Welcome to Dale's Digest, a curated newsletter from Foreign Credentials Service of America (FCSA). Below are a collection of articles from reliable sources regarding news and trends in international enrollment.
The much-feared slide in international enrollments began before President Trump moved back into the White House.
The number of new international students coming to the United States dropped 7 percent last fall, according to the Institute of International Education’s annual “Open Doors” report released today. Declining interest in master’s and professional programs precipitated the fall of 2024 slowdown.
The slump is going to get much worse. A preliminary snapshot survey conducted by IIE and other global-education groups found:
New international enrollments plummeted another 17 percent this fall, as shown in the chart below.
That’s bad news for colleges as they stare down a demographic cliff domestically.
Foreign students are 6 percent of the college population but typically pay higher tuition rates and cover the full costs of their education themselves.
Engineering, computer science, and business programs could take a hit because many of their students come from overseas, particularly at the master’s level.
Nor is a downturn great for the nation’s economy. International students had a $43-billion impact in 2024, estimates NAFSA: Association of International Educators. While few Americans think this way, college degrees are one of the country’s top exports.
A post-Covid boom now looks like a bubble. Students deferred acceptances and postponed applications while border and health restrictions stopped global travel. As a result, there was an enormous amount of pent-up demand. Enrollments shot up by 80 percent in 2021.
The influx petered out. After a 14-percent increase in 2022, the number of new students was essentially flat in 2023.
But the bubble is still making its way through the system, with many in the big post-Covid cohorts still completing their degrees. Overall enrollments were up by 5 percent, to 1.2 million, in 2024.
Also contributing to the overall increase: Enrollments grew at the bachelor’s and doctoral levels, and there was a big spike in recent graduates staying in the United States to work after they earn their degrees. New graduates are included in the count because they’re on student visas.
The bigger picture: Don’t dismiss the adverse effects of Trump administration policies like visa revocations or a foreign-student cap. But they’re compounding existing international-enrollment challenges, not the sole cause.
Fall 2025 Snapshot Reveals Continued, Concerning Decline in New International Student Enrollment at U.S. Universities
On Monday, November 17, the Institute of International Education (IIE) released its annual Open Doors report and Fall 2025 Snapshot on International Student Enrollment. These reports provide the latest data on international students in the United States for the 2024–25 and 2025–26 academic years and U.S. students studying abroad for the 2023–24 academic year. On the same day, NAFSA released its annual analysis of international student contributions to the U.S. economy.
During the 2025–26 academic year, new international student enrollment at U.S. universities has declined by 17 percent, contributing to a 7 percent decline in overall enrollment, excluding students who are participating in the Optional Practical Training (OPT).
The inclusion of OPT students in the overall data is important to note, since these students are not currently on campuses. When the OPT number is included in the overall number, it conceals the true extent of the decline in new and overall enrollment.
NAFSA's economic analysis of the new data estimates that the decline in the new enrollment translates to a $1.1 billion decrease in international student contributions to the U.S. economy and almost 23,000 fewer jobs supported.
Respondents to the snapshot survey cited visa application concerns and travel restrictions as the top contributing factors to the decline. The snapshot also shows that 72 percent of institutions are offering international students deferrals to spring 2026, and 56 percent are offering deferrals to fall 2026.
NAFSA Analysis: International Students Contribute $42.9 Billion to U.S. Economy, Marking $1 Billion Decline from Previous Year
During the 2024–25 academic year, international students and their families contributed $42.9 billion to the U.S. economy, marking a decrease of almost $1 billion (or 2.1 percent) from the previous academic year. This is according to new data and analysis released by NAFSA on Monday, in partnership with JB International.
NAFSA also estimates that 355,736 jobs were created or supported during this time, meaning for every three international students, one U.S. job was created or supported in the following sectors: higher education, accommodation, dining, retail, transportation, telecommunications, and health insurance. This represents a decrease of 22,439 jobs (or 5.9 percent) from the previous academic year.
After three consecutive years of recorded growth, these are the first declines since the COVID-19 pandemic.
