International Students Pursuing STEM-related Majors

The Inside Higher Ed article, “Brazil Scholarship Program Grows,” illustrates how international countries recognize that the world is flat and that more students need to pursue STEM-related majors if their countries are going to compete in the technology economy. Brazil has expanded its Scientific Mobility Undergraduate Program, which funds a year of overseas study for Brazilian undergraduates, primarily in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields. Additionally, approximately 60 percent of the scholarship recipients have completed a summer internship either at a company or in a university research lab. Tom Farrell, vice provost for global engagement at the University of Nebraska notes:

“I think this is strategically important for both countries, so I really appreciate the way the Brazilians are managing and developing this talent pool.”

While international companies are encouraging and supporting their students in pursuing STEM majors at U.S. colleges and universities, U.S. students are shying away from such majors.

Top schools for Brazil’s Scientific Mobility Undergraduates at U.S. universities are:

The National Foundation for American Policy Brief (July 2013) notes that international students account for the majority of graduate students in 87 percent of Electrical Engineering programs and 76 percent of Computer Science programs at U.S. colleges and universities. The following table illustrates the percentage of graduate school students in STEM-related fields: