U.S. Students Studying in Africa

According to the Institute of International Education, more than 205,000 American students studied at foreign institutions of higher education during the 2004-05 academic year. This was up 7.7 percent from a year earlier. A vast majority of Americans studying abroad (60.3 percent) attended universities in Europe.

Of all U.S. students studying abroad, 7,100, or 3.4 percent, attended universities in Africa. The number of American students studying in Africa was up a whopping 25 percent from the previous year. Africa sends more than five times as many students to American universities as America sends to African universities.

Of the 7,100 Americans studying in Africa, 1,176, or 16.6 percent, were studying in the northern African nations of Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.

Among black African nations, South Africa was the most popular destination. In 2004-05, 2,304 American students studied in South Africa. This was up by 15 percent from a year earlier. In the 1994-95 academic year, only 86 Americans were enrolled at South African universities. Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Senegal, Botswana, Namibia, and Uganda were the only other black African nations hosting more than 100 American college students.

Of the 205,983 American students studying abroad in all areas of the globe, 7,209, or 3.5 percent, were African Americans. In 1996, African Americans were also 3.5 percent of all American students studying abroad.