DETROIT — According to a study, by 2018, Michigan will need to fill 274,000 STEM field jobs. 

The Global Talent Retention Initiative of Michigan, the nation’s first international student retention effort, targets some of the most important talent who can help to fill those jobs critical to the State’s success in the new economy. 

The data tracked by GTRI in its recent study reveals that a full 52% of students, using their student visa to work after graduation, were in STEM fields – more than four times the average of native-born students. 

The GTRI data—perhaps the first of its kind in the country—offers a glimpse of the impact that international students can have on the local economy. It indicates that international students still desire to stay and contribute to the Michigan economy in important ways and, in fact, appear to be nearly as likely as domestic university students to stay in Michigan after graduation.

GTRI was launched in 2011 to retain international students in Michigan, after their graduation. It is the first and only such program in the nation.