UAE and Egypt, Among the Top 20 Countries for International Students

The United Arab Emirates is the top destination in the Arab world for international students, followed by Egypt and Saudi Arabia, says a report by UNESCO statistics. The UAE, which hosts 54,162 foreign students, Ranks 17th among the top 20 destinations chosen by expat students worldwide.  

Egypt, the second favorite, hosts 49,011 international students seeking high-level academic studies, as UNESCO´s interactive map shows. “Cairo has strong areas like gender and migration studies, but there is also the desire to study Arabic, ancient civilizations, or archaeology. Plus, some students just want the sense of adventure; there is a particular aura here that is liberating,” says Lauren Clark, a student at the American University in Cairo.

Regional hubs like Dubai are not only attracting a bigger share of the global population of mobile students, but are becoming favored destinations within the region. The UAE, says the report, now outpaces the United Kingdom in attracting students from the Arab States and has become the third most popular destination for students from the region.

For more information: Visit UNESCO’s interactive map on the Global Flow of Tertiary-level Students.