Postgraduate Research Global Update as of August 2025

Our unique Pulse trackers and Share of Search data provide insights on thousands of prospective students interested in Global PhD opportunities. As of August 2025, we’re seeing that:

• After months of interest in US research falling from all tracked audiences, we see a change in July 2025 - Asian audiences are slightly more likely to search for the US than they were a year ago. Despite the consistent falls in interest, the US remains a top 5 PhD destination for each of our tracked audiences.
  
  
• Canadian research continues its recovery in terms of search interest, with year-on-year growth from all tracked audiences seeing it appear in the top 5 destinations for European, North American and African audiences, and place 6th for Asian audiences.
  
  
• Spring 2026 remains the most popular entry point for all tracked destinations, though we see a slight pivot back towards Autumn 2025 as we approach these entry dates.
  
  
• Interest in Microbiology continues to grow - most notably in Germany where it has more than doubled YoY - and it is now in the top 5 most popular research areas in Ireland, Australia and Germany.