The number of students from Macau studying in the United States in 2007/2008 rose to 421, an increase of 8.5 percent, according to figures by Open Doors 2008, the annual report on international academic mobility published by the Institute of International Education (IIE) with support from the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Meanwhile, the number of Hong Kong students enrolled in US institutions of higher education increased from 7,722 to 8,286, a 7.8 percent increase over the 2006/07 academic year.  The 7.3 percent increase in 2007/2008 brings the number of students from Hong Kong in the US to its highest point since 1998/1999.  Hong Kong now ranks as the 15th- leading place of origin for students coming to the United States, following the United Kingdom at #14 with 8,367 students in the US.
According to Ann White, Director, China-Hong Kong for the Institute of International Education, “The U.S. remains the preferred destination for students from Hong Kong who want to study abroad because of the quality and prestige associated with an American degree. Hong Kong students are drawn to the value and lifelong rewards of study in the United States.  Another contributing factor is greater access to comprehensive and accurate information about study in the U.S. through the Hong Kong advising office of Education USA, which is supported by the US Department of State, and an increased level of activity by United States colleges and universities to attract students from Hong Kong.  
Looking at students from Macau in the US, 75.8 percent were undergraduates, while Hong Kong's undergraduates came to 69.7 percent.
Open Doors 2008 also finds that American students are more frequently choosing non-traditional study abroad destinations.  The number of US students studying in China, Argentina, South Africa, Ecuador and India each increased by more than 20 percent over the previous year.
It reported that 1,059 American students studied in Hong Kong in the 2006/07 academic year, an increase of 15.7 percent.