Shared Gains: Immigrant-Origin Students in U.S. Colleges
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Highlights
Immigrant-origin students represent a growing share of U.S. college enrollment, rising from one in five pupils in 2000 to one in three as of 2021—cushioning overall enrollment declines.
- The number of immigrant-origin college students increased by more than three-quarters between 2000 and 2021, accounting for 79 percent of overall U.S. college enrollment growth during that period.
- Second-generation students drove much of this change; their four-year college enrollment nearly tripled from 918,000 to 2.7 million between 2000 and 2021.
- Immigrant-origin students, who are disproportionately Latino, Black, and Asian American or Pacific Islander, increased campus diversity as White third-and-higher-generation enrollment shares declined.
- Policymakers have opportunities to address barriers facing currently enrolled students, college-approaching immigrant-origin youth, and immigrant-origin adults without postsecondary credentials.
College enrollment trends in the United States are a subject of ongoing concern due to the role higher education plays in shaping the future workforce. Enrollment has gone through periods of growth and decline over the past two decades, reflecting changes in the nation’s demographics, economy, and views on the value of a college degree.
Total enrollment in U.S. colleges and universities increased by 37 percent from 2000 to 2011 but declined by 11 percent between 2011 and 2021. However, the post-2011 decline would have been steeper if not for the rapid rise in the college enrollment of immigrant-origin students—that is, students who were either born abroad or born in the United States to one or more immigrant parents.
This brief examines enrollment patterns for immigrants, the children of immigrants, and U.S.-born individuals with U.S.-born parents, including enrollment by race and ethnicity and in two-year versus four-year institutions. The brief also explores the relationship between parental education and college enrollment—an increasingly pertinent topic, given the rising education levels of recent immigrants.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
A. Study Questions
B. Study Population and Data
2 College Enrollment Trends: 2000–21
A. Overall Enrollment
B. Enrollment by Institution Type
C. Enrollment by Race and Ethnicity
3 College Enrollment Rates by Immigrant Generation
A. Enrollment Rates by Race and Ethnicity
B. Effects of Parental Education on Enrollment Rates
4 Looking to the Future
5 Conclusion and Implications
About the Global Skills and Talent Initiative
Anchored in the premise that immigration policy must be part of a broader skills and talent strategy, the Initiative has a particular focus on employment-based immigration and the supports that can help immigrants apply their full range of educational and professional skills.
About the U.S. Immigration Policy Program
The U.S. Immigration Policy Program provides analysis of U.S. immigration pathways, the impacts of enforcement and other policies, and the characteristics of immigrant populations.
About the National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy
The Center is a national hub connecting policymakers, educators, community leaders, and service providers with evidence-informed policy research, technical assistance, and data to advance effective immigrant integration at U.S., state, and local levels.
