International Education Week at the University of Cincinnati

A number of student events are scheduled this week at the University of Cincinnati.

A total of 6,328 international Bearcats from 130 countries call UC home this fall. This number includes currently enrolled students as well as recent graduates still on student visas for permissible post-graduate temporary work.

Two major reports released on Monday in conjunction with IEW compile statistical profiles of international education. While these reports focus on the previous academic year, 2023-24, a “snapshot” sample report of fall 2025 U.S. reporting and UC’s own 2025 student data reflect some of the current changes to our international student population.

Multiple sets of international student data are reported to different U.S. government agencies. The fall 2025 UC student census reports 3,879 enrolled international students at UC.

The Open Doors Report from the nonprofit IIE focuses on international students and scholars in the U.S. higher education system. It is the primary statistical source on international education in the U.S. and on U.S. students abroad. It has been published annually since 1919.

The International Student Economic Value Tool from NAFSA: Association of International Educators focuses on international education as a major U.S. export and on the economic return from the students the U.S. hosts.  

Open Doors reports that in the previous academic year, 2024-25,

• The U.S. hosted 1,177,766 international students.
• Total enrollments were flat, but participation in Optional Practical Training (the temporary postgraduate work experience permitted on a student visa) buoyed the overall number to +4.5% from 2023-24.
• The number of new student enrollments decreased by 7%, however, dropping that figure to pre-pandemic levels.
• The majority of international students in the U.S. were graduate students. Enrollments at that level dropped 3% from 2023-24 graduate enrollment records.
• Undergraduate numbers grew by 4% overall, the first significant rise since the pandemic, as incoming undergraduates outnumbered graduating students from the smaller pandemic-year cohorts.
• Students came from more than 200 countries, once more led by India (30.8%) and China (22.6%).
• Math, computer science, engineering, business and management, and physical and life sciences were the most popular majors.

The Open Doors fall 2025 snapshot report (reporting a survey of 825 U.S. universities) and the fall 2025 numbers UC has submitted for next year’s full report show a changing picture in international education in the U.S. this year.

• The total number of international students in the U.S., including those participating in OPT, was flat (-1%) after four years of post-pandemic growth. This figure was stabilized by increased OPT participation, +14% in fall 2025.
• Undergraduate enrollments again increased overall by 2%, as the incoming cohort was larger than the graduating pandemic-year cohorts of 2020 and 2021.
• However, new enrollments declined 17%. Their numbers fell at more than half of the universities surveyed for the snapshot. A drop in the number of students from India this year is a driving factor in the overall decline.
• Total graduate enrollments decreased by 12% after a 3% decline in 2023-24, though they remain above pre-pandemic levels.
• Visa concerns, including delays and denials were cited by 96% of the surveyed institutions as the leading factor in new enrollment losses. Perceptions that the U.S. is less welcoming to international students were cited by two thirds.

The numerous changes to government policies and rules that were implemented this year in the U.S. have profoundly affected international students and scholars. Delays and costs were added by some procedural changes, as noted by the universities that Open Doors surveyed, and overall perceptions of welcome in the U.S. have shifted.

“Taken together, all of that has negative effects on the desire of students to come to this country,” said Ron Cushing, UC’s director of International Services. “Students and their families are very concerned, and a lot of students, especially from India, are deciding not to come to the U.S. for their education.”

More government changes are proposed, including limiting student visas to four years instead of a “duration of status” that matches the full length of their undergraduate or graduate programs. Many UC degree programs are designed to require five years or more of study.

“What has been proposed or implemented so far, and what we expect to happen in 2026, will continue to have negative consequences on international enrollments and higher education in general,” said Cushing.

The U.S. has long been a leader in international education. International education is one of the largest U.S. service exports, contributing to a positive balance of trade in this critical sector of the U.S. economy, according to the U.S. International Trade Commission in its new publication, Recent Trends in U.S. Services Trade: 2025 Annual Report. 

This week’s NAFSA report on the value of international economy estimates that international education contributed $42.9 billion and 355,736 to the U.S. economy in 2024-25. This is down from $43.8 billion and 378,175 jobs in 2023-24.

Ohio now ranks 9^th in the top ten states to benefit, down from 8^th place, with an estimated $1.3 billion economic boost and 10,736 jobs supported in higher education and fields beyond, including accommodations, dining, telecommunications and health insurance.

International students at UC contributed $1.73 million to Ohio's economy and supported 1,544 jobs in 2024-25, down from $186.5 million and 1,706 jobs in 2023-24.

Raj Mehta, vice provost for international affairs and director of the University Honors Program, said,

“Our international students are among the world’s best and brightest, and they come so far to fulfill their dreams of academic opportunity and career success. Cincinnati will always be a home to them, no matter where their future journey takes them. They help to make the University of Cincinnati a world-class university.”

Featured image: International students at the University of Cincinnati