Recovery in US Student Visa Holders in 2022

The SEVIS by the Numbers Report for 2022 shows that there were 1,362,157 active F-1 and M-1 students, an increase of more than 125,000 students over 2021 and the highest total since the pre-pandemic year of 2019, when 1,523,758 students were hosted.

Regions:

Asia was by far the largest source region and accounted for seven in 10 student visa holders in 2022 (70.4 per cent). However, the largest year-on-year regional growth came from South America (18.1 per cent), followed by Europe (17.3), Africa (17.1) and North America (10.3), while Asia’s increase was 7.7 per cent.

Source Markets:

China remained the largest source country with 324,196 active student visa holders, despite a 7.1 decrease compared with the previous year. In 2018, China had 478,732 active students in the USA.

However, second-placed India recorded substantial growth of 27.6 per cent to 297,151 students in 2022, an additional 65,000 students year-on-year.

The top five was completed by Korea (62,617 students, +6.5 per cent); Canada (41,392, +10.5); and Brazil (37.904, +13). Among the top 10 markets, there were double-digit increases from Japan (31.6 per cent) and Nigeria (18.6).

Elsewhere, there was strong growth from a number of other markets, including Denmark (43), Germany (37.2), Norway (37.2) and Switzerland (33.6) in Europe. Colombia (39.8), Peru (34) and Argentina (37) were large increasing countries in Latin America, while Uzbekistan (70.7) and Kyrgyzstan (62.9) were two of the largest Asian growth markets.

Higher Education Levels:

By study level, master’s students accounted for the largest share of F-1 students with 507,191 students, a 15.7 per cent increase compared with 2021, followed by bachelor students (450,405 students, +1.6 per cent). There were also 197,183 doctoral students, a 3.2 per cent increase, while a further 71,445 students were on associate degrees, growth of three per cent.

Subjects:

Computer science was the most common primary major for student visa holders in 2022, pursued by 91,083 students, followed by second language learning (89,266), business administration and management (81,797).

Host Institutions:

Among F-1 institutions, New York University was the largest host with 22,232 students in 2022, followed by Northeastern University (21,849), Columbia University in the City of New York (20,846), University of Southern California (18,631) and Arizona State University (15,855). CAE Oxford Aviation Academy Phoenix Inc was the largest host of M-1 students with 776.

OPT:

In 2022, 117,301 students reported working with an employer through optional practical training (OPT), a 1.4 per cent increase compared with the previous year.

K-12 Students:

There was a 7.2 per cent increase in international students on F-1 visas at K-12 secondary schools in 2022 to 53,517, despite a decrease from the main source country China, which slipped by 21.9 per cent to 13,565. However, there was growth from second-placed Korea (4,368 students, +1.9 per cent) and third-placed Mexico (4,076, +17.7), while Spain entered the top five for the first time with 3,226 students.

EF Education First International Academy was the largest host institution at K-12 level with 642 students, followed by Layton Christian Academy (473), CATS Global Schools Boston (472), IMG Academy (454), Broadfording Christian Academy (450) and Montverde Academy  (399).

Certified Schools:

In 2022, 7,683 schools were SEVP certified to accept international students on student visas, 355 fewer than in the previous year. Almost two-thirds (66 per cent) of SEVP-certified schools hosted between one and 50 students last year.

J-1 Students:

The Sevis by the Numbers report also showed that there were 276,723 active exchange visitors on J-1 visas in 2022, an increase of 15 per cent compared with 240,479 in the previous year.