What is a J-1 visa, and why does it matter to Arizona?
What the visa means, how international researchers and students contribute, and who comes to ASU.
A J-1 visa lets researchers come to the U.S. for a set period of time.
Someone based at a university abroad might join an ASU lab for a few months or spend several years teaching or working with a research team.
The State Department oversees J-1 exchange programs. ASU sponsors participants and issues a form called the DS-2019 after reviewing their plans and financial support. They use that form to apply for a visa from the U.S. government.
How is the J-1 visa different from other visas?
J-1
Research, teaching and study
A J-1 visa is for someone taking part in an exchange program with an approved sponsor, such as a university. Different types of exchange have different rules and time limits.
For example: A researcher from another university joins an ASU lab for a temporary research appointment.
F-1
Academic study
An F-1 visa is for full-time academic study or an eligible language-training program. It is a common route for international students earning U.S. degrees.
For example: A student comes to ASU for a bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate degree. Employment and practical training have separate conditions.
H-1B
Employment
An H-1B visa is for qualifying specialty-occupation employment. The job generally requires a bachelor’s degree or higher in a directly related specialty, or its equivalent.
For example: A university petitions for a qualified researcher to take a specialized job. This route has employer and wage requirements.
O-1
Extraordinary ability
An O-1 visa is for someone who meets the extraordinary-ability standard in fields such as science, education, business or the arts, or the separate achievement standard for film and television.
For example: A scientist with sustained national or international recognition comes to work in their field. Having a PhD alone does not establish eligibility.
J-1 indicates exchange status. It doesn’t tell you what someone does, how much they’re paid or who supports their work.
A J-1 researcher might be a postdoc employed by ASU or a visitor supported by another institution. J-1 also includes student categories; F-1 and J-1 are not interchangeable.
J-1 scholars at ASU
How many come, what they study and how the population changes from year to year.
The total Fields Origins Over time
281
ASU J-1 scholars in a single academic year.
Some visits last a few weeks; others last longer.
Arizona State University J-1 visa scholars (2025–26 academic year)
Each dot represents one scholar.
Different fields of research.
More than a third of scholars work in engineering, computing or mathematics. Others work in fields including education, health and business.
By field of research (2025–26 academic year)
Each dot represents one scholar.
Scholars from around the world.
In 2025–26, ASU hosted scholars from 47 countries across seven world regions.
By region (2025–26 academic year)
ASU’s J-1 scholar count over time.
ASU’s J-1 scholar count fell 72% over the past decade and is now well below the counts reported by universities on recent Top 40 lists.
Arizona State University J-1 visa scholars (academic years 2015–16 to 2025–26)
Annual totals.
What does Arizona get out of it?
Research takes people, equipment and time. International students and researchers contribute experiments, software, specialized skills and new questions.
Some work has a clear use now. Some is groundwork for discoveries years away.
Research often advances through developing a method, testing an idea or learning how to use a difficult technique. Its value may become clear over years.
How international scholars contribute to Arizona.
At ASU, international students and researchers have helped test wastewater for COVID-19, study potential cancer treatments and develop software to study stress. These stories show some of their contributions.
A few practical questions.
01
How many people at ASU are currently on J-1 visas?
260
people at ASU
on J-1 visas.Active J-1 visas as of October 2026
How does ASU compare with other universities?
The figures below include international scholars across visa categories, including J-1, H-1B and O-1, as well as scholars working under F-1 Optional Practical Training (OPT).
The 10 universities hosting the most international scholars (2024–25)
PositionUniversityScholars
- 1Harvard University4,596
- 2Stanford University4,466
- 3Yale University3,271
- 4Columbia University3,130
- 5University of California, Berkeley2,544
- 6University of California, Los Angeles2,459
- 7Johns Hopkins University2,417
- 8University of California, San Diego2,347
- 9University of Michigan – Ann Arbor2,281
- 10Massachusetts Institute of Technology2,222
02,5005,000 scholars
See the remaining 30 universities hosting the most international scholars in 2024–25.
- 11University of California, Davis2,075
- 12University of Pennsylvania2,008
- 13University of Illinois – Urbana-Champaign1,790
- 14Duke University and Medical Center1,787
- 15Northwestern University1,781
- 16University of California, San Francisco1,758
- 17University of Wisconsin – Madison1,612
- 18Purdue University – West Lafayette1,608
- 19University of Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh1,553
- 20Washington University in St. Louis1,502
- 21University of Minnesota – Twin Cities1,351
- 22Cornell University1,350
- 23Ohio State University – Columbus1,340
- 24University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center – Dallas1,326
- 25Emory University1,287
- 26University of Arizona1,275
- 27Rutgers University – New Brunswick1,274
- 28New York University1,273
- 29Boston University1,265
- 30Princeton University1,258
- 31University of Maryland – College Park1,131
- 32University of Texas – Austin1,124
- 33University of Florida1,106
- 34University of Illinois – Chicago1,056
- 35University of California, Irvine1,056
- 36Texas A&M University – College Station1,033
- 37University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill977
- 38University of Washington942
- 39University of Missouri – Columbia917
- 40University of Southern California917
ASU has appeared in the top 40 only four times in the last 25 years
International-scholar rankings – historical data through 2024–25.
2015–16
No. 40
2016–17
No. 39
2019–20
No. 38
2021–22
No. 38
02
Does the U.S. benefit when people come here to study?
Yes. Some former international students have founded companies. Others have led businesses that millions of Americans use. Their U.S. education was one part of a career that developed over many years.
Indra Nooyi
From India
Studied at
Yale University School of Management
Public and private management
Former CEO
PepsiCo
Earned her degree from Yale in 1980; later served as PepsiCo’s CEO for 12 years.
Mike Krieger
From Brazil
Studied at
Stanford University
Symbolic Systems
Co-founder
Instagram
Moved to California to study in 2004; co-founded Instagram in 2010.
Elon Musk
From South Africa
Studied at
University of Pennsylvania
Physics and economics
Founder – business leader
SpaceX / Tesla
Transferred to Penn from Queen’s University in Canada. Later founded SpaceX and became Tesla’s CEO.
Satya Nadella
From India
Studied at
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
Computer science
CEO
Microsoft
Earned his master’s degree in 1990, then built a career in the U.S. technology industry.
Michelle Zatlyn
From Canada
Studied at
Harvard Business School
Business administration
Co-founder
Cloudflare
Met her co-founder at Harvard, where their student project grew into a business that helps websites run securely.
Luis von Ahn
From Guatemala
Studied at
Duke University
Mathematics and computer science
Co-founder
Duolingo
Studied mathematics at Duke, then earned a PhD at Carnegie Mellon. Later co-founded the language-learning company.
Daphne Koller
From Israel
Studied at
Stanford University
Computer science
Co-founder
Coursera
Came to the U.S. for her PhD in 1989; co-founded the online education company in 2012.
Sundar Pichai
From India
Studied at
Stanford University
Materials science and engineering
CEO
Google / Alphabet
Earned his master’s degree in 1995; joined Google in 2004.
03
Who pays for a scholar’s stay?
Funding arrangements vary. Support can come from ASU, a research grant, a home institution, a government, a fellowship or personal funds. Sources can be combined.
04
Are J-1 researchers paid less?
There isn’t a standard J-1 pay rate.
Some J-1 researchers are ASU employees and receive a salary. Others are supported by another university, a government or a fellowship. These are different arrangements, even though the visa is the same.
Applicable employment laws still apply. H-1B has a separate wage rule: the higher of the prevailing wage or the employer’s actual wage for similar workers. Department of Labor
05
Do J-1 scholars compete with Americans for jobs?
J-1 status does not tell us how an appointment was filled, who applied or whether another applicant was displaced.
Research scholar and professor exchanges are not for candidates seeking tenure-track positions. State Department rules
Sources and notes
Program information
Research and population data
Each ASU story and national profile links to its source above. Dates on the ASU stories are publication years.
- ASU’s international population snapshots and Open Doors survey definitions. The public scholar snapshots include multiple visa statuses.
The ASU total, field and region charts use ISSC counts of J-1 scholars for 2025–26, and the year-by-year chart uses ISSC counts for 2015–16 to 2025–26. The university comparison uses the supplied Open Doors counts for 2024–25, covering international scholars across visa categories. The figure of 260 counts active J-1 visas at ASU as of October 2026 and includes students and other participants. The 2025–26 year label and the historical Open Doors positions come from the supplied comparison graphic. The ASU stories and national educational histories are drawn from linked sources; story illustrations are not documentary images. Comparison sources checked October 17, 2026; the comparison’s visa categories checked October 19, 2026; Musk’s profile checked October 23, 2026; other sources checked October 15, 2026.
Portrait photos via Wikimedia Commons, cropped to circles. Indra Nooyi: JeffBedford, CC BY-SA 2.0; Mike Krieger: Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0; Elon Musk: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0; Satya Nadella: Brian Smale and Microsoft, CC BY-SA 4.0; Michelle Zatlyn: Collision Conf, CC BY 2.0; Luis von Ahn: EneasMx, CC BY-SA 4.0; Daphne Koller: Collision Conf, CC BY 2.0; Sundar Pichai: © European Union, 2026, CC BY 4.0.