Pakistani students in USA statistics 2026: the official numbers

The latest annual count is 13,165 Pakistani students in the United States in the 2024/25 academic year, according to IIE's Open Doors 2025 report, a rise of 19.8 percent on 2023/24. That total includes 2,517 on Optional Practical Training (OPT). Newer US government data shows 16,790 Pakistani F and M students with active SEVIS records in September 2026. Here is every official figure, and what each one measures.

How many Pakistani students are in the USA?

Three official sources answer this question, and each counts something different. These were the latest figures when we checked on 14 October 2026.

What each number means, and does not mean:

• Open Doors is the yearly census of international students that US universities report to the Institute of International Education (IIE), with State Department support. It counts students, not visas.
• SEVIS is the Department of Homeland Security system that tracks F and M students. The annual report counts records, and it states that one student can have more than one record in a year, so it is not an exact head count.
• Visas issued count new F1 visas in a year. Students already in the US on an earlier visa do not appear, and a visa issued does not prove the student enrolled.

How has the number of Pakistani students in the US changed?

Open Doors shows a dip in 2020/21, during the pandemic, and growth every year since.

The 2024/25 total is up 19.8 percent on 2023/24, the change IIE itself publishes. The previous high in IIE's historical table was 8,644 in 2001/02. Across all countries, the US hosted 1,177,766 international students in 2024/25, up 4.5 percent.

What this does not show: Open Doors 2025 covers the year that ended in mid 2025. It does not reflect the autumn 2025 or 2026 intakes. As of 14 October 2026, it is the latest edition.

Do most Pakistani students in the US study at graduate level?

Yes. Graduate students are the largest group in the Open Doors 2025 fact sheet for Pakistan.

OPT is work experience taken after, or sometimes during, a degree. Students on OPT are counted by Open Doors even though they are no longer in class.

The same fact sheet shows that in 2024/25:

• 75.6 percent of Pakistani students were at doctorate granting universities, 9.5 percent at master's colleges and universities, 8.9 percent at associate's colleges, 5.1 percent at baccalaureate colleges and 0.9 percent at special focus institutions;
• 66.2 percent were at public institutions and 33.8 percent at private ones;
• the top host states were Texas, Illinois, New York, Massachusetts and California;
• the economic impact of Pakistani students was $525 million in 2024, a US Department of Commerce figure quoted on the fact sheet.

What does the latest SEVIS data show for 2026?

The SEVIS Data Mapping Tool on the official Study in the States website is updated every month. These are its counts for Pakistani citizens.

In September 2026 the tool showed:

• Level: 6,534 master's, 4,981 bachelor's, 2,953 doctorate, 1,282 associate and 772 language training students.
• Gender: 11,203 male and 5,587 female.
• States: Texas 2,566, New York 1,683, Illinois 1,271, California 1,024 and Virginia 961.
• Rank: Pakistan was 13th among countries of citizenship, by our ranking of the tool's figures.

The annual SEVIS by the Numbers 2024 report, published by ICE in June 2025, counted 16,478 active Pakistani student records in calendar year 2024, the 16th highest. It is the latest annual edition we could find.

What it means: the September 2026 count is almost the same as September 2025, after a rise of more than 2,900 the year before. It is a monthly snapshot that includes continuing students, so it is not a count of new arrivals.

How many F1 visas does the US issue to Pakistanis each year?

The US fiscal year runs from 1 October to 30 September.

FY2019 to FY2024 come from the State Department's "Nonimmigrant Visa Issuances by Visa Class and by Nationality" tables. FY2025 is our total of the twelve monthly reports, because the full year FY2025 table was not on the State Department site when we checked on 14 October 2026. The official figure may differ slightly when it appears.

What it means: these are visas issued, not students enrolled. Students who are already in the US, including those on OPT, do not need a new visa each year, which is why the yearly visa count is much smaller than the Open Doors total.

What do the 2026 monthly figures show?

The monthly reports for fiscal year 2026 show far fewer F1 visas for Pakistani nationals than a year earlier.

The February 2026 report was the newest monthly report published when we checked on 14 October 2026.

What it does and does not mean: fewer F1 visas were issued. The tables do not show how many Pakistanis applied or were refused, so they cannot tell you whether fewer students applied, more were refused, or cases took longer. These months matter mostly for spring intakes. In FY2025, 2,154 of the 4,191 F1 visas for Pakistanis were issued from April to August.

Across all countries, IIE's Fall 2025 Snapshot reported that new international enrolment at US institutions fell 17 percent in autumn 2025, while total international students fell 1 percent. The snapshot gives no figure for Pakistan.

Is there an official F1 visa success rate for Pakistan?

No. As of 14 October 2026, the State Department does not publish F1 refusals by nationality.

• The only refusal rate it publishes country by country is the adjusted refusal rate for B visitor visas, with tables up to FY2025. It does not cover student visas.
• Its worldwide workload table shows that in FY2024, across all nationalities, 400,737 F1 visas were issued and 278,553 F1 applications ended the year refused. It has no Pakistan breakdown.

Our article on the USA student visa ratio for Pakistan explains why any Pakistan "ratio" you hear is an estimate, not an official number.

What do these numbers mean if you are applying?

These statistics describe groups. They do not predict your result, because every F1 decision is made on your own I-20, funds, study plans and ties to Pakistan. Graduate study is where most Pakistani students are, and our guide to a master's in the USA from Pakistan covers that route. For the UK, Canada, Australia and Germany, see our Pakistani students abroad statistics.

If you want a careful check of your own file, our USA student visa consultants advise students in person at Lake City Meadows (Ex State Life), next to DHA Phase 5, Lahore, and online. No consultant can promise a visa. The consular officer decides.