California enrolled the largest number of foreign students in the United States, according to a report released on Monday.

California enrolled 77,987 foreign students last year, followed by New York with 65,884, and Texas with 49,081, according to the annual Open Door report, published by the Institute of International Education with support from the US State Department.

The number of international students enrolled at US colleges and universities last year reached 582,984, a 3-percent increase from the year before.

Officials said that marked the first significant rise since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which led to a tightening of student visa policies and a perception that the United States was no longer as welcoming to overseas students.

The University of Southern California topped all U.S. universities for the sixth consecutive year, enrolling 7,115 foreign students, followed by Columbia University with 5,937, and New York University with 5,827, said the report.

The University of California in Los Angeles came in eighth with 4,704, the report said.

India last year sent the most students to American colleges, followed by China and South Korea, according to the report.     

(Xinhua News Agency November 13, 2007)