Studying abroad is an opportunity increasingly taken advantage of by students worldwide. China now sends more students to the United States than any other country, and the number of American students studying in China is rapidly increasing as well. In a recent New York Times article, journalist Rebecca Ruiz details this growing trend:

Chinese Students Flock to U.S., as Americans Seek Out ‘Less Traditional’ Countries
By REBECCA R. RUIZ | November 14, 2011
A record 723,277 international students were enrolled at United States colleges and universities last year, according to “Open Doors,” the Institute of International Education’s annual report, released on Monday.

The largest contingent of that group – nearly 160,000, or 22 percent – were from China, a country whose student representation in the United States has, in recent years, increasingly outnumbered that of India, which occupied the top spot for most of the last decade.

For the first time in five years, the number of Indian students studying in the United States decreased, dropping by 1 percent to under 104,000.

Conversely, the number of American students choosing to study in India has been on the rise, according to the report; last year, the number of United States students in India grew by 44 percent.

More generally, American student interest in “less traditional destinations” has increased, the report found. Last year, 15 of the top 25 study abroad destinations – India among them – were outside of western Europe. Other countries that showed substantial gains in studying abroad in the United States last year were Brazil, Egypt, Israel and New Zealand.

A total of 270,604 American students studied abroad last year, the report said, up from around 260,000 the previous year.

The top three American colleges whose students spent the longest time studying abroad were Saint Louis University in Missouri (which operates a full campus in Spain that confers four-year degrees); Pepperdine University in California; and New York University.

The Chinese Language Institute