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SEVIS: India adds 44,715 students to US roster
A 11.8 percent increase in 2024 in Indian students pushes Asia to lead in international student numbers.
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Pranavi Sharma - Fri, 06, Jun 2025
- 01:36 EDT
- 107
Representative Image. / Pexels
Fueled by a sharp 11.8 percent increase in Indian student enrollments, Asia emerged as the top continent of origin for international students in the United States in 2024, according to the latest 'SEVIS by the Numbers' report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The report, released by the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), showed that the number of SEVIS records for Indian students rose by 44,715 in 2024 over the previous year — the highest increase among all nationalities.
India now leads all countries with 422,335 active student records in 2024, surpassing China, which reported 329,541 student records, a slight drop of 824 from 2023.
Asia accounted for 71.7 percent of all active foreign student records in the U.S., with India and China alone contributing to over 47.5 percent of that number. The overall foreign student population grew by 5.3 percent from 2023, reaching 1,582,808 active F-1 and M-1 student records.
Indian students also played a major role in post-graduation employment. Nearly half (48 percent) of all foreign students participating in the STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension were from India. In total, 165,524 foreign students took part in STEM OPT in 2024.
The majority of Indian students pursued master’s and doctoral degrees, with SEVIS data showing a 9.7 percent increase in master’s degree seekers and a 4.1 percent rise in doctoral candidates across nationalities. In total, 667,622 students enrolled in master’s programs, and 214,824 pursued doctoral degrees.
Computer Science remained the most popular major among international students, with 118,137 active records. Other top choices included Business Administration, Electrical Engineering, and Information Technology — fields in which Indian students have historically shown strong interest.
The report also noted a continued increase in employment authorization for international students. A total of 194,554 students were granted OPT in 2024, a 21.1 percent increase from the previous year, and 95,384 were authorized under STEM OPT — a 54 percent jump.
California remained the most popular state for international students, hosting 237,763 foreign student records. The South saw the highest regional growth at 8.5 percent, followed by the Midwest and Northeast.
In 2024, Indian students made up 38 percent female and 62 percent male enrollment, reflecting broader gender trends among international student populations.
Also read: Skipping classes may cost visa: US warns Indian students
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