Students have shown heightened interest in studying abroad since President-elect Donald Trump’s victory, according to search patterns on a site used to find and compare higher education programs worldwide. In interviews with WSN, some students shared the same sentiment.
“I was planning to study abroad before the election,” CAS first-year Alex Woodworth said. “I was between either Washington, D.C. or Madrid. I don’t really think I would consider studying abroad in D.C. anymore. I would like to be away from the climate in America.”
Search patterns on Studyportals, a company that aims to help students find and compare thousands of academic programs worldwide, reported more than five times its regular number of searches since Nov. 6. Searches for bachelor’s and master’s programs outside the country from students living in the United States skyrocketed to nearly 11,000 daily after the presidential election — up from the usual average of around 2,000.
The spike comes amid a broader decline in confidence in U.S. higher education among adults, prompting universities in the country to accommodate for the increasing demand for study abroad opportunities. Studyportals CEO Edwin van Rest said that while the company saw amplified interest following Trump’s 2016 win, it was not to the same magnitude.
However, Christopher Nicolussi — the assistant vice president of the Office of Global Programs — said in a statement to WSN that the university hasn’t experienced heightened demand.
“In the NYU Office of Global Programs, we haven’t seen any noticeable difference in student interest in study away following the U.S. election results,” Nicolussi said.
Steinhardt junior Scarlett Tapiero told WSN that it would be “nice to be removed from that political turmoil” in the United States. Other students like CAS junior Shravan Potluri, on the other hand, had planned on studying abroad even prior to the election.
“Ultimately, whether Trump or Harris came to power, it wouldn’t have affected my decision in the long run,” Potluri said.
Contact Samantha Hong at [email protected].
