Students

Students is a data page on the Immigration desk of Glassbox Auditing. International students at U.S. colleges, what they spend here (counted as U.S. service exports), the states with the most, and how the U.S. compares with other countries. Their tuition supports university budgets, and many stay on to work.

Last updated: 30 Dec 2025.

What is the latest reading?

International (nonresident) college students: 1.1M students as of 2024, +163.4% since 1990. Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).

What is on this page today?

Foreign students' spending in the U.S.: $56B in 2025, +4% on 2024 — 4.5% of all U.S. service exports · tuition and living costs, counted as exports (BEA, 30 Dec 2025)
International college students: 1,050,227 in fall 2024, +2% on 2023 — 1,024,844 in 2023 (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
New York: 116,595 international college students in fall 2024, +1% on 2023 — 10.0% of the state's college students · students on temporary visas (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
California: 114,995 international college students in fall 2024, -1% on 2023 — 4.2% of the state's college students · students on temporary visas (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
Texas: 78,383 international college students in fall 2024, +3% on 2023 — 4.6% of the state's college students · students on temporary visas (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
Massachusetts: 68,614 international college students in fall 2024, -2% on 2023 — 14.1% of the state's college students · students on temporary visas (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
Florida: 59,574 international college students in fall 2024, +13% on 2023 — 5.3% of the state's college students · students on temporary visas (IPEDS fall enrollment, 30 Oct 2024)
F-1 student-visa entries: 1.82 million in fiscal 2024, +12% on 2023 — arrivals on academic student visas · entries, not people (DHS Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, 29 Sep 2024)

Where does the data come from?

Items on this page come from BEA; IPEDS fall enrollment; DHS Yearbook of Immigration Statistics. Each item links to its own source. All sources, how items are checked.

What does this page lead to?

Universities (Education): International students often pay full tuition, so their enrolment supports universities' tuition revenue, most at private research universities and large public flagships. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
Degrees & Colleges (Education): Foreign students earn a large share of U.S. master's and doctoral degrees in computer science and engineering, so their enrolment moves those completion counts. (moves the same way; years; sector scale) Source: IPEDS completions via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
Business Activity (Macro): Foreign students' tuition and living costs count as U.S. service exports, tens of billions of dollars a year, which narrows the trade deficit. (moves the same way; yearly; economy scale) Source: BEA international services: education-related travel.
H-1B & Talent (Immigration): Many H-1B workers are former foreign students who switched after graduating, often after a year or more of Optional Practical Training, so student numbers feed the H-1B pipeline. (moves the same way; 1-3 years; sector scale) Source: USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub.
Credit & Housing (Macro): Students rent near campus, so a drop in foreign enrolment tends to soften rental demand in college towns. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
Education Compared (Education): Countries compete for foreign students (the U.K., Canada and Australia most); tighter U.S. visa rules, or caps abroad, shift where students enrol. (either way, depending on the cause; years; global scale) Source: OECD Education at a Glance (CC BY 4.0).
US Map (Domestic Intelligence): States with the most foreign students (California, New York, Texas, Massachusetts) gain the most from their spending on tuition, rent and living costs. (moves the same way; months; economy scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).

What feeds this page?

Universities (Education): Leading universities enrol many international students, especially in graduate programs, so their admissions set much of the foreign-student flow. (moves the same way; months; sector scale) Source: IPEDS fall enrollment via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal (ODC-By).
Education Compared (Education): Where a country's universities stand and what they charge shape where foreign students go; the U.S. hosts the most, ahead of the U.K., Canada and Australia. (either way, depending on the cause; years; global scale) Source: OECD Education at a Glance (CC BY 4.0).