Foreign Student Emigration to the United States: Pathways of Entry, Demographic Antecedents, and Origin-Country Contexts

Abstract

This study uses data from various sources to examine the determinants of trends in international student migration to the United States. Our results highlight the differential contributions to these trends made by various entry pathways. For example, we find that the overall growth was driven by students using visas that offered the least possibility of US employment following the completion of their studies. We also find that overall student migration trends were significantly affected by global demographic changes. For example, student emigration from Europe was negatively affected by declining fertility trends, percentage of youths, and youth population size. In Asia and Africa, contrasting demographic trends explained the substantial student migration increases observed from these regions. Increases in youth population size had a particularly positive effect on student migration in contexts of economic growth. Finally, the analysis finds a declining significance of English language contexts for fueling overall student migration trends.