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 Study Abroad. Show all posts

Sunday, October 19, 2025

Improved US-Pakistan Ties: F-1 Visas For Pakistani Students Soaring

The F-1 visas for Pakistani students are soaring amid a global decline, according to the US government data. The US visas granted to Pakistani students climbed 44.3% in the first half of Fiscal Year 2025 (October 2024 to March 2025) with warming relations between the governments of the two countries. The number of visas granted to Indian students declined 44.5%, compared to 20% fewer US visas given to students globally in this period. The number of US visas granted to Pakistani students in the current year is on track to reach 5,800 which will be an all-time high.

F-1 Student Visa Trend For Pakistan 2018-2025. Source: ApplyBoard

In Pakistan, 3,322 F-1 student visas were granted in fiscal year 2023. The number of F-1 visas issued in the first half of fiscal year 2025 was 1,928, an increase of 44.3% compared to the same period in the previous year. While the final numbers for fiscal year 2025 are not yet complete, Pakistan is on track to issue a high number of F-1 visas, possibly reaching an all-time high. From October 2024 to May 2025, nearly 3,000 Pakistani students received F-1 visas, a figure that was expected to significantly increase during the peak summer months, according to ApplyBoard.

Beyond the ‘Big Four’(Australia, Canada, UK and US), other destinations have seen increased interest from Pakistani students since the pandemic. In Europe, Germany has emerged as a major destination for Pakistani students seeking education abroad.

Pakistani Studying in Germany. Source: ApplyBoard

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.Pakistanis pursuit of international education is largely focused on pursuing studies in high-demand fields like science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

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.