The number of Asian students attending U.S. colleges and universities has constantly increased due to their parents' enthusiasm about education.

Students from Korea, China, India, Japan and Vietnam are studying at prestigious universities on the East Coast and state universities and community colleges elsewhere in the U.S.

According to statistics released in November by the Institute of International Education in the U.S., six of the 10 foreign countries which sent the largest numbers of students to American colleges and universities in the 2008-2009 academic year were in Asia.

The number of Korean students increased by 75,065 or 8.6 percent over the previous academic year. That of Indian students grew by 103,260 or 9.2 percent and of Chinese 98,510 or 21.1 percent. The three countries topped the list.

The number of Vietnamese students increased at the fastest pace, rising by 12,823 or a whopping 46 percent on-year. It also increased by 45 percent in the previous year. In just three years, Vietnam jumped from 20th place to the top 10 among foreign countries in terms of the number of students attending American colleges and universities.

According to data by the U.S. Department of Commerce, school and living expenses for foreign students in the U.S. amount to a whopping US$17.8 billion per year. A considerable portion of the money comes from the pockets of their parents in Asia, a continent of newly wealthy where people have the highest enthusiasm about education in the world.