The number of graduate school applications submitted by international students to US schools has increased over the years. In fact, the number of applications from students outside of this country has increased steadily for seven years in a row.

Though China seems to have the highest number of students that submit a graduate school application to US schools, several other countries feature students who are also apparently interested in going to graduate school here.

International Graduate School Application Trends

According to the Council of Graduate Schools, international interest in US graduate colleges has shown an increase since 2005. The lowest increase in graduate school applications was 4 percent in 2009, with the highest being 12 percent in 2006. The latest numbers show a 9 percent increase in 2012.

But interest in US graduate schools has not always been high. In fact, in 2004, the number of graduate school applications from international students declined by 28 percent, and in 2005 that number declined by 5 percent.

From Which Countries Are Students Coming?

When the study began in 2004, the only areas that were included were the following:

• China
• South Korea
• India
• Turkey
• The Middle East

But in 2012, the survey included additional countries so that the trends involving more areas could be studied. The ten countries that are now studied send about 85 percent of international graduate students to the US, so we should now have a good picture of the trends of most international graduate school applications.

The findings show that in the last year, the number of graduate school applications from China rose by 18 percent. Next in line were Mexico and Brazil, with 17 percent and 14 percent, respectively.

Canada’s increase was 9 percent, while Europe’s increase sat at 7 percent. The Middle East’s graduate school applications increased by 6 percent, while India’s increased by just 2 percent.

Not all areas increased the number of graduate school applications to the US, though. For example, Africa’s interest decreased by 5 percent, while Taiwan’s decreased by 2 percent. Finally, South Korea sent 1 percent fewer graduate school applications to this country.

The Most Popular Fields of Study

According to the report, about 76 percent of all international graduate students at US schools are studying the following fields:

• Business
• Engineering
• Natural sciences

Far fewer international students in graduate school submitted an application to the social sciences, the arts or education. However, this year there was a 17 percent increase in graduate school applications submitted by international students to the education field, so interest in this has improved.

What Do the Statistics Mean?

Some experts claim that the increased number of graduate school applications to US schools indicates that the undergraduate colleges in other countries are doing a good job of inspiring students to seek additional education.

No matter why the increases are occurring, the numbers are good to know since they can help let colleges know where they should be focusing their efforts. When it is obvious which countries seem to be the most and least interested in graduate schools in the US, it is easier for colleges to focus their marketing efforts.

What do you think of these statistics on graduate school applications from international students?

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