According to Open Doors, a report published annually by IIE with support from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the United States Department of State, in the 2009/10 academic year 4,827 students from Russia were studying in the United States. Access American Education expects this number to grow in the coming years due to a number of factors:
- Russia has the 10th largest economy in the world by nominal GDP and the 6th largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) with GPD growth of 4.9%. As of 2011, Russia’s capital, Moscow, now has the highest billionaire population of any city in the world.
- The population of Russia was 142,905,200 as per the preliminary results of the 2010 Census.
- For the last 8 years Russia has enjoyed stable economic growth. Upper middle class and elite groups of population grew sufficiently. Investment in education remains an important part of a family’s budget.
- All students in Russia start learning a foreign language at the age of 10. English language is the most popular choice among students.
- Although often not required, English is seen as a professional bonus, which enlarges the salary offer to a candidate from 30% to 100%. For that reason, recruitment agencies usually recommend that candidates certify their English knowledge by taking an international English test before applying to a managerial position at an international company.
- The awarding of the 2018 World Cup is spurring the government to reform foreign language requirements amongst its 800,000 employees. In December 2010 the Russian Ministry of Economic Development published a document on strategy for innovation stating that by 2020 it plans to have 20% of civil servants speaking a foreign language. Fluent English will become a requirement for new civil servants in 2012.
Allan E. Goodman, President and CEO of the Institute of International Education, states, “With the significant reforms taking place in Russian higher education, through the creation of new types of universities, the introduction of standardized entrance exams, and the growing governmental and institutional support to attract foreign scholars and experts to Russia, the Institute sees this as a key moment to introduce leading U.S. and Russian educational representatives to one another and to promote opportunities for collaboration in international education.”
The data above indicates that the number of Russian students in the USA will continue to grow in the future. Access American Education will be there to help ensure the needs of your educational institution are well served by increasing the diversity of your student population and quickly and efficiently forming relationships between your college or university and the people of Russia.
