by Eric Rauchway

The CGS study Dan mentions sparked my interest: there is after all more than one source of international graduate student, and though international admissions are up, the composition of international admissions looks like it's shifting. If you're keen to see more Middle Eastern students study in the U.S., the report is a disappointment: there's been, according to this CGS summary, a two percent decline in admissions from the Middle East. There were gains from China (up 20 percent) and India (up 28 percent). But the drop in Middle Eastern admissions apparently didn't come on the demand side--i.e., it's not because Middle Eastern students hate America more: although admissions are down, applications from the Middle East are up by ten percent. It looks therefore as though Chinese and Indian applicants are on average more attractive candidates for graduate education than those from the Middle East.