CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Total international student enrollment at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign increased again this year, climbing from 11,548 in 2022 to 11,580 as of December 2023.
International Student and Scholar Services reported the increase in its annual International Statistics Book released this month.
Although it is a small increase, this year’s number signals the highest international enrollment since fall 2017 at UIUC, which was 10,826 students.
Overall, students represent 123 countries, with 87 percent of students coming from Asia, which ISSS Director Martin McFarlane said is the same percentage as last year.
The top five countries of origin are China with 5,554 students, India with 2,386 students, South Korea with 873 students, Taiwan with 476 students and Bangladesh with 126 students.
Regionally, UIUC saw 10,087 students from Asia, 455 from Europe, 355 from the Middle East, 306 from Latin America, 237 from Africa and 140 from Canada and Oceania.
The top three colleges with the highest international student enrollment are Grainger College of Engineering with 4,769 enrolled, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (3,183 enrolled), and Gies College of Business (1,274 enrolled).
A total of 4,593 international students are seeking a bachelor’s degree, 3,283 are seeking a masters, 3,168 are seeking a doctorate, 461 are non-degree seeking and 75 are professional.
Additionally, the international scholar population has increased from July 2022 through June 2023.
This year there was a total of 1,309 international faculty and staff, and the most represented country for faculty and staff was again China, with 313 faculty and staff, followed by India (182), South Korea (107), and Brazil (81).
“ISSS remains honored to serve so many talented international students, faculty, and staff at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and we look forward to continuing to work with a population that is integral to the success of our campus,” McFarlane said.
A supplemental report about international student online and certificate enrollment is being released alongside the ISSS stats book this year. The data, which is provided by the Division of Management Information, highlights international students who are pursuing their studies from outside the United States or through a certificate program.
This year’s ISSS stats book can be found at: https://isss.illinois.edu/about/statistics.html
*Editor’s note: the ISSS stats book captures Fall 2022 numbers. Open Doors, which was also https://blogs.illinois.edu/view/6758/1667478669 recently reported on, reflects the previous year’s numbers.