakota
    • 644 students (2%)
  122. University of Vermont 
    • 444 students (3%)
  123. University of Alaska – Fairbanks and Anchorage
    • 287 students (2%)
  124. University of Montana
    • 171 students (2%)
  125. Montana State University 
    • 90 students (2%)
Top 50 by % – Sheet1Download

The PDF below contains more detailed information about international students in the US in 2024.

OpenDoors_Fast-Facts_2024Download

The PDF below contains detailed information about international students in the US from 2010 to 2023.

Fast-Facts_2010-2023Download