International Students
Although they account for just five percent of all students in U.S. colleges and universities, international students play an important role in our economy. They gravitate towards the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM, producing a large number of patents and gaining skills that help our employers innovate and compete. They spend tens of billions of dollars as consumers, supporting local businesses. And the companies they go on to found—such as Google, Yahoo!, and Trulia—employ hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Americans.
Ambitious Venezuelan-Born American College Student Wants Greater Educational Opportunities for All Immigrants
Venezuelan immigrant Barbara Galizia, who is currently majoring in International Relations at American University, has never taken her life in the United States for granted. She immigrated here as a child along with her parents and sister. “It wasn’t easy for my parents to leave their family and make all… Read More
For This Immigrant & Policy Scholar, Immigration and Education Go Hand in Hand
The distinguished career of Dr. Vichet Chhuon, a thought leader in U.S. education policy, is a direct result of his own multicultural background and his family’s experiences as Cambodian refugees. As an associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Chhuon’s work focuses on multicultural education and the experiences of underserved… Read More
University President Once Fled the Communists — Now He Presides Over a Diverse Group of Promising Students
As President of Miami Dade College, Eduardo Padrón presides over 170,000 students, most of whom are immigrants or the children of immigrants, Graduates include mayors, lawyers, police and fire chiefs, and prominent political figures such as U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., the first Cuban-American… Read More
Esteemed Scholar and Khmer Rouge Refugee Speaks to Value Immigrants Bring a Country
When it comes to immigration, noted professor and political scientist Dr. Sophal Ear recalls a statement on Indochinese refugees made by former U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance. “He was basically saying that America is a nation of refugees,” Dr. Ear says. “His point was, everybody who has come to… Read More
Cuban Immigrant, Business Leader, and Veteran Believes America’s Growth Starts with Immigration
If local governments handed out MVP awards to their community members, Jorge Gutierrez of Woodstock, Virginia would surely be in contention. Four years ago, after 26 years of service, he retired from the United States Army and opened his own consulting business, BMOC Group, which is estimated to generate around… Read More
Despite Challenges, Undocumented Youth Earns Her Degree While Giving Back to the Community
Shawnee Taveras, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic who recently earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology, has come to recognize that immigration reform — and a new attitude toward undocumented individuals — is vital. “When we came here, we didn’t come to steal; we came to get a better education,”… Read More
Republican Professor Says Immigration Reform Is Vital for the U.S. Economy
During his 33-year career as a professor at the University of Illinois, College of Medicine at Peoria, Tom Hjelle, now retired, witnessed a dramatic demographic shift in the medical school. What began as a predominantly white and male student body transformed into one that draws men and women from different… Read More
Time to Give Back: Working to Send Latino Americans to College
Roger C. Rocha Jr., the national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), was raised in a poor part of Laredo, Texas, where he saw his peers struggle to help their families survive. “We all knew that education and hard work were the keys to getting ahead,… Read More
When Delaware State Needed Computer Science Professors, Few Americans Even Applied
David Pokrajac, a math prodigy from the former Yugoslavia, is a success by any country’s standards. After earning a PhD in computer science with a specialty in spatial data mining from Temple University in Philadelphia, he’s now a professor at Delaware State University, where he also serves as assistant vice… Read More
Chinese Immigrant Wants to Stay in the United States to Strengthen Internet of Things
Even though Yingzhe “Reginald” Fu, 25, just graduated with his master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in May 2016, the ambitious young man is already developing a company to advance the Internet of Things. That business, FingerBlocks, aims to connect people’s homes to the internet,… Read More
Fueling the Economy
About 18.5 million foreign-born students study at American colleges and universities. In addition to their academic and cultural contributions, they support the economies of college communities through tuition payments and spending on housing, books, and other day-to-day expenses.1
Sources:
1 “NAFSA International Student Economic Value Tool | NAFSA,” accessed June 28, 2016. Available online.
Innovating for the Future
International STEM students and graduates are behind some of America’s most impressive innovations, from artificial skin to moldable metal. Studies show that immigrants with an advanced degree are three times more likely than U.S.-born graduate degree holders to file a patent.2 When universities increase their share of international students, they often receive more patents—boosting revenue and creating more opportunities for all students.
Sources:
2 Jennifer Hunt and Marjolaine Gauthier-Loiselle, “How Much Does Immigration Boost Innovation?,” NBER Working Paper, (September 2008). Available online.
3 Chellaraj, Gnanaraj, Keith E. Maskus, and Aaditya Mattoo. 2005. “The Contribution of Skilled Immigration and International Graduate Students to US Innovation.” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper (3588). Retrieved November 10, 2014. Available online.
Share of Patents Awarded to Research Institutions with at Least One Foreign-Born Inventor, 2011
From Graduates to Entrepreneurs
The inventions of foreign-born students often do more than just earn patents. They spawn start-ups and new divisions of companies that create jobs for American workers. Foreign-born students at American schools founded companies like Sun Microsystems (now a part of Oracle), Google, and Yahoo!.
Sources:
4 Edward B. Roberts, Fiona Murray, and J. Daniel Kim, “Entrepreneurship and Innovation at MIT: Continuing Global Growth and Impact” (MIT Innovation Initiative, December 2015). Available online.
5 Vivek Wadhwa et al., “America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs: Part I,” SSRN Scholarly Paper (Rochester, NY: Social Science Research Network, 2007). Available online.
Boosting State Economies
In 2015, the large number of international students in both New York and California generated close to $4 billion in revenue for each state. In eight states, foreign-born students generated revenues in excess of $1 billion—supporting tens of thousands of jobs.
States where International Students Make the Largest Economic Impact
Educating the Next Generation
Foreign-born professionals play a large role in educating American students. In 22 states, the occupation “postsecondary teacher” ranks among the top 10 jobs in which immigrants make up the largest share of workers. In six of those states, that role ranks among the top three jobs most heavily reliant on immigrants.
States with the Highest Share of Immigrant Postsecondary Teachers, 2014
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