U.S. education still popular among Zimbabweans

November 20, 2007

American education remains popular among Zimbabweans despite a slight decline in the number of students from the country studying in the U.S. in 2007. According to recently released figures from the Open Doors Study from the Institute of International Education, there are currently 1518 Zimbabwean students enrolled in accredited colleges and universities in the U.S. This figure represents a decline of 10.9 percent from the previous year which saw 1704 Zimbabweans studying at various colleges and universities.

The annual Open Doors study, funded by the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), is based on a survey of nearly 3,000 accredited U.S. educational institutions by the Institute of International Education (IIE), a nonprofit educational and cultural exchange organization based in New York City. The study is released each year during the International Education Week, November 12-16 in 2007.

U.S. Embassy Educational Advisor Rebecca Zeigler Mano attributes the decline to the extreme economic crisis and political instability in Zimbabwe, explaining that parents who used to be able to fund part or all of their students’ US education through Reserve Bank educational forex allowances and local salaries can no longer do so.  Despite the decline last year, the number of Zimbabweans studying in the U.S. remains exceptional thanks to a phenomenal increase in the number of Zimbabweans gaining full or significant scholarships to study in the US in the past five years.

“Despite a collapsing economy and health sector, Zimbabwe still boasts a strong secondary education system with students from a wide variety of socioeconomic backgrounds who excel in academics, sport and arts at top American colleges and universities,” stated Zeigler Mano.

“The students are Zimbabwe’s most precious natural resources. It is crucial for training the country’s future leaders in all professions that Zimbabwe’s top government, trust, and mission high schools retain their teachers and maintain excellent academic and extracurricular standards. A highly educated youth can help rebuild the county’s physical infrastructure.” 

The number of Zimbabwean students in the U.S. peaked at just over 2300 in the year 2003-4 and in 2005-6 Zimbabwe surpassed South Africa to become the fourth largest student sending country in Africa- after Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana- to the United States. At that time there were 1,699 Zimbabweans studying at colleges and universities in the United States. However South Africa has reversed this trend and together with Cameroon has now relegated Zimbabwe to the sixth sending country in Sub Saharan Africa.

Despite the decline, there remains a strong interest in US study, as evidenced by the over 27,000 contacts the U.S. Embassy’s Educational Advising Center has had over the past year from Zimbabwean students. American universities also remain very interested in recruiting top Zimbabwean students to join their campuses, as evidenced by the recent visits by admissions officers and college fairs held in Bulawayo and Harare with representatives from 16 schools. “It is heartening to note that as the number of international students attending American institutions of higher learning globally continues to grow; we continue to spread the word to Zimbabwean students that America welcomes them,” says Zeigler Mano.  “It is through international educational exchange that we can mutually develop deeper ties between the people of Zimbabwe and the US and share our values, ideas and perspectives for positive development in both of our countries.”

Overall, the number of non-U.S. students enrolled in U.S. higher education institutions during the 2006-2007 academic year rose by 3 percent to a total of 582,984, and new enrollments rose sharply, according to the Open Doors study.

International student enrollments declined for a few years in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.  However, recently the Department of State reported that in 2007, it issued a record number of student and exchange visitor visas-- more than 600,000 -- more than a 10 percent increase from 2006.  First-time enrollments rose 10.2 percent in 2006-2007, as compared with an 8 percent rise the previous year.

The leading countries of origin for international students in the United States for the sixth consecutive year were India (83,833), China (67,723) and South Korea (62,392). Other locations sending sharply increased numbers of students to study include Saudi Arabia (up 129 percent), Vietnam (up 31 percent), and Nepal (up 28 percent).

According to Open Doors 2007, the top five fields of study for international students in the United States in 2006-2007 were business and management, engineering, physical and life sciences, social sciences and mathematics and computer sciences.   The American liberal arts and sciences philosophy of education requires students to explore a wide variety of subjects and develop a range of skills while also concentrating in one area.   Graduate students focus in specific departments and research institutes. 

The United States has one of the best and most comprehensive systems of higher education in the world; and boasts of over 3800 accredited and internationally recognized institutions of higher education, who welcome the diversity brought by international students to their campuses. A significant number of American institutions offer need and merit-based financial assistance to both undergraduate and graduate international students. 

Zimbabweans wishing to pursue studies in the U.S. can visit the Educational Advising Center based at the U.S. Embassy’s Public Affairs Section in Eastgate Building in Harare or at the educational advising center based at the Bulawayo Public Library. Outside of the two main cities, students can visit the satellite advising center collections at Gweru Memorial Library, Turner Memorial Library and Africa University Libraries in Mutare and Mucheke Public Library in Masvingo.

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This report was produced by the Public Affairs Section, U.S. Embassy in Harare. Queries and comments should be addressed to Paul Engelstad, Public Affairs Officer, E-mail: hararepas@state.gov, Tel. +263 4 75 88 00/1, Fax: 758802, Website: http://harare.usembassy.gov