Indian students in America up 28%

Washington: The number of Indian students studying in the United States has increased by 28 per cent with the American nation becoming a popular educational destination, a US report has said.

"As of October 7, there were 134,292 Indian students studying in the United States. This marked a 28 per cent increase since October 2013," said the latest quarterly report on international students released by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement of the Department of Homeland Security. At the same time duration the number of international students increased by nine per cent, the report said.

According to the report, the majority of these students studied in California (18212), Texas (17033), New York (14690), Illinois (8427) and Massachusetts (6763). In fact at 134,292 total students, India has more students studying in the United States than any of these regions -- Africa, North America, Europe, South America or Australia or Pacific Islands.

While 73 per cent of these Indian students were enrolled in master's degree programs, 79 per cent of students from India studied STEM (Science Technology Engineering and

Mathematics) coursework comprising 26 per cent of the total international student population pursuing STEM coursework in the United States, it said.

The report said 65 per cent of all international students from India study engineering and computer and information sciences and support services programs, it said. India sends a significant number of its students to study in the United States, second only to China. Students from India comprise 12 per cent of the entire international student population and more than 26 per cent of the STEM student population in the United States.

According to the report, 30 per cent of international students originate from China, followed by 12 per cent from India.

Interestingly 47 per cent of all international students enrolled in computer and information sciences and support services programs are from India, while 27 per cent of ll students studying engineering are from India.

The report includes the latest data from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a Web-based system that includes information about international students, exchange visitors and their dependents while they are in the United States.

Based on data extracted from SEVIS on October 7, 1.11 million international students, using an F (academic) or M (vocational) visa, were enrolled at nearly 9,000 US schools. This marked a nine per cent increase when compared to October 2013 data. 75 per cent of all international students were from Asia.

The top 10 countries of citizenship for international students included: China, India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Mexico and Brazil. China and Vietnam had the greatest percentage increase in students studying in the United States at 22 and 21 per cent, respectively, when compared to statistics extracted from SEVIS July 8.