Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
Nigerians studying in the United States have increased by 5.8 percent in the 2018/2019 academic year, the United States Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria has said.
The number is an increase from 12,693 (amounting to 8.4 percent) which Nigeria recorded in the 2017/2018 academic year.
In a statement made available to Daily Sun in Abuja, the United States said with a total number of 13,423, Nigeria had been ranked 11th largest country worldwide.
According to the United States 2019 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, “The number of international students in the U.S. set an all‐time high in the 2018/19 academic year, the fourth consecutive year with more than one million international students. The total number of international students, 1,095,299, is a 0.05 percent increase over last year.”
The Embassy further said the new report indicated there was a 5.8 percent increase in the number of students from Nigeria who are currently studying in the United States, adding that the percentage represented a total of 13,423 Nigerian students studying in the U.S. in the 2018/2019 academic session.
The number, the United States Diplomatic Mission added, also represented 33 percent of the overall African students in the United States, making Nigeria the leading source of students from the continent and 11th largest country worldwide.
“Nigerians are enrolled in more than 1,000 institutions in 51 states and territories in the United States, out of which eighteen percent are studying in Texas. Nigerian students using EducationUSA services recorded $16m in scholarships and financial aid awarded to newly admitted students for the 2019 academic year.
“Open Doors 2019, released today by the Institute of International Education (IIE) and the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, highlights the continued competitiveness of the U.S. higher education sector as a destination of choice for international students and the growing interest in international educational exchange among U.S. students.
“The release of the new Open Doors data marks the celebration of International Education Week, a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education to prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from other countries to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States,” the United States Diplomatic Mission to Nigeria said.