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

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) is reporting that the number of applications from prospective international students to U.S. graduate schools increased a mere 1% in 2013, following a 9% gain in 2012 and an 11% increase in 2011.

The initial snapshot of international graduate applications for fall 2013, released today, marks the smallest growth in applications over the past eight years. The slowdown in international applications was driven primarily by the decline in applications from China that was offset, in part, by an increase in applications from India. Chinese students constitute roughly one-third of all international graduate students in the United States, and their large numbers have helped to mitigate recent declines in first-time enrollment among all graduate students attending U.S.-based institutions.

The survey collects data on all international graduate applications, and detailed information on international applications from seven countries (China, India, South Korea, Taiwan, Canada, Mexico, and Brazil) and three regions (the Middle East, Africa and Europe). China, India, South Korea, Taiwan and Canada are the top five countries of origin for international graduate students in the United States. Altogether, the seven countries and three regions highlighted in the CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey are home countries to about 86% of all international graduate students in the United States.

This reduced growth in overall international applications was primarily the result of the five percent decline in applications from China, the source country of 29% of international graduate students at U.S. institutions. Chinese applicant declines were offset by a 20% increase in applications from India, which accounts for 20% of all international graduate students at U.S. institutions. Applications from Brazil, having increased by 9% in 2012, grew markedly this year, by 24%. Applications in 2013 also increased from Africa (6%), which saw a 3% decline last year, and the Middle East (2%), whose increase follows a more substantial jump of 11% last year. Applications across the other countries and regions covered by this survey (i.e., South Korea, Taiwan, Canada, Mexico, and Europe) decreased between fall 2012 and fall 2013. 

Just over half (52%) of institutions reported an increase in applications over last year with an average increase of 9% at these institutions, while 48% of responding institutions reported a decrease, averaging 7%. 

“The overall slowed growth in international applications merits serious attention from policymakers as well as universities,” said CGS President Debra W. Stewart. “While the large increases in applications from India and Brazil are encouraging, the decrease in Chinese applicants needs attention. As a country, we simply can’t afford to maintain obstacles to international graduate study, especially as other countries are decreasing these barriers for highly qualified students.”

Application trends by field of study

Increases in applications were minimal (1% to 4%) in all broad fields, with the exception of education and the life sciences, which saw declines (3% and 7%, respectively). The three most popular fields of study—engineering, physical and earth sciences, and business—experienced increases in international applications of 2% to 3%. The arts and humanities and social sciences and psychology, fields in which few international students enroll, saw the largest increases in applications at 4%.

Application trends by institutional characteristics

CGS also analyzed changes in international applications by various institutional characteristics. On average, applications increased in public institutions (3%), but declined at private, not-for-profit institutions (-4%) in 2013. Additionally, applications from prospective international graduate students increased 18% on average at master’s-focused institutions in 2013, a sharp jump from the 5% decline that occurred in 2012, while international applications remained flat at doctoral institutions in 2013, following a 10% increase in 2012.

Application trends by region

Applications from international students increased minimally in all regions of the U.S., except for the Northeast. Increases were largest in the West (2%) and South (2%), while the Midwest increased only by 1%, and the Northeast declined by 1%.

About the report

Findings from the 2013 CGS International Graduate Admissions Survey, Phase I: Applications is based on the first phase of a three-part annual survey of international graduate student applications, admissions, and enrollment among CGS U.S. member institutions. The analysis includes responses from 276 schools, including 80% of the 25 institutions that award the largest number of degrees to international graduate students, and 88% of the top 50 institutions. Collectively, the 276 respondents to this year’s survey award about 64% of the degrees granted to international graduate students in the U.S.  The report is available at www.cgsnet.org.

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Washington, DC, and New York, NY– The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS), the only national association of universities devoted to graduate education and research, and TIAA‐CREF, a leading financial services provider, today rolled out the first phase of a three‐year best practice program designed to improve the financial acumen of graduate and undergraduate students, including debt management skills. Marking the launch of the project announced last fall, CGS released a Request for Proposals (RFP) to all U.S.‐based CGS member institutions.

Through the RFP process, universities and colleges will compete for funding to design financial education programs that prepare students to play an active role in managing their personal finances and make better and more informed decisions about saving, spending, investing and borrowing. Together with CGS and TIAA‐CREF, the selected institutions will develop, assess, promote and share tools and resources for enhancing student financial literacy.

The program will address the diverse needs of students while considering factors such as their socioeconomic backgrounds, fields of study, degree levels and chosen career pathways, each of which has significant financial ramifications. It will also provide students with basic financial education skills to help them plan how to fund their college educations and align students with career paths that could ultimately enable them to repay their college loans. Tools and resources will be made available to all CGS member institutions over the course of the three‐year project, and CGS will publish a best practice guide at the end of the three years.

“Student loan debt is a complex problem, and there are no easy solutions. But we know that increased financial education must be part of the solution,” said Debra W. Stewart, president of CGS. “Today’s students are financially dissimilar to any previous generation. As family income has dropped and public funding for student support has declined, the costs associated with higher education have risen. At both the graduate and undergraduate levels, students carry unprecedented debt burdens. This collaboration among CGS, TIAA‐CREF and universities and colleges aims to confront head on the growing student debt crisis.”

Starting this spring, a selection committee will begin the review process, evaluating proposals based on various criteria, including institutional commitment, the potential of the project to successfully engage students and the quality of the institution’s action plan. All U.S. CGS member institutions are eligible to apply for awards. Priority will be given to proposals from institutions that can provide evidence of the project’s potential to have a direct impact on a significant number of graduate and undergraduate students. Institutions not selected to receive awards will be invited to participate as program affiliates. Affiliate institutions will have access to tools and resources developed by the program and will be invited to share information about their activities.

Applications must be received by CGS no later than May 31, 2013. Awards will be announced by June 30, 2013, for projects that will be implemented in fall 2013 and conclude by June 30, 2015.

More information is available on the CGS website, www.cgsnet.org.

Contacts: Julia Kent, CGS: (202) 223‐3791 / jkent@cgs.nche.edu
John McCool, TIAA‐CREF: (888) 200‐4062 / media@tiaa‐cref.org

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

Washington, DC — Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) President Debra W. Stewart today released the following statement in response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address on February 12, 2013. CGS is the only national organization dedicated solely to the advancement of graduate education and research. The organization draws its institutional members from colleges and universities significantly engaged in graduate education, research, and scholarship culminating in the award of the master's or doctoral degree.

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) applauds President Obama’s continued focus on increasing American competitiveness in the world economy and appreciates the recognition that access to higher education will play a major role in that effort.

CGS stands strongly behind the President’s commitment to strengthen our economy through investments in research and innovation, expanded access to advanced education opportunities, and increased support for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) training. To summarize the President’s point, “To grow our middle class, our citizens must have access to the education and training that today’s jobs require.”

While calling for investments in these critical areas, the President also warned of the impact of looming sequester cuts on our recovering economy and on our ability to compete globally. CGS shares the President’s concerns when he said, “These sudden, harsh, arbitrary cuts would … devastate priorities like education, energy, and medical research. They would certainly slow our recovery, and cost us hundreds of thousands of jobs.”

CGS also supports the President’s call for immigration reform and urges the Administration and Congress to recognize the importance of retaining talented international students and their role in keeping our economy competitive. To harness this talent and maximize our economy’s dynamism, CGS calls on the Administration and Congress to reduce visa barriers that discourage the most talented international students from attending U.S. graduate schools and creating jobs and businesses after they graduate.

With bipartisan talks on Capitol Hill already underway, President Obama spoke of the broader support for reform by stating, “Our economy is stronger when we harness the talents and ingenuity of striving, hopeful immigrants. And right now, leaders from the business, labor, law enforcement, and faith communities all agree that the time has come to pass comprehensive immigration reform.”

Recent research on skilled immigration and innovation shows that domestic as well as international students make a significant, positive impact on U.S. university research productivity (Stuen et. al). Research from the fall of 2011, the most recent year for which data are available, indicate that domestic enrollment is now in a second year of decline, with decreases of first-time domestic enrollment in fields key to U.S. innovation: Engineering, Biological Sciences, Mathematics and Computer Science. With that in mind, CGS urges the President to support policies that seek to bolster enrollment for graduate education for both foreign and domestic talent. As other countries have already recognized through their investments in graduate education, innovation will require highly trained US citizens as well as foreign talent. Shrinking university budgets and rising student debt loads conspire to deny US employers access to this domestic talent.

As President Obama seeks to realize his most ambitious goals for our nation in his second term, CGS looks forward to playing a vital role in ensuring U.S. graduate schools are promoting a creative, innovative workforce that helps ready our country to meet the challenges of the 21st century global economy.

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

Washington, D.C. (February 7, 2013) – The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) today released the results of its third annual Professional Science Master’s Enrollment and Degrees Survey documenting applications, enrollments, and degrees awarded in Professional Science Master’s (PSM) programs. 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.

Total Enrollment:

• Total enrollment in PSM programs topped 5,800 students in 2012.
• Total enrollment increased by 22% overall between 2010 and 2012 and by 10% at the PSM programs that responded to the 2010, 2011, and the 2012 surveys.
• Men comprised 55% of all PSM students and women made up 45%.
• 15% of total PSM students enrolled in U.S.-based institutions were temporary residents.
• Among U.S. citizens and permanent residents, 25% of enrollees in the fall of 2012 were underrepresented minorities.
• Total PSM enrollment in fall 2012 was dominated by four fields of study: computer/information sciences (21%), biotechnology (16%), environmental sciences and natural resources (14%), or mathematics and statistics (14%).

• Just over 1,750 PSM degrees were awarded in academic year 2011/12.
• 52% of PSM degrees awarded by respondents in academic year 2011/12 were awarded to men and 48% to women.
• 17% of graduates of U.S.-based PSM programs were international students.
• Among U.S. citizens and permanent residents, 23% of PSM graduates in 2011/12 were underrepresented minorities.
• Biotechnology and computer/information sciences awarded 42% of all PSM degrees awarded: 22% and 20%, respectively.
• Men earned the majority of the PSM degrees awarded in chemistry and physics, geosciences and GIS, other interdisciplinary sciences, bioinformatics/computational biology, and mathematics and statistics.
• Women earned the majority of the degrees granted in medical-related sciences, biology/biotechnology, and “other interdisciplinary” fields.

The report is available in pdf format at cgsnet.org and at sciencemasters.com.