The number of international students who applied to U.S. graduate schools increased nine percent this year, according to a report released yesterday by the Council of Graduate Schools.
Chinese applicants made up 47 percent of the international graduate school applicants - an 18 percent increase of Chinese applicants from 2011 - outpacing all the other regions and countries included in the survey, according to a press statement released yesterday by CGS.
According to the statement, 2012 was the seventh consecutive year of double-digit percentage growth of Chinese applicants, and the seventh consecutive year of growth for the overall number of international applicants.
Phillip Trella, the University's assistant vice president for graduate studies, said the rise in the number of international students who applied to the University's graduate schools in 2012 mirrored the trend in the CGS survey.
The number of graduate applicants to the University from China increased about 20 percent this year from last year, with Chinese students making up 30 percent of international graduate students at the University. The surge in graduate applications from China could have resulted from China's recent economic growth, Trella said, which encouraged Chinese citizens to pursue higher levels of education to bring the country on a par with other industrialized societies in the world.
International students make up about 14 percent of all graduate students in the nation, and there are currently 1,233 international graduate students enrolled in the University.
Trella said the continued growth of international graduate applicants, both nationally and at the University, was a good sign, as it demonstrated the strength of the United States' education system in the global market.
"It's great that we have lots of international applicants that want to come here," he said. "That means that, on an international stage, U.Va. stands out as a leader in graduate education, and that also is a reflection of our standing as a top research institution worldwide."
Trella said the increase of international graduate student applicants would not necessarily mean it would be more competition for American students to get into graduate school, because the University is increasing overall enrollment in many of its graduate schools as well.
"There is a tendency for people to hear these reports that there are increased numbers of international applicants to U.S. schools and then to interpret that as a problem that, because we have so many more international applicants, that's taking opportunities away from U.S. students, and that is simply not the case," he said.
Trella said admission to the University was competitive regardless the student's nationality.
"We're working hard to recruit excellent students period - whether they're international or U.S.," he said.
The University's trends differed slightly from the CGS report, as the largest percentage, 33 percent, of international graduate students were enrolled in arts or sciences, whereas nationally 76 percent of international graduate students were enrolled in programs in natural sciences, engineering and business.
The University's Engineering School has the second largest number of international graduate students, followed by the Darden School..
Both public and private institutions experienced growth in the number of international applications they received.
In addition to China, there was strong growth of graduate applicants from Mexico, Brazil, Canada, Europe and the Middle East. The number of applicants from these countries and regions grew 17 percent, 14 percent, nine percent, seven percent and six percent, respectively.
The number of applications to U.S. graduate schools from Africa, Taiwan and South Korea declined.
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