Share of students from abroad in France
France: Share of students from abroad was 9.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of students from abroad in France, 1999–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of students from abroad in France stood at 9.9%.
That represents a change of up 2.2% on the previous year and up 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of students from abroad in France peaked at 11.9% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 6.5%, in 1999.
France ranks 46th of 134 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Share of students from abroad in France, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 6.5% | — |
| 2000 | 6.8% | +4.5% |
| 2001 | 7.3% | +6.7% |
| 2002 | 8.2% | +12.4% |
| 2003 | 10.5% | +28.2% |
| 2004 | 11.0% | +5.2% |
| 2005 | 10.8% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 11.2% | +4.0% |
| 2007 | 11.3% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 11.2% | -0.6% |
| 2009 | 11.5% | +2.0% |
| 2010 | 11.6% | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 11.9% | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 11.8% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 9.8% | -17.3% |
| 2014 | 9.8% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 9.9% | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 9.9% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 10.2% | +3.1% |
| 2018 | 8.8% | -14.0% |
| 2019 | 9.2% | +4.6% |
| 2020 | 9.2% | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 9.0% | -2.0% |
| 2022 | 9.1% | +1.5% |
| 2023 | 9.7% | +6.0% |
| 2024 | 9.9% | +2.2% |
France compared with similar countries
- France's 9.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 10.6%, 93% of the median. (60 countries reporting)
- France's 9.9% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 9.9%, 1.0× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of students from abroad in France changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | +28.2% | 8.2% | 10.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.5% | 6.5% | 6.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 10.0% | 6.8% | 11.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.3% | 8.8% | 11.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.4% | 9.0% | 9.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near France
More education data for France
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 457,956 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 43,533 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.19 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.14 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.13 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0602 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of students from abroad in France?
- Share of students from abroad in France was 9.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of students from abroad recorded in France?
- The highest recorded value was 11.9% in 2011.
- What is the lowest share of students from abroad recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.5% in 1999.
- How does France rank for share of students from abroad?
- France ranks 46th out of 134 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of students from abroad rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of students from abroad. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
International students as a share of the country's overall tertiary enrollment. International students are those who move from their home countries for education, identified based on their past education, residence, or distinct immigration regulations.