Nigeria was the African country that sent the most students to the United States (US) in 2021 with 19,338 students up 12.19 percent, when compared to 2020 in the annual report of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), released this month.

Additionally, Kenya (5,462) was the East African country that sent the most students in 2021. Lastly, Libya (769) saw the steepest decrease in student records across the continent.

The overall number of active F-1 and M-1 student records coming from Africa increased by 5,602 student records from calendar year 2020 (60,347) to calendar year 2021 (65,949).

F-1 students are nonimmigrant students whose primary purpose is to complete an academic course of study at a Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certified school or program, while M-1 students are nonimmigrant students whose primary purpose is to complete a vocational course of study at an SEVP-certified school or program.

In its annual report, the USCIS said the COVID-19 pandemic continued to impact international student enrollment in the United States in 2021. The total number of records for active F-1 and M-1 students was 1,236,748 in calendar year 2021, a decrease of 1.2 percent from calendar year 2020.

There were 105,970 pre- and post-completions optional practical training (OPT) students with both an employment authorization document (EAD) and who reported working for an employer in calendar year 2021, compared to 122,699 in calendar year 2020 — a 13.6 percent decrease.

Read more: https://moneycentral.com.ng/exclusive/article/nigeria-sent-19338-students-to-the-us-in-2021-up-12-19/

Those who are trained in the US are always exceptional in their fields of study.