Nepali students studying in US universities are the fastest growing international student population studying at colleges and universities in the United States, according to a report. 

 The report by the Institute of International Education and the US Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affair showed a 20 percent increase of Nepali students enrolled in the US higher education institutions, which takes the size of total Nepali students to 11,607. 

Nepal, now 13th among the top 25 countries for both undergraduate and graduate students in the US, has posted the highest growth among the top 25 for undergraduate students at 42.4 percent.

The share of the Nepali students pursuing graduate level stood at 34.4 percent while the number of those taking non-degree and short term courses was over 111 percent. 

The United States is one of the most sought after academic destinations for the students’ worldwide including Nepal and currently hosts a record high number of 1.08 million international students. The US currently is the third most preferred academic destination after Japan and Australia. “Every year, Nepali students travel to the United States to take advantage of outstanding opportunities for educational and professional development thorough hard work, thoughtful consideration about what course of study to pursue, careful financial planning and an academic record that reflects good grades and test scores,” the US Embassy in Nepal quoted Chargé d’Affaires Michael Gonzales as saying in a statement. The release of the data marks the success of academically qualified Nepali students who pursued higher education in the US through qualified advising centres like the Education USA Office at the United States Education Foundation.

The report also marks the celebration of International Education Week (IEW), a joint initiative of the US Department of State and the US Department of Education, designed to attract future leaders from other countries to study, learn and exchange experiences in the United States.

The US Embassy’s partner organisations and American Spaces will this week host ‘Get Inspired’ programmes featuring Nepali alumni of US universities, the embassy said. The embassy will also host webinars, Facebook live sessions and an online college fair for students from underserved regions who do not have direct access to our educational services in Kathmandu, it added.