2024 has been a nearly unprecedented year for changes in the international education sector. Policy updates. Geopolitical shifts. A rising cost of living around the world. It’s a lot for future international students to keep in mind, on top of course and visa applications, finding housing, and everything else that goes into starting their study abroad journey.
As the international education sector continues to shift, understanding how prospective students feel and what they think about the challenges and opportunities they face is more important than ever. To better understand their perceptions and experiences, we connected with over 1,500 students from almost 100 countries in the latest edition of our Student Pulse Survey.1 They shared which destinations had caught their eye, what motivates them to study abroad, and which factors are most likely to shape their decisions. Read on for a closer look at study level trends, which study destinations are gaining ground, and more.
Key Insights at a Glance
- More students were “extremely interested” in studying in the United States than any other country—but because more respondents were “very interested” or “moderately interested” in Canada, it remained the top choice.
- 36% of students expressed interest in destinations beyond the “Big Four.”2 Finland, the Netherlands, and Sweden were the most popular emerging destinations.
- Students expect to work more during their studies: 59% of students surveyed in Fall 2024 plan to work more than 20 hours per week if allowed, up 13 percentage points from the Spring 2024 Student Pulse Survey.
Future International Students Show Greater Interest in Postgraduate Study
The policy changes that have defined the international education sector in 2024 have already had a significant impact on weakening student demand. Compared to the Spring 2024 Student Pulse Survey, interest in all levels of study fell except for master’s degrees, PhDs or other doctoral degrees, and secondary school (high school):
In a trend continuing from our Spring 2024 survey, the vast majority of participants were interested in postgraduate-level study (89% in Fall 2024). This six percentage point increase in half a year may indicate students’ awareness of the advantages of studying abroad at the postgraduate level, whether due to increased flexibility in bringing dependents or more generous post-study work visas.
However, this increased interest isn’t shared equally across all postgraduate programs. Interest in postgraduate degrees and certificates actually dropped over the past six months. This decline is likely caused by student awareness of policy changes that decrease access to post-study opportunities—like updates to Canada’s Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) program—for non-degree graduates.
Popularity of European and Asian Destinations Rises, As Does Interest in the Big Four
In looking at where future international students would like to study, 64% of survey participants were focused on the “Big Four” destinations—Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This percentage is higher than it was in our last Student Pulse survey, where 57% of students were interested solely in studying in the Big Four. While our survey is a small sample of the global student population, it’s interesting to see stronger interest in these markets given recent policy changes that have negatively affected ease of student mobility.
When asked about country-specific interest levels, students shared lower interest in Australia and Canada and higher interest in the UK and the US compared to our Spring 2024 findings. This echoed sentiments from education professionals in our most recent Recruitment Partner Pulse Survey.
In fact, in our Fall 2024 Student Pulse survey, more students were “extremely interested” in studying in the US versus any of the other featured countries (Australia, Canada, Germany, Ireland, and the United Kingdom). Slightly higher interest at the “very interested” and “moderately interested” levels for study in Canada meant that the US remained in second place, but Canada’s lead has shrunk notably over the past six months:
Europe Home to the Majority of Alternate Study Destinations
While the percentage of students who are looking beyond the Big Four decreased by seven percentage points to 36% in our Fall 2024 survey, these students have a truly global outlook. They shared over 60 different destinations where they’d like to study:
While Finland, the Netherlands, and Sweden were top-of-mind, respondents shared their interest in studying across Europe. They listed over 30 European countries as potential destinations.
Looking beyond Europe, Japan and South Korea represented Asia in the top ten study destinations, at seventh and tenth place respectively. This edition of the survey also showed students’ strong interest in China and Singapore. Middle Eastern destinations like the United Arab Emirates (particularly its capital, Dubai), Türkiye, and Qatar are of increased interest to these students, as well. And, for the first time for this question, students shared their interest in African destinations like Egypt and South Africa. As new study destinations emerge—in this survey, respondents listed six more markets than they did in Spring 2024—it’s important that academic institutions in established destinations continue to connect with their target student audiences to share why their institution remains an excellent option.
Career Goals Align With High-Demand STEM and Health Care Fields
When asked about their future careers, many students planned to join fields which are expanding rapidly and in need of new grads. Many students aim to start or build on careers in business and entrepreneurship, or STEM,3 particularly in engineering and technology. They’ll enter a workforce which needs their skills: whether in the US, where STEM jobs are projected to grow at over twice the rate of all other careers until 2031,4 or in the UK, which is projected to add 1.9 STEM professionals to its workforce by 2035.5 Students also shared many different health care careers (nursing was the third-most popular career goal), but respondents also dream of becoming surgeons, doctors, public health officers, and therapists:
Several students also included sustainability and ethics in their career goals, whether as white-hat hackers, non-governmental organization workers, or environmental scientists. These career paths hint at their desire to build a brighter future, as this response outlines:
To come back here in Mali to share my knowledge in our community to help our young people have a stable life. Especially also put a reforestation project in my city, which is one of the hottest localities in West Africa.
– Student response to “What career(s) do you plan to pursue after completing your studies?
More Students Than Ever Plan to Balance Study with Work
When it comes to ensuring students have the financial ability to pay for their studies, more students are considering working while abroad. Only around 2% of surveyed international students did not plan to work in any capacity while studying, according to our Fall 2024 Student Pulse Survey. This is even lower than our Spring 2024 findings, where nearly 3% of international students didn’t plan to work.
Students also expect to be working more: 59% of students planned to work more than 20 hours per week if allowed, versus 46% of respondents in the Spring survey. However, slightly fewer students planned to do a co-op or work term as part of their studies: 32% expected to do some work-integrated learning, versus 39% in Spring 2024.
These findings of increased student focus on work were echoed when we asked what drove students to consider studying abroad, and how they chose a destination. Over two-thirds of respondents ranked “building a professional or academic network,” “preparing for a job in my chosen field,” and “the quality of institutions is higher than in my home country” as extremely influential factors on their decision.
Accessibility and Employability Key Factors for Study Destinations
Meanwhile, top factors influencing study destination choice in Fall 2024 included accessibility and graduate outcomes, versus institution ranking or a welcoming atmosphere. The ability to get a student visa took the top spot, and the ability to work in their host country after graduation was the next most important factor, followed by the destination’s overall reputation:
The ability to obtain a student visa rose from the fourth- or fifth-most important factor in our last two surveys to the top factor for most prospective international students. In fact, 37% of respondents chose it as the most important factor when deciding where to study. This shift may speak to how a year of policy updates has made getting a student visa more of a limiting factor around destination choice.
It’s also interesting to see “welcoming to international students” fall to near the bottom of this list. Almost 45% of students chose it as one of their top five factors in the Spring 2024 survey, and it was the most important factor in our Fall 2023 survey. Throughout 2024, several countries adopted more restrictive international education measures, like higher proof of finances requirements or visa processing fees. Australia’s soft cap on the number of international students it would admit in 2025 and Canada’s updated study permit caps for 2025, along with revised PGWP eligibility criteria are likely also shaping how students see these destinations. So, seeing the reduced importance of a welcoming environment is arguably evidence of international student resilience: Even in challenging times, they’re not giving up on their goals.
What These Survey Results Mean for Institutions
For institutions looking to maintain and build their international student population, adapting to shifting student preferences is vital. Here are a few recommendations of what institutions can do to support student success:
- Per our most recent survey, students value a school’s strong reputation more than its formal global or national rankings. Sharing your institution’s strengths via student testimonials, your alumni network, in-market events, and social media may lead to an influx of interest from future students.
- 2024 has been a year of intense change and students may be deferring their enrolment, or reconsidering their options. To help retain them, it’s vital for institutions to keep open lines of communication around policy changes, official links to student visa information, key academic calendar dates, and more. Helping students feel like they’re part of the campus community even before arrival can make them more likely to follow through with their enrolment and future academic growth.
- Part-time work is a reality for most international students. To help students balance study and work without jeopardizing their student visa, highlight specific opportunities through your institution’s relationships with local industry, co-op programs, or unique research avenues. Have strong graduate employment rates? Share those in admissions materials so students can easily imagine the path from their course or program to their future career.
We hope these insights are helpful to you and your team. Stay tuned for our next Pulse Surveys for students and recruitment professionals which will launch in Spring 2025.
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FOOTNOTES:
1. The Fall 2024 Student Pulse Survey ran from September 30, 2024 to October 14, 2024. We received 1,524 responses from individuals in 94 countries.
2. “Big Four” destinations include the most popular countries for post-secondary education in English: Australia, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
3. “STEM” refers to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.
4. Emily Krutsch and Victoria Roderick, U.S. Department of Labor Blog, “STEM Day: Explore Growing Careers.” November 4, 2022.
5. Universities UK, “Jobs of the Future.” Updated October 2024.
