Haq's Musings

Riaz Haq writes this data-driven blog to provide information, express his opinions and make comments on many topics. Subjects include personal activities, education, South Asia, South Asian community, regional and international affairs and US politics to financial markets. For investors interested in South Asia, Riaz has another blog called South Asia Investor at http://www.southasiainvestor.com and a YouTube video channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkrIDyFbC9N9evXYb9cA_gQ

Showing posts with label International Students. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

Pakistani International Students Flocking to European Universities

Recent data shows that there are nearly 10,000 Pakistani students attending colleges and universities in Germany. This figure is second only to the United Kingdom which issued over 35,000 student visas to Pakistanis in 2024. The second most popular destination for Pakistani students is Australia which is hosting nearly 24,000 students from Pakistan as of 2023, according to the ICEF Monitor.

Top Countries of Origin For International Students in Germany 2024. Source: Study in Germany

Here's a list of the top 15 countries of origin of foreign students in Germany in 2024:

India 49,008

China 38,687

Turkey 18,084

Austria 15,379

Iran 15,159

Syria 13,379

Russia 10,593

Italy 10,154

Ukraine 9,914

Pakistan 9,873

Egypt 8,060

Morocco 7,398

Tunisia 6,852

Cameroon 6,789

France 6,759

This year, Pakistani students won 114 Erasmus Mundus EU Scholarships, the highest number in the world. This makes Pakistan the top country receiving these scholarships for the fourth consecutive year. The Erasmus Mundus Scholarship is a prestigious European scholarship program for graduates, funding joint master's degrees at prestigious universities across multiple countries.

Pakistani Students Received the Highest Number of EU Scholarships in 2025. Source: EU

Here's the list of top countries of EU Scholarship Winners in 2025:

1. 🇵🇰 Pakistan: 114

2. 🇮🇳 India: 96

3. 🇧🇩 Bangladesh: 95

4. 🇲🇽 Mexico: 93

5. 🇳🇬 Nigeria: 75

6. 🇧🇷 Brazil: 73

7. 🇪🇸 Spain: 65

8. 🇺🇸 USA: 62

9. 🇪🇬 Egypt: 61

10. 🇩🇪 Germany: 61

Pakistan is third, after only China and India, in terms of the size of its college-aged population, according to the United Nations. The British Council expects growth in Pakistani outbound mobility to be among highest in the world over the next decade, along with China, India, Nigeria, and Bangladesh.

Acceptance rate in Pakistani universities and degree colleges was just 13.5% in 2022. Only 541,043 students were accepted from 4,085,185 students who applied. The country produced 471,306 university graduates in 2020-21. Of these, 157,102 were in STEM fields, including 43,000 graduates in information technology (IT).

Pakistan’s gross tertiary enrollment (GER) ratio was only 13% in 2023, according to UNESCO. This is much lower than in India, and lower than in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka as well. Of 109 countries UNESCO profiled in 2021, Pakistan’s tertiary GER was 100th. Given Pakistan’s huge college-aged population, there is serious unmet demand for higher education, according to the ICEF Monitor.

Recent data on which destinations are hosting the most Pakistani students include:

UK: 34,690 in 2022/23 (+50% y-o-y)

China: 28,000 before the pandemic

UAE: 24,865 in 2020 according to UNESCO

Australia: 23,380 in 2023 (+49%)

US: 10,165 in 2022/23 (+16%)

Germany: 8,210 in 2022/23 (+22%)

Kyrgyzstan: 6,000 in 2020 according to UNESCO

Malaysia: 5,000 in 2023

Canada: 4,750 in 2023 (+101%)

Turkey: 2,385 in 2020 according to UNESCO

Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sweden, Qatar: At least 4,000 in 2020 according to UNESCO

Monday, April 1, 2024

Pakistani Student Enrollment in US Universities Hits All Time High

Pakistani student enrollment in America's institutions of higher learning rose 16% last year, outpacing the record 12% growth in the number of international students hosted by the country. This puts Pakistan among eight sources in the top 20 countries with the largest increases in US enrollment. India saw the biggest increase at 35%, followed by Ghana 32%, Bangladesh and Nepal at 28% each, Pakistan 16%, Colombia 13%, Italy 10% and Spain 5%.

Top 8 Source Countries of Foreign Students in US. Source: IIE OpenDoors

"During 2022-2023, there were 10,164 Pakistani students, compared to 8,772 in the previous year, indicating an impressive 16% increase," according to IIE Open Doors Report for 2022-23. There has been an overall 33% increase in enrollment of Pakistani students in US colleges and universities.

Major Destinations of Pakistanis Studying Abroad. Source: UNESCO

The most recent UNESCO data (2021) counts 71,865 Pakistani students abroad in higher education. More recent statistics published by government sources in various receiving countries show that the outbound student mobility from Pakistan was over 103,190 in 2022. There have been large increases in Pakistani students recorded recently in the UK, Australia, US, Canada, and Germany. The UK is now the top destination with over 23,000 Pakistani students, followed by Australia with nearly 16,000 students from Pakistan in 2021/22, according to the ICEF Monitor.

The most recent UNESCO data (2021) puts the total number of Indians studying abroad at 508,174.

Pakistani Students in America. Source: IIE OpenDoors

Pakistan is ranked as the 16th biggest source of foreign students in America. China remains the top-sending country in 2022/23, with 289,526 students studying in the U.S. (-0.2% year-over-year). India, the second largest sending country, reached an all-time high of 268,923 international students in 2022/23, an increase of 35% year-over-year, according to the report.

Top 20 Sending Countries of International Students in America. Source: Statista

The United States is hosting over one million (1,057,188) international students in the 2022/2023 academic year, a 12% increase compared to the previous academic year. It is the fastest growth rate in more than 40 years. It is partly attributable to the end of the COVID19 pandemic which dramatically diminished international student mobility.

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

COVID19 Impact: Declining Enrollment of Pakistani Students in US, China

Pakistan, the world's sixth most populous nation, ranked 18th in the number of students studying in the United States. Pakistani students enrolled in the US fell by 5.8% to 7,475 in 2020-21, significantly less than the 15% drop in international student enrollment. However, number of Pakistanis studying in the US in 2020-21 was even less than students from much smaller nations like Nepal which ranked 12th. Overall, COVID19 travel restrictions brought down the total number of foreign students enrolled in American educational institutions dropped to less than one million in 2020-21, the lowest figure since 2015-16.

Pakistani Students in the US. Source: OpenDoors

China maintained its top position among the leading places of origin for international students, with 35% of all international students in the 2020-21 school year hailing from the country, according to the data released by the United States government. The second most common place of origin was India (18%), followed by South Korea (4%) and Canada (3%). Some of these countries also experienced the largest year-over-year declines in the number of students who enrolled at US institutions. The largest such percentage decreases occurred in South Korea (-21%), China (-15%) and India (-13%).

Foreign Students Studying in US. Source: OpenDoors

The number of students in China, the top destination for Pakistani students, was also heavily impacted by COVID travel bans. Some 28,000 Pakistani students are affected by China’s tough border closures and are studying from home. Studying in China has only been possible for South Korean students who were granted an exemption in July 2020, according to reports.

Pakistani Students in the US. Source: OpenDoors

During his recent visit to Beijing, Prime Minister Imran Khan brought up the issues faced by Pakistani students in resuming education in China. A joint statement issued by Chinese and Pakistani sides mentioned it thus: "Pakistan side highlighted that China has become a popular education destination. While ensuring safety against COVID-19, China will arrange for Pakistani students to return to China and resume classes in a prudent manner".

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