Education is normally not as important to presidential voters as cultural issues and the state of the economy. But as communities battle over curricula, support for LGBTQ students, and post-pandemic learning loss, Republican presidential candidates are making education a major talking point. Read more from Savannah Kuchar of USA Today. (October 2023)

Preeti Aghalayam of Indian Institute of Technology-Madras has suggestions for welcoming international students to campuses. Instructors should carefully introduce their material and avoid complex diagrams and grading schemes. Read more in the Chronicle of Higher Education. (October 2023)

The number of college students enrolling in the U.S. has dropped in recent years. The recent rise is good news but masks the fact that new first-year enrollments are still falling. Danielle Douglas-Gabriel reports for The Washington Post. (October 2023)

A new survey of 126,000 international students found that the U.S. was the only one of the top four host countries to provide above-average student satisfaction.

The other three (the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada) ranked below average.

The report is summarized by Seeta Bhardwa in Times Higher Education. (November 2023)

As cultural battles involving school curriculums are being fought across the United States, some conservative politicians are suggesting funding be cut for college humanities programs.

Times Higher Education reports that some elected officials favor programs that help students get higher-paying jobs, and that help states train more skilled workers. (October 2023)

Startup Hopes to Address Nursing Shortage With International Students

Boston startup InSpring wants to help alleviate the nursing shortage in the United States by training hundreds of international students, according to a report published by Axios.

The first cohort could take exams in 2025, although they could work in health care positions earlier as they study for licensure. (September 2023)

A number of college campuses across the United States have been dealing with allegations of hazing in 2023, often involving athletic programs at schools.

CNN describes what hazing is, how it gained a foothold on campuses and how colleges are fighting it. (September 2023)

When students are far from home but still need the help of a parent, services offered at schools around the country can help fill the gap.

People Magazine reports rent-a-mom services are helping students, and their parents, make the transition to independence a little easier – for a price. (September 2023)

WASHINGTON — 

International students attended U.S. universities in surging numbers last year, rebounding from a pandemic slump with the help of a 35% jump in students coming from India, according to a study released Monday.

Overall, the number of international students in the U.S. grew by 12% in the 2022-23 academic year, the largest single-year increase in more than 40 years, according to findings from the State Department and the nonprofit Institute of International Education. More than 1 million students came from abroad, the most since the 2019-20 school year.

“This reinforces that the U.S. remains the destination of choice for international students wishing to study abroad, as it has been for more than a century,” said Allan E. Goodman, CEO of the Institute of International Education.

American colleges enrolled nearly 269,000 students from India, more than ever and second only to China. Most came for graduate programs, often in science, technology and business.

“The U.S. maintains a strong relationship with India on education, which I think is getting even stronger and even more connected,” said Marianne Craven, the State Department's acting deputy assistant secretary for academic exchange.

China still accounted for the most foreign students in the U.S. with 290,000, but its numbers decreased for a third consecutive year.

It reflects a gradual shift. After years of booming demand from China, interest has ebbed amid chilly international relations and increased competition from universities in the United Kingdom and Canada. Officials behind the new study also blame prolonged travel restrictions in Asia during the pandemic.

At the same time, U.S. universities have focused on recruiting in India, hoping to tap a growing population that the United Nations predicted would overtake China as the world's largest this year. Students from India now outnumber those from China in 24 U.S. states, including Illinois, Texas and Michigan, which rank among the top destinations for international students.

For the second consecutive year, America's graduate programs were the main attraction for international students, the study finds. Graduate enrollment grew by 21%, while undergraduate numbers ticked up 1%. It reverses a trend from the previous decade, which saw undergraduates come in larger numbers.

Much of last year's growth is credited to math and computer science programs, which attracted more students than any other subject and saw a 20% boost in enrollment over the previous year. Engineering and business followed behind. Taken together, those three fields account for more than half of all international students in the United States.

The surge nearly brings international numbers back to their pre-pandemic highs, with a peak of almost 1.1 million students in 2018. Enrollment fell precipitously over the following two years as COVID-19 stifled academic exchange.

The rebound appears to be continuing, with an 8% increase in international enrollment this fall, according to a smaller survey meant to give a snapshot of recent trends.

Overall, international students made up just 5.6% of all college students in the 2022-23 year, but they play an outsize role in U.S. higher education. University leaders say they're important for global exchange, and they're also important for revenue — international students are usually charged higher tuition rates, effectively subsidizing college for U.S. students.

Behind China and India, nations sending the most students to the U.S. were South Korea, Canada, Vietnam, Taiwan and Nigeria. Last school year saw a record number of students come from Bangladesh, Colombia, Ghana, India, Italy, Nepal, Pakistan and Spain.

While more students come from abroad, many colleges are struggling to attract students at home. Total enrollment across all colleges has stayed in a slump in the wake of pandemic decreases, and freshman enrollment decreased by 3.6% in fall 2023, according to a separate study by the National Student Clearinghouse.

Americans generally believe liberals have a lot of freedom to express themselves on college campuses, while fewer say the same can be said for conservatives, according to a new poll from University of Chicago and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

WDEF in Chattanooga, Tennessee, reports that Americans believe conservatives face stronger bias on campus. (October 2023)

People in the U.S. with college degrees live longer than people without degrees, MSNBC reports.

Princeton University economists found the gap between people with and without college degrees in the U.S. widened since the 1990s, so that by 2021, there was an 8.5-year lifespan difference between the two groups. (October 2023)

Did you know that undergraduate students who finished a paid internship are more than twice as likely to finish college with a job offer as those without any internship experience?

That’s just one of the points raised by Noah Isenberg in his op-ed. Despite persistent diversity issues with internships, especially the fact that poorer students often cannot afford to work for free, they remain an essential “real-world” experience for students, he claims.

Read the argument from Isenberg, an associate dean at the University of Texas at Austin, in the Chronicle of Higher Education. (October 2023)

Student athletes in the U.S. can have their tuition paid for and even win lucrative sponsorships, but the path there is not easy.

For US News & World Report, Anayat Durrani explains the recruitment process and the differences between the major intercollegiate athletic groups. (October 2023)

International students are valued by schools in the U.S., both for the global perspectives they provide, and for the tuition dollars they bring in.

Despite this, students often struggle to adjust to the American education system.

For Inside Higher Ed, Ashley Mowreader reports on how colleges can culturally integrate students from other countries. (October 2023)

The Daily Princetonian, Princeton University’s campus newspaper, spoke with undergraduate students navigating the post-graduation job search.

Despite their prestigious degrees, many report limited job options and say they have to apply to in-demand jobs in tech and consulting to have a shot at an H1-B visa.

Claire Meng, Sandeep Mangat and Michelle Miao report. (October 2023).