The number of Indian students in the U.S. increased from 1.33 lakhs in 2014-15 to 3.32 lakhs in 2023-24, a 2.5-fold increase. Close to 80% of the Indian students are in 14 states of the U.S. with Texas leading the pack, home to 11.8% Indian students in 2023-24. Further, Indian students account for more than 40% of international students in Missouri, Texas, Arizona, and New Jersey.
The Open Doors Report on International Education Exchange is an annual survey that provides comprehensive data on international students in the U.S. Funded by the U.S. Department of State, the report covers key details such as students’ countries of origin, financial support sources, fields of study, host institutions, and academic levels. The data is used by U.S. embassies, government departments, and policy organizations for informed decision-making. The report for 2024 was released recently on 18 November 2024 during International Education Week, marking the 75th anniversary of the Open Doors report.
In the previous story, it was observed that the United States was a popular destination for international students, with over 1.12 million enrolments in the 2023-24 academic year. This was a significant increase compared to 1949-50, and an all-time high. The main reasons included the country’s well-known universities, a wide range of study programs, and work opportunities like Optional Practical Training (OPT), among others. India and China together made up more than half of the international student population.
The report also showed that more students chose STEM courses, especially math and computer science. These fields made up over half of all international enrolments, with Indian students leading the numbers. Graduate programs and OPT participation increased after the pandemic, while undergraduate enrolments stayed steady.
Students relied less on foreign government funding and more on personal or job-related funding. Most international students came from Asia, though the number of students from China and Saudi Arabia had declined. These trends explained why the US remained a top choice for Indian students.
Datasets based on the Open Doors report on Indian Students studying in U.S. and International Students studying in U.S. are available on Dataful.
In this story, we look at the trends related to the Indian students’ choice of U.S. states. These trends are an indication of the preferences of Indian students among the different states. These choices may be influenced by factors such as affordability, academic opportunities, the presence of Indian students & diaspora, and job prospects among others.
Number of Indian students in US increased more than two-fold in last decade
The number of Indian students in the U.S. increased from 1.33 lakhs in 2014-15 to 3.32 lakhs in 2023-24, a 2.5-fold increase. For the first time since 2009, India had more students in the U.S. than China, with a 23% increase in 2023-24. Except during the COVID-19 outbreak year of 2020-21, the number of Indian students in the U.S. has always been on the rise over the years. The number of Indian students also quickly recovered post-pandemic in 2021-22, unlike some other countries.
The Open Doors reports over the years provide data on the share of international students from the top five countries of origin in the 15 or 20 US states hosting the most international students between 2014-15 and 2019-20. However, from 2020-21 onwards, data is available for all US states. Using this information and the total number of international students in each state, the number of Indian students in these states has been calculated for analysis. Using this number of Indian students, we calculated the share of total Indian students in each state out of the total number of Indian students in the U.S.
8 in 10 Indian students are in 14 states of the US, Most in Texas
A total of 14 major states have been considered for analysing the trend in the last decade. These 14 states together accounted for 73.8% of the Indian students in the U.S. in 2014-15, which increased to 77.7% in 2023-24, indicating a growing concentration in these states compared to others. In other words, roughly 8 in 10 Indian students were in these 14 states of the total 50 states and 5 major territories of the U.S.
Among these, Texas had the highest share of Indian students in 2023-24, at about 11.8%, followed by New York with 9.8%. Though the share seems high, it has dropped since 2014-15. Texas hosted 13.4% of Indian students back in 2014-15, which declined over the years to 8.8% in 2020-21. However, since then, the share has risen. Meanwhile, 11.2% of Indian students were in New York in 2021-22 which dropped to 10.1% in 2022-23 and even further in 2023-24 to 9.8%. This is the first time that the share of Indian students in New York has fallen below 10% in the last decade.
Another popular state for Indian students is California. From 8.5% in 2014-15, the share rose to 11.2% in 2015-16 and plateaued until 2020-21. Since then, the share has continuously dropped and touched 8.5% again in 2023-24.
Arizona and Massachusetts recorded an increase in the share of Indian students from 2014-15 to 2022-23 and a marginal decline in 2023-24. At the same time, Michigan and Missouri recorded an increase in the share of Indian students throughout the decade, despite there being a small decline around the COVID-19 years.
Pennsylvania recorded a drop in share by 1.2 percentage points in the last decade while the remaining 6 states, viz; Florida, Georgia, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, and Illinois did not record any significant change in the share of Indian students.
Overall, the trend reveals that the spread of Indian students is more concentrated in specific regions like the South (Texas, Florida, and Georgia), Northeast (New York and Massachusetts), and the West (California and Arizona), with the shares fluctuating in most of the states.
Indian students account for more than 40% of Intl students in Missouri, Texas, Arizona, and New Jersey
In 2014-15, Indian students made up 13.6% of all international students in the US, which more than doubled to 29.4% in 2023-24. However, the share of Indian students among international students varies significantly at the state level.
There has been an increase in the share of Indian students across all states, similar to the national trend. However, in states like Arizona, New Jersey, and Texas, the share has nearly doubled over the decade, reaching more than 40% in 2023-24. In Missouri, Indian students accounted for 57% of all international students in 2023-24, despite a decline during the COVID-19 years. Meanwhile, in California and Florida, the share of Indian students has increased, but it remains around 20% of all international students.
This trend suggests that Indian students are increasingly dominating the international student population in certain states, particularly in Arizona, New Jersey, Texas, and Missouri. In contrast, the share is more stable in states like California and Florida, as these states seem to be attracting a more diverse mix of international students.
On the whole, Indian students have become a major presence in the US, with their numbers steadily growing over the years and concentration increasing in each state.
