PTI
 
Washington, Mar 26: Reversing the declining trend due to post-9/11 visa restrictions, intake of foreign student in the US graduate schools has increased by 11 per cent this year with considerable number of Indian and Chinese students enrolling in the colleges.

According to the Council of Graduate Schools, the applications from foreign students have increased by 11 per cent from 2005 to 2006 against a cumulative decline of 32 per cent for two years.

The report released by the Washington-based Council said large gains in the volume of applications have been from India with 23 per cent and followed by China with 21 per cent.

On an annual basis, both India and China make up for the largest foreign student population in the US with one study pegging the Indian numbers at 85,000.

Despite the promising trends this year, the Council has pointed out that the intake of foreign students is still down, due to a cumulative drop of 32 per cent in last two years.

"This increase in applications from foreign students is good news and is a result of sustained efforts by both the federal government and graduate schools," CGS President Debra W Stewart said.

"The federal government has made considerable progress in reducing delays in visa processing and graduate institutions continue to improve their admission systems and enhance efforts to attract international applicants. But the lower volume compared to three years ago bears watching," she said.