This report focuses on international tertiary level education, which has expanded rapidly in recent decades, driven largely by the increasing numbers of young people pursuing a higher education. In 2004, approximately 2.5 million tertiary level students were studying outside their home country. This represents a mere 0.3% of total international tourist arrivals, which reached 763 million in that year. However, the implications and importance of the cross-border flows of international students far exceed the relatively insignificant numbers and spending power of this category of tourists. Patterns of international study serve to bolster the long-term political and cultural hegemony of key destination countries, such as Asia, Africa and Latin America, which are the major source markets for overseas outbound study tourism.

Foreign study depends on a variety of facilitating factors, such as visa requirements and finances. National and, in some cases, regional governments, play a key role in promoting international education – both inbound and outbound. The availability of grants and the possibility of working to finance one’s studies are important financial considerations.