By NNN-Bernama,
Kuala Lumpur : Malaysia is ranked 21st among countries sending students to the United States, with 5,942 Malaysians having enrolled for studies in that country for the 2008/09 academic year.
According to the Open Doors 2009, the international student annual mobility report issued by the United States Embassy here, there was a 9.5 per cent increase in the number of Malaysian students who enrolled in the US this year.
There were 5,428 Malaysian students in the US during 2007/08 academic year.
US Ambassador to Malaysia James Keith said the US remained one of the top destinations for Malaysian students who wanted to study abroad because of the quality and prestige associated with an American degree.
“After experiencing a drop in the 2002-2003 time frame, student visa issuances for Malaysians have risen consistently, with record numbers attained this year,” he said.
This year’s worldwide Open Doors report shows that the total number of international students at colleges and universtities in the US increased by eight per cent, to an all time high of 671,616 for the 2008/09 academic year.
The release of these data coincided with the International Education Week organized by the Malaysian-American Commission on Educational Exchange (MACEE), in conjuction with the embassy.
Intrested students, parents, university proffessors and administrators can log onto www.EducationUSA.org.my to join in the scheduled week’s events.