Students From Overseas Flock to U.S. Colleges

A record 356,200 foreign students hit the books in American colleges last year and, for the first time, more than half, 180,540, came from Asian nations.

The students came from Taiwan, Korea, China and Japan, a report funded with support from the U.S. Information Agency showed.

Despite their record numbers, foreign students have remained relatively constant at 2.7% to 2.8% of total college enrollment in America throughout the 1980s, said the report, titled “Open Doors: 1987-88.”

Nearly half are seeking graduate degrees, and the most popular fields are engineering, business-management, math-computer sciences and physical-life sciences--in that order, the report said.

The imports include 241,300 males and 114,890 females from 186 nations and places of origin.

The report, called “Open Doors: 1987-88,” will be published this month by the Institute of International Education, the nation’s largest higher educational exchange agency.

Chinese students have been the fastest-growing group in the foreign student ranks for five consecutive years, institute President Richard Krasno said.

Need, Capacity Cited

He said the top six places of origin are all in Asia, led again by Taiwan with 26,660, up 3.9% from the previous year.

The People’s Republic of China with 25,200, up 26%, was second--followed by India, 21,010, up 14.5%; Korea, 20,520, up 2.9%; Malaysia, 19,480, down 10%, and Japan, 18,050, up 19.8%.

“Significant growth in numbers from China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and India resulted in a record high of some 180,500 South and East Asian students in 1987-88--a 6% increase over the previous year,” Krasno said.

“Economic strength has given these countries both the need for advanced training through U.S. higher education--and the capacity to afford it.”

Other highlights:

- Leading places of origin, after the top six cited above: Canada, 15,690, down 0.1%; Hong Kong, 10,650, down 3.3%; Iran, 10,420, down 14.8%, and Indonesia, down 2.5%.

- World regions: Asia, 180,540, up 5.8%; Latin America, 44,550, up 2.5%; Middle East, 43,640, down 7.1%; Europe, 38,820, up 7.4%; Africa, 28,450, down 9.9%; North America, 16,370, up 0.4%, and Oceania, 3,620, down 14.4%.

- Enrolling large numbers: schools in California, 49,197; New York, 34,693; Texas, 23,714; Massachusetts, 18,946; Florida, 18,271; Illinois, 15,619; Pennsylvania, 13,460; Ohio, 13,142; Michigan, 12,171, and the District of Columbia, 9,298.

- Institutions with many imported students: Miami-Dade Community College, 5,148; USC, 3,767; University of Texas at Austin, 3,135; University of Wisconsin at Madison, 2,825; UCLA, 2,765; Ohio State University, Columbus, 2,756; Boston University, 2,641; University of Arizona, 2,599; University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 2,514, and Columbia University, 2,474.

- Seventy-nine colleges with 1,000 or more foreign students accounted for 40% of the national total. However, 2,552 of the 2,878 accredited U.S. colleges and universities reported foreign students enrolled--”evidence of their widespread distribution throughout American schools.”