As HEIs across the US celebrate International Education Week (IEW) in tandem with digesting the new Open Doors data, let’s recall where we have been this past year. Nearly 60% of prospective international students considering Canada, the US, the UK, or Australia reported that they had reconsidered where to study based on how different governments handled the pandemic according to a recent study from ApplyBoard. Academic program changes shifted in 2020, with over 40% of users on the ApplyBoard Platform searching for business, management, and economics programs. By comparison, there was a marked increase in searches for applied and general science programs (+5%) and health science programs (+4%). Worldwide demand for healthcare workers and health-based technologies spiked during the pandemic, fueling these changes, and so students are responding to this demand as they look to secure more stable career options.
The next IEM blog entry will begin to explore each of the past year’s trends below, in addition to unpacking the most recent data for Fall 2022. Trend highlights include:
- Market shifts based on ESL availability and opportunities to study in more countries
- Disparity between developed and developing nations
- Increased competition from other destination markets
- Students’ changing educational expectations
- Establishment of micro-campuses by foreign higher education providers
- Increasing diversity of academic pathways
- Focus on a full international experience
- Changing relationships with China and India, and other geopolitical powers
- Capacity for Student Mobility
- Coordinating internationalization, ranking and sustainable practices
- Centralized internationalization efforts
- Virtual internationalization
The next entry will explore highlights from Open Doors 2022 and other relevant survey data. Gateway’s IEM team is poised to support institutions in these and other internationalization efforts; strategic planning, marketing, pathway programs, optimizing processes and providing international student services. Contact us today!