Economic Benefit of International Students

NAFSA Analysis: The Economic Benefits of International Student Enrollment to the United States - A Ten-Year Trend

This graph displays the economic contributions, enrollment data, and jobs supported over a ten-year timeframe. Move the mouse arrow over a single graph point to view single year data. To view congressional district information, select the "Map" tab. International student enrollment data is provided by Open Doors, published by the Institute of International Education in partnership with the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State.

Note: The total dollar value depends on many factors, meaning that enrollment, jobs, and economic contribution trends are not always in sync (select the "Methodology" tab for a detailed explanation).

NAFSA Analysis: Economic Benefit by U.S. Congressional District

This map displays the levels of economic benefit across the United States, organized by congressional district. To view detailed single-year data with an interactive map, select a state from the drop-down menu above.

Click here to view high quality image.

< $1,000,000
$1,000,000 - $5,000,000
$5,000,000 - $25,000,000
$25,000,000 - $50,000,000
$50,000,000 - $100,000,000
> $100,000,000

NAFSA Analysis: Total United States Direct and Indirect Jobs Created/Supported

This graph displays the number of direct and indirect jobs created/supported as a result of the economic benefit of international students in the United States for the academic year noted above.

USA Totals: 142,597 Direct Jobs + 258,215 Indirect Jobs = 400,812 Total Jobs

Percentage of the United States Direct Jobs Created as a Result of Spending in Various Industry Sectors

This chart displays the percentage of direct jobs within the total, created by the benefit of international students on various industries. For example, 54% of the direct jobs created/supported are directly created by spending within the Higher Education sector. Beyond the direct jobs in that sector there are then additional indirect jobs created/supported across sectors. This graph focuses on the impact of those direct jobs created/supported.

NAFSA Analysis: Detailed Reports

Below is a list of print-ready reports containing all the detailed information displayed here about the U.S. economic contributions made by international students. These reports contain detailed information about the economic benefit of international students for the United States. To view a state-level report, select a state from the drop-down menu above.

NAFSA Analysis: Methodology

International student enrollment data is provided by Open Doors produced by the Institute of International Education in partnership with the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State.

Tuition and living expense data, which is used to calculate the total amount of economic benefit, comes from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center of Educational Statistics Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS).

Total economic benefit and accompanying jobs analysis is derived using formulas developed for NAFSA: Association of International Educators by Jason Baumgartner, Director of Information Resources, Office of International Services, Indiana University - Bloomington.

For a more detailed discussion, see "The Economic Benefits of International Student Enrollment to the U.S. Economy" (PDF 395KB).

Additional staff contributing to this project: Tim Climis, Associate Director - Senior Developer/Programmer, and Jacob Warner, Communications Manager & Analyst of the Indiana University Office of International Services.

2015-2016 Academic year

$32.8 billion for the U.S.

400,812 total jobs for the