In November, we covered some of the top US enrollment trends for study levels and fields of study in the latest Institute of International Education (IIE) Open Doors data. In 2021/22, the American international education sector rebounded by 80% from the previous year. Graduate enrollment drove this growth.1
The 146,000 new students enrolled at the graduate level was an all-time high in 2021/22. This boom of new students at the graduate level surpassed the previous high—set in 2015/16—by 16%, and represented an increase of 122% compared to 2020/21.
Today, we’ll be diving deeper into the driving forces behind the increase in international student enrollment at the graduate level in 2021/22. Where are students coming from to study at this level? What programs are they studying? Let’s take a look at what drove the boom in graduate studies in the US and where we expect graduate student trends to be in the coming years.
Key Insights at a Glance
- In 2021/22, 41% of international students in the US were enrolled in graduate studies, up from 36% the previous year.
- Master’s programs accounted for 87% of the overall growth in graduate student enrollment in 2021/22.
- Indian students represented nearly 60% of the graduate enrollment growth from 2020/21 to 2021/22.
- Math and computer science had the highest increase in enrollment, with over 22,000 more graduate students in 2021/22 than 2020/21.
Graduate Studies Surpasses Undergraduate Studies
Since the 2011/12 academic year, the number of undergraduate international students in the US has been consistently higher than the number of graduate students. In the 2021/22 academic year, the number of graduate students studying in the US surpassed the number of undergraduate students by over 40,000 students.
In 2021/22, graduate student enrollment increased from nearly 330,000 in 2020/21 to 385,000, representing a 17% increase in just one year. 41% of international students in the US were enrolled in graduate studies in 2021/22, up from 36%. Let’s take a closer look at where this growth is coming from.
Master’s Programs Leading the Charge
Last year, 86% of international students were enrolled in a “large” or “very large” institution with 10,000 students or more. This raises the question, which academic level are most international graduate students studying?
In 2021/22, over 215,000 international students in the US were studying in a master’s program, up from 166,000 in 2019/20. The increase of 48,000 graduate international students means that master’s programs accounted for 87% of the overall growth in graduate student enrollment in 2021/22. Master’s programs also represented more than 22% of all international student enrollment last year, an increase of over four percentage points from 2020/21.
Doctoral studies grew by only 2% in 2021/22. But there’s good news for institutions looking to attract PhD students: 90% of all international graduate students attended a doctoral university. With students completing master’s degrees at doctoral schools, the massive growth of master’s students in 2021/22 could eventually lead to more students pursuing doctoral studies in the coming years.
Indian Students are Driving Graduate Level Growth in the US
Now that we’ve seen what study level is driving the overall growth of graduate studies in the US, let’s take a look at the top ten international student populations at the graduate level:
The number of Indian students studying in a graduate program in the US grew by a staggering 48%, from nearly 69,000 students in 2020/21 to over 102,000 in 2021/22. The increase of 33,000 Indian graduate students in the US represents nearly 60% of the growth in graduate enrollment from 2020/21 to 2021/22.
Student markets like Bangladesh and Nigeria saw significant growth in student enrollment over the same time period, each outpacing the national average growth of 17% for the graduate sector.
Most Popular Fields of Study for Graduate Students in the US
Is this growth in graduate studies concentrated in one field of study, or are graduate students pursuing a wide range of studies? Let’s take a look at what the most popular fields of study were for international students enrolled in graduate studies from 2020 to 2022.
Math and computer science had the largest growth last year, with an increase of 22,000 graduate students. This represented a growth of 34%. Not far behind, business and management had an increase of nearly 10,000 students, which was 22% more than the 2020/21 academic year.
Indian students are driving growth in graduate STEM programs. In 2021/22, three in four Indian students were enrolled in STEM graduate programs in the US.
Looking Forward
Last year was an important year for the US international education sector, with international student enrollment trends setting new highs at the graduate level. We’re excited to see signs pointing to a positive 2023 for international students in the US, with the potential for international student interest to last beyond master’s studies into doctoral enrollment.
Student choice trends continue to impact international education in the US. The boom in graduate studies that we saw last year was a direct result of the interest from Indian students in graduate studies. As graduate studies becomes more popular to international students, institutions can work to support student choice by keeping up with study abroad trends and increasing support to international students looking to study in the US.
To learn more about the latest US international education trends, register for ApplyBoard’s webinar hosted by AIRC on March 15th, 2023!
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FOOTNOTES:
1. All data courtesy of the Institute of International Education (IIE) Open Doors Report.
