By Rachel Chou, Contributing Writer

The 2013 fall semester will include the highest number of international students in University history.

A total of 89 new international students, a number that includes first-years, exchange and non-degree students, transfers, and language teaching assistants, will join the student body this semester, according to Jennifer Figueroa, director of International Student Services.

These new students represent 31 countries from around the world, from places as close as Canada and as far as Zimbabwe.

Fifty-seven of the 88 participants in International Orientation were undergraduates, including dual citizens and permanent residents. Of those 57, three were transfer students, Figueroa said.

As far as demographic representation, China and Brazil make up the largest percentage of new students this year. This year’s International Orientation hosted 31 Chinese students, to make a total of 86 Chinese students on campus this fall.

The increase in students from Brazil is due to the nation’s Scientific Mobility Program Scholarship, which has already provided 18 students with an opportunity to study at the University for one year as non-degree students. Eight current University students take part in the program.