According to Open Doors 2011, the annual report on international academic mobility published by the Institute of International Education (IIE) with support from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Department of State, the number of Mauritian students enrolled in U.S. institutions of higher education in 2010/11 increased from 210 to 247, that is a 3% increase compared to the previous year. The number of Mauritian students in the U.S. has thus remained almost steady throughout the past decade, after a small drop from 2002 to 2006.

This year’s Open Doors report shows that the total number of international students at colleges and universities in the United States increased by 5 percent to 723,277 during the 2010/11 academic year. This represents a record high number of international students in the United States. Increased numbers of students from China, particularly at the undergraduate level, largely accounts for the growth this past year. Chinese student enrollment in the United States rose to a total of nearly 158,000 students, or nearly 22 percent of the total international student population, making China the leading sending country for the 2nd year in a row.

Students from India, the second largest international cohort in the United States, decreased by one percent to a total of nearly 104,000. Yet, India, as a destination for U.S. students study abroad, increased 44.4 percent. While slightly declining in numbers, students from India still represent 14 percent of all international students in U.S. higher education, with tens of thousands more students from India in U.S. higher education than in any other host country. South Korea is the third leading place of origin, with more than 73,000 students, increasing by two percent and making up 10 percent of the total. Together, the top three sending countries – China, India and South Korea – comprise nearly half (46 percent) of the total international enrollments in U.S. higher education.

According to the U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Officer Vanessa Harper, “Many students from Mauritius want to study in the United States because of the quality and prestige associated with an American degree, but are often overwhelmed by the number of schools available, the cost, and the distance. The U.S. Embassy in Port Louis has an Educational Advisor and Study in the U.S. Advising Sessions to assist Mauritian students with what can seem like a daunting task. There is great access to comprehensive and accurate information about study in the U.S. through our EducationUSA advising office.”

According to Allan E. Goodman, President and CEO of the New York-based Institute of International Education, “The United States continues to host more international students than any other country in the world,” said Allan Goodman, President and CEO of the Institute of International Education. “Active engagement between U.S. and international students in American classrooms provides students with valuable skills that will enable them to collaborate across cultures and borders to address shared global challenges in the years ahead.”


The report also found notable increases in U.S. students going to study in many of the less traditional destinations. Fifteen of the top 25 destinations were outside of Western Europe and nineteen were countries where English is not a primary language. An increase of 44 percent in US students going to India brought that country up to the 14th leading destination, from number 21 in the prior year. Israel, Brazil and New Zealand also showed large percentage gains, all of them starting from small bases. Australia and Chile were the only countries in the top 25 which had double digit declines. Substantial increases were reported in U.S. students going to Egypt, which increased by 8 percent to 1,923, and Japan, which increased by 7 percent to 6,166, although these figures reported for 2009/10 would not reflect the more recent program disruptions in both countries due to political events in Egypt and the tsunami and earthquake in Japan in 2011.