Study abroad statistics

Facts & figures on U.S. students abroad and international students in the U.S.

U.S. Students studying abroad

• In 2003/04, about 191,000 American students studied abroad in foreign countries. Ten years ago, approximately 76,000 took part in such programs abroad. That represents a 250% increase in study abroad participation over the last decade.

• Several students study in English-speaking countries, with the UK (32,000 students) and Australia (11,500 students) landing in the top 10 study abroad destinations. Italy and Spain and Italy are nearly tied at spots #2 and #3, each with about 60% of the students that study in the United Kingdom each year.

• Around 40% of students go abroad during their junior year. That means that 60% go abroad at some other time during their studies.

• More women study abroad than men. About 65% of participants each year are female, 35% male.

• The majority of study abroad participants choose to study abroad for one semester (38%) or during a summer term (37%). Only 6% of those studying abroad go for a whole academic year, down from 14% ten years ago. While a decade ago only about 2% of students participated in study abroad programs that lasted less than 8 weeks, today those who choose a program of less than 2 months in duration amount to about 9% of participants.

• Only 7.5% of students studying abroad are foreign language majors. A greater number of students have majors in social sciences, business fields, humanities, and arts.