The latest CGS International Graduate Admissions report shows that U.S. graduate schools continue to enjoy a strong pipeline of international students, with first-time enrollments up 10% for 2013.

The dramatic growth in enrollments from India in 2013 is reassuring to U.S. graduate schools, even as this year's growth in applications was the slower than in recent years.

The latest figures from the CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey show that Indian students entering American graduate schools this fall exploded, while the share of new graduate students from China increased only modestly.

The Wall Street Journal examines trends revealed in the 2013 CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey, Phase III, including the economic forces that may explain India's surprising growth.

India surges 40% while growth from China slows to 5%

Contact:
Julia Kent
jkent@cgs.nche.edu
(202) 223-3791

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) today reported a 10% increase in the first-time enrollment of international graduate students from 2012 to 2013, a growth that adds to 8% increases in this figure in each of the last two years. Total enrollment of international graduate students among responding institutions reached 220,000 in 2013. The findings were part of the 2013 CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey, Phase III: Final Offers of Admission and Enrollment.

Earlier phases of this year’s survey pointed to a slow-down in the growth of applications submitted by international students, which rose only 2% in 2013 and was the lowest increase in eight years.

Considering the slowed momentum in international applications, CGS President Debra W. Stewart noted that the strong growth in offers of admission and in enrollment reported by the Phase III study are encouraging signs to U.S. graduate schools. “There is no doubt that international students are eager to take advantage of the extraordinary quality of U.S. graduate institutions. The continued growth in first-time enrollment is a sign that decreasing applications have not yet damaged the strong pipeline of international graduate students.”

The survey results corroborate findings from another recent CGS report, Graduate Enrollment & Degrees: 2002-2012, which reported an 8% increase in first-time graduate enrollments among international students from fall 2011 to fall 2012 and a widening gap between U.S. and international enrollments in a number of key fields. International students now account for 15 percent of the nation’s total graduate enrollment.

Trends by country/region of origin

Substantial variations in growth were found among the sending countries and regions analyzed in the study:

• The overall trend in first-time enrollment of international graduate students for 2013 was driven in large part by students from India. The number of first-time enrollees from India increased 40% this year, substantially more than the 1% increase in 2012 and 2% increase in 2011.
• First-time enrollment among students from China increased 5% in 2013, a substantially smaller increase than the 22% surge in 2012 and 21% increase in 2011. This new finding marks the end of seven consecutive years of double-digit growth in first-time graduate enrollment of students from China. However, China continues to be the largest source of international graduate students, representing 34% of all international graduate students in the United States, according to survey respondents.
• First-time enrollment of students from Brazil increased 17% in 2013, following a 14% increase in 2012.
• By region, the first-time enrollment among students from the Middle East grew at 10%, a smaller increase than the 18% increase in 2012.
• First-time enrollment of South Korean students dipped 12% between 2012 and 2013. South Korea continues to be a leading source of international graduate students in the U.S., behind only China and India.  
• According to survey respondents, students from Europe constitute 7% of all first-time enrollments among international students in 2013, while students from Africa constitute 3%, and students from the Middle East constitute 6%.

Commenting on the trends in sending countries, Dr. Stewart said that it will be particularly important to monitor the enrollment patterns of students from the countries that send the largest number of international students to U.S. graduate schools—China, India, and South Korea. “While the substantial increase in first-time enrollments of Indian students is positive, the fluctuation in India enrollment in recent years makes it difficult to confirm a definite trend. Taken with slowed growth in first-time enrollments from China, and the persistent declines in first-time enrollments of South Korean students, I don’t think we can count on any single country to sustain the strong participation of international students that U.S. graduate schools have enjoyed in the past.”

Trends by broad field of study

International graduate students continue to enroll in fields that have been traditionally popular among this population. The two most popular fields among international students are physical and earth sciences, which includes mathematics and computer sciences, and engineering: together they comprised 47 percent of all international graduate student enrollment in 2013, according to survey respondents. Changes in first-time enrollment by field are shown in the table below.

*includes Mathematics and Computer Sciences

Trends by location of study and institution type

International first-time graduate enrollment increased at public institutions (11%) as well as private, not-for-profit institutions (8%) in 2013. All four major regions of the United States saw growth in first-time graduate enrollment in 2013, with increases of 17% in the West, 12% in the Midwest, 9% in the Northeast, and 7% in the South.

Institutions awarding larger numbers of graduate degrees to international students were less likely to experience increases in international first-time graduate enrollment in 2013 than institutions awarding smaller numbers of graduate degrees to international students. This is a reversal from 2012, in which first-time enrollment among international graduate students was larger at institutions awarding larger numbers of graduate degrees to international students than institutions awarding smaller numbers of graduate degrees to international students. First-time enrollment increased an average of 9% at the responding institutions among the 100 largest in terms of graduate degrees awarded to international students, compared with a 14% average increase at the institutions outside the largest 100.

About the report

Findings from the 2013 CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey, Phase III: Final Offers of Admission and Enrollment is based on the third phase of a three-part annual survey of international graduate student applications, admissions, and enrollment among U.S. member institutions. The survey had a response rate of 56%, including 76 of the 100 institutions that award the largest number of graduate degrees to international students. The report is posted at http://www.cgsnet.org/benchmarking/international-graduate-admissions-survey. Overall, the 285 institutions responding to the Phase III survey conferred 66% of the approximately 103,000 graduate degrees awarded to international students in the United States in 2010/11.

The University of North Carolina student newspaper notes participation by CGS in UNC's first Graduate Education Summit. At the event, panelists discussed the need to make graduate education and research a high priority for public policymakers.

Attitudes are changing toward PhD career paths outside academe, notes CGS President Debra W. Stewart in the New York Times.

Highlights of the Professional Science Masters (PSM) Student Outcomes survey show that recent graduates from PSM programs continue to enjoy strong returns on their educational investments.

Survey of recent alumni reveals strong income and employment results

Contact:
Julia Kent
jkent@cgs.nche.edu
(202) 223-3791

Washington, DC – Recent graduates of Professional Science Master’s (PSM) degree programs are reporting strong rates of employment and high income levels, according to the results of the third annual PSM Student Outcomes Survey released by the Council of Graduate Schools (CGS). The report tracks initial hiring trends and perceived satisfaction among graduates of PSM degree programs between 2010 and 2013. The study was supported with funding from the Sloan Foundation.

The PSM is an innovative graduate degree designed to allow students to pursue advanced training in science or mathematics, while simultaneously developing workplace skills highly valued by employers. PSM programs prepare graduates for careers in business, government, and non-profit organizations, combining rigorous study in science and/or mathematics with coursework in management, policy, law and related fields. Most PSM programs require a final project or team experience, as well as a “real-world” internship in a business or public sector enterprise.

According to the survey, 78 percent of respondents who graduated during the 2012-13 academic year were employed during the time at which the survey was conducted, despite beginning their careers in a challenging job market. The employment rate was even stronger for those who completed PSM degrees earlier in the study period: 91 percent of 2010-11 graduates and 88 percent of 2011-12 graduates were employed.  

Among the respondents who graduated during the 2012-13 academic year and were employed at the time of the survey, 91 percent were working in a job that is closely or somewhat related to their field of study. Employed respondents were overwhelmingly working in full-time positions (95%) as opposed to part-time (5%).   

Two-thirds (68%) of PSM graduates who were working full-time reported earning above $50,000 a year, and 72 percent of all survey respondents are very satisfied or generally satisfied with the post-graduation employment prospects provided by their PSM degree.

According to CGS President Debra W. Stewart, these high returns on students’ educational investment are a hallmark of PSM programs. “We continue to see outstanding prospects for new PSM graduates as they begin their careers. The real-world experience they gained in applied professional settings during their academic program gives PSM students a distinct advantage in the job market.” Dr. Stewart added, “The fact that PSM graduates have shown strong employment outcomes for each year of this three-year study is encouraging, because it shows that employers are consistently recognizing the value of these newly-minted degree holders.”

The survey report includes data on the reasons students enrolled in PSM programs, their experiences and satisfaction with them, their current employment status, salaries, and the perceived value of a PSM degree. Key findings include:
 

• 83% of 2012-13 PSM graduates were very satisfied or generally satisfied with the distinctive nature/reputation of the program and 82% were very satisfied or generally satisfied with the quality of their non-scientific and/or mathematical professional training (a key element of PSM degrees).
• Among 2012-13 PSM graduates who were employed, 66% were working in business/industry (including start-ups), about 11% were working in government, 9% in academia, 8% in non-profit organizations, and 6% were working in other fields, including research and health care.
• Among 2012-13 PSM graduates in new jobs, 19% secured that employment because of their PSM internship.
• Two attributes of PSM programs that stood out as being of particularly high value to recent graduates were the internships and ‘real world’ experiences, and the quality of scientific and/or mathematical training.

Created in 1997 with support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, PSM programs are offered at 137 institutions of higher education, as of August 2013. Well over 5,000 PSM degrees have been conferred since the program’s inception. The PSM degree model has been so successful that it was included in the America COMPETES Act, allowing institutions the opportunity to use federal funds to support a PSM program.

The full report, Outcomes for PSM Alumni 2012/13, is available here. More information about the PSM can be found at http://sciencemasters.com.

CGS President Debra W. Stewart speaks with the Chronicle of Higher Education on her 13 years at CGS, her decision to step down in 2014, and her plans for future research in graduate education.