Australia has gained the second spot as the most preferred destination for higher studies for Indian students. This after the number of students going to study in the UK fell by 4 per cent as compared to last year. However, according to this UNSECO’s 2017 rankings, the US still continues to be the top choice for Indian students to study abroad.
WHERE INDIANS PREFER TO STUDY
In 2016, 48 per cent of Indian students pursuing higher education abroad went to the US. 11 per cent of them went to Australia and 8 per cent went to the UK. The other preferred destinations were Canada (6 per cent) and the UAE (5 per cent).
WHY FALL IN No. OF STUDENTS TO UK
One of the main reasons is the stringent visa norms there. This fact was also mentioned by the Indian High Commissioner to the UK, YK Sinha.
“In the field of education, we have a bit of a problem because the number of Indian students (in the UK), which was 40,000 or so in 2010, has dropped to 19,000. The US, which had 1,04,000 Indian students in 2010, has 1,66,000 today. I think the UK universities are doing a great job, but I think we need to sort out the issues regarding visas. It is an area that both governments are talking to each other about, Sinha has said.
WHY AUSTRALIA HAS AN EDGE ABOVE ALL
With stringent VISA norms under the current US govt, experts feel that the number of students going to the US will also get affected. Thus Australia is likely to flourish as an option. University of Technology (UTS), Sydney, one of the leading institutions in Australia where 1,210 students went in the year 2016, is also expanding its presence in India.
