November 17, 2014, marked the annual Open Doors Briefing at the National Press Building in Washington, DC, given by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and the Institute of International Education (IIE). The report Open Doors covers trends in international students studying in the US, as well as students going abroad.
Important findings & Aid resources
This year’s findings again suggest that more students are coming to study in the U.S. compared to the number of U.S. students we are sending abroad. The U.S. Department of State and IIE are promoting and increasing awareness on a series of initiatives created to increase the number of U.S. students going abroad. These initiatives include Federal Pell Grants, and the Gilman Scholarship program.
The Open Doors report shows that the number of U.S. students going abroad grew by 2% over the prior year. Although this is now the new record high, the numbers are not as strong as hoped. At the current growth rate, it will take 25 years before the numbers double in size. The U.S. Department of State, along with the IIE, hopes that with increased awareness of the Gilman International Scholarship program and Federal Pell Grants, the number of students going to study abroad will grow. The Gilman Scholarship is administered by IIE and sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The scholarship is offered to qualified students and aims to diversify students who study abroad. For more information about the scholarship, or for a list of qualifications, please visit the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship website.
The number of students choosing to study in the United States is growing strongly. The report shows a growth of 8% in international students studying in the United States with China, India, and South Korea being the top countries of origin for those students. The most popular fields of study include: Business and Management Engineering, and Math/Computer Science.
Bring students to your campus
To help with the challenges that occur with this growth in international students, AACRAO IES is hosting the 9th Annual Winter Institute for International Transfer Credit on January 26-28, 2015. We will be covering transcripts from the top sending countries according to the report. To learn more about the training, please click here. Registration is open until January 3, 2015, but spots are limited!
Are you interested in increasing the number of international students at your college/university? Join us for Summer Institute 2015! To learn more, please click here.
For those who are unable to make it, AACRAO IES also offers on-site trainings and consultations for office restructuring. If you have questions, or want to learn more about these trainings, please contact Tiffany Hsu at 202.263.0290 or hsut@aacrao.org.
To learn more about the Open Doors Survey or the Institute of International Education, please visit www.iie.org.