The just released Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange for 2015, issued by the Institute of International Education (IIE), shows that 975,000 students came to the United States during the recently completed 2014-2015 school year, a significant increase over the previous school year, with all indications suggesting there are now more than a million international students attending school in the USA.
The implications for the inbound tourism market are significant. Students usually have at least their parents—and, possibly, members of their extended family—accompany them on their trips to the United States. Or, family members and friends visit them at least once during the school year. This suggests that the student-driven market could generate 1.5 million to 3 million or more arrivals to the USA annually.
The countries making up the top three source markets for students—China, India and South Korea—are all growth markets and all are targets of marketing campaigns by Brand USA, the national tourism marketing organization of the United States.
Top 25 Places of Origin of International Students in USA, 2013/14 - 2014/15
| Place of Origin | 2013-2014 | 2014=2015 | % of Total | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. China | 274,439 | 304,040 | 31.20% | 10.80% |
| 2. India | 102,673 | 132,888 | 13.60% | 29.40% |
| 3. South Korea | 68,047 | 63,710 | 6.50% | -6.40% |
| 4. Saudi Arabia | 53,919 | 59,945 | 6.10% | 11.20% |
| 5. Canada | 28,304 | 27,240 | 2.80% | -3.80% |
| 6. Brazil | 13,286 | 23,675 | 2.40% | 78.20% |
| 7. Taiwan | 21,266 | 20,993 | 2.20% | -1.30% |
| 8. Japan | 19,334 | 19,064 | 2.00% | -1.40% |
| 9. Vietnam | 16,579 | 18,722 | 1.90% | 12.90% |
| 10. Mexico | 14,779 | 17,052 | 1.70% | 15.40% |
| 11. Iran | 10,194 | 11,338 | 1.20% | 11.20% |
| 12. UK | 10,191 | 10,743 | 1.10% | 5.40% |
| 13.Turkey | 10,821 | 10,724 | 1.10% | -0.009 |
| 14. Germany | 10,160 | 10,193 | 1.00% | 0.30% |
| 15. Nigeria | 7,921 | 9,494 | 1.00% | 19.90% |
| 16. Kuwait | 7,288 | 9,034 | 0.90% | 24.00% |
| 17. France | 8,302 | 8,743 | 0.90% | 5.30% |
| 18. Indonesia | 7,920 | 8,188 | 0.80% | 3.40% |
| 19. Nepal | 8,155 | 8,158 | 0.80% | 0.00% |
| 20. Hong Kong | 8,104 | 8,012 | 0.80% | -1.10% |
| 21. Venezuela | 7,022 | 7,890 | 0.80% | 12.40% |
| 22. Malaysia | 6,822 | 7,231 | 0.70% | 6.00% |
| 23. Thailand | 7,341 | 7,217 | 0.70% | -1.70% |
| 25. Colombia | 7,083 | 7,169 | 0.70% | 1.20% |
| 25. Spain | 5,350 | 6,143 | 0.60% | 14.80% |
| WORLD TOTAL | 886,052 | 974.926 | 100% | 10.00% |
Were China’s Students a Market unto Themselves … Below, we’ve used numbers from the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office, together with the IIE Open Doors figures—it should be noted that this is a little like comparing apples and oranges—to illustrate just how significant the Chinese student market is. By itself, the students from China in the United States, make up a source market large enough to rank it 27th among country source markets.
Market & International Rank
| 26. Denmark | 305.331 |
| 27. Students from China ¹ | 304,400* |
| 28. Belgium | 280.121 |
| *Note: Students may account for twice as many arrivals as this number, should they return home between semesters or at another time during the school year. | |
| ¹ Figure is for 2014-15 school year |
Where they go to School: Two New York City schools, NYU and Columbia, are home to nearly 24,700 students—a figure that would be the enrollment at a megaversity in just about any other place in the country. Los Angeles is another city that has two schools (Southern California and UCLA) in the top ten list of schools hosting international students.
Top U.S. Institutions Hosting International Students, 2014-15
| School | Location | Number of Students |
|---|---|---|
| 1. New York University | New York City | 13,178 |
| 2. U. of Southern California | Los Angeles, California | 12,334 |
| 3. Columbia University | New York City | 11,510 |
| 4. Arizona State University | Tempe, Arizona | 11,330 |
| 5. U of Ill. Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 11,223 |
| 6. Northeastern University | Boston, Massachusetts | 10,559 |
| 7. Purdue, West Lafayette | West Lafayette, Indiana | 10,230 |
| 8. UCLA | Los Angeles, California | 10,209 |
| 9. Michigan State University | East Lansing, Michigan | 8,146 |
| 10. University of Washington | Seattle, Washington | 8,035 |
| 11. Boston University | Boston, Massachusetts | 7,860 |
| 12. Penn State-University Park | University Park, Pennsylvania | 7,728 |
| 13. U. of Michigan-Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, Michigan | 7,423 |
| 14. Ohio State University | Columbus, Ohio | 7,121 |
| 15. University of Texas-Dallas | Richardson, Texas | 7,064 |
| 16. Indiana University | Bloomington, Indiana | 7,009 |
| 17. U. of Minnesota-Twin Cities | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 6,984 |
| 18. U. of California-Berkeley | Berkeley, California | 6,874 |
| 19. SUNY University-Buffalo | Buffalo, New York | 6,852 |
| 20. Texas A&M University | College Station, Texas | 6,690 |
| Source: Institute of International Education. (2015). Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange. Retrieved from http://www.iie.org/opendoors | ||
Top U.S. States Hosting International Students
| State & Rank | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 | % Change Year on Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. California | 121,647 | 135,130 | 11.10% |
| 2. New York | 98,906 | 106,758 | 7.90% |
| 3. Texas | 64,277 | 75,588 | 17.60% |
| 4. Massachusetts | 51,240 | 55,447 | 8.20% |
| 5. Illinois | 42,527 | 46,574 | 9.50% |
| 6. Pennsylvania | 41,448 | 45,704 | 10.30% |
| 7. Florida | 36,249 | 39,377 | 8.60% |
| 8. Ohio | 32,498 | 35,761 | 10.00% |
| 9. Michigan | 29,648 | 32,015 | 8.00% |
| 10. Indiana | 26,406 | 28,104 | 6.40% |
| Source: Institute of International Education. (2015). Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange. Retrieved from http://www.iie.org/opendoors | |||
Equally important, if not more important, to receptive tour operators and U.S. travel suppliers is the second table below, which shows that more than a third of all international students in the U.S. attend schools that are in three U.S. states: California, New York and Texas.
