India, China top origin of international scholars

With 17% increase international scholars from India reach highest levels: Open Doors 2022 Report

India and China remained the leading places of origin for international scholars in the United States as their number increased by 6% to 90,891 in 2021/22 after two years of declines amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

China continued to be the leading place of origin for international scholars in the United States, with 19,391 scholars in 2021/22, despite a 26% decline, according to the new Open Doors 2022 Report on International Educational Exchange.

India, the second largest place of origin, experienced a 17% increase in 2021/22, with 14,847 scholars in the United States, according to the key findings released by the Institute of International Education on Feb 8.

This rebound surpassed the number of Indian scholars before the pandemic and reflected the highest levels of international scholars from India. Following China and India, South Korea, Canada, and Germany were in the top five leading places of origin of international scholars.

From July 2021 through June 2022, 90,891 international scholars engaged in research, teaching, and clinical activities at US colleges and universities, an increase of 6% from the previous year, according to the report.

This growth follows two years of declines amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Although the number of scholars has yet to rebound to pre-pandemic levels of approximately 136,000, the growth in 2021/22 reflects a sustained commitment of US higher education institutions to hosting international scholars, it said.

Most international scholars specialize in the STEM fields with 79% of them focusing their activities in these fields in 2021/22. The most popular fields were the physical and life sciences (40%) and engineering (15%).

Most international scholars came to the United States to conduct research (76%), which is consistent with data from prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. International scholars also engage in teaching (9%), a combination of teaching and research (8%), and clinical activities (4%).

Most colleges and universities resumed scholarly appointments in 2021/22, with only 21% indicating continued hiring freezes, the report noted.

In welcoming new scholars and supporting scholars already in the United States, most institutions highlighted continuing to provide information about health, safety, and well-being (83%) and travel and visa procedures (80%).

Approximately half (51%) of institutions cited the need to continue extending appointments of scholars who could not return home in 2021/22, down from 62% in the prior year.

Most institutions (70%) noted the continuation of supporting scholars by amending or deferring start dates to provide flexibility in the case of delayed visa or travel issues, according to the report.