According to BusinessWeek, even though the overall number of applications has increased, the number of foreign students admitted to graduate programs in the United States has decreased for the first time in five years. A struggling U.S. job market and the difficulties applicants face obtaining funding during enrollment and then visas after graduation are cited as major contributors to the decline. Most impacted are business programs, which normally enroll a considerable number of foreign students.

International students are instead opting to apply to programs in their home countries, where work visas are not an issue and the cost of education is considerably lower than in the United States. Many have turned to emerging programs in Asia and Europe. Applications to graduate programs in China rose 14% this year.

Fifty-five percent of U.S. graduate programs received more foreign applications in 2009 than in 2008, although less than half reported an increase in admission offers. U.S. graduate programs rely heavily on foreign students to meet diversity initiatives and to provide tuition income. Although a reported increase in domestic applications may fill the tuition void, the diversity gap may not be so easy to mend.