Indian students made up one in four international students in US in 2024: ICE report

Time of India

15 hours ago

Indian students accounted for nearly 27% of all international students in the United States in 2024, according to the latest report by
US Immigration
and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The report, titled SEVIS by the Numbers 2024, shows that 4.2 lakh Indian students were actively enrolled in the US, marking an 11.8% increase from 2023. This growth helped push the total number of foreign students in the US to 15.8 lakh — a 5.3% rise over the previous year.
As per a report by Lubna Kably in the Times of India, the data comes from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), a tool used by the US Department of Homeland Security to track foreign students. F-1 visas are issued for academic programs, while M-1 visas are used for vocational training.
Asia remained the largest source region, with nearly 11 lakh students — making up 72% of the total foreign student population. India and China were the two top source countries. While Indian student numbers rose sharply, China saw a slight decline of 0.25%, with 3.2 lakh students in 2024.
The ICE report highlights that more than 90% of foreign students — about 14.3 lakh — were enrolled in higher education degree programs. California and New York were the top destinations for international students, hosting 2.37 lakh and 1.72 lakh students respectively.
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However, new data for the March 2024 to March 2025 period suggests a sharp reversal in trend. Chris R. Glass, a professor at Boston College, studied
SEVIS data
and reported an 11.3% drop in total active international student records. The number fell from 11.53 lakh in March 2024 to 10.22 lakh in March 2025.
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Indian student numbers dropped significantly by 28%, from 3.54 lakh to 2.55 lakh. In contrast, Chinese student numbers rose slightly to 2.63 lakh, an increase of 3.28%.
Glass said, 'The current year-over-year decline is a reflection of an enrollment cycle that began under the Biden administration, so the March 2025 numbers have yet to reflect any impacts of policies implemented under the second Trump administration.'
Experts point to several reasons for the recent fall in Indian student numbers — including the arbitrary termination of F-1 visas and SEVIS records, legal uncertainties, delays in consular services due to planned social media scrutiny rules, doubts about the continuation of the STEM-OPT program, and widespread layoffs in the US job market. These factors could push student numbers further down in 2026.
Despite recent declines, Indian students continue to lead in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. In 2024, nearly 1.65 lakh international students received a two-year STEM OPT extension after graduation. Of these, 48% were Indian students and 20.4% were Chinese.
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The number of OPT students overall also increased. About 1.94 lakh international students in 2024 had employment authorization and were working in the US under the OPT program, a 21.1% rise from 2023.
These figures reflect both the growing interest of Indian students in the US and the challenges they now face amid changing visa policies and immigration uncertainties.
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