There was a year-on-year progress within the whole variety of US examine visas issued for Indian college students, from over 96,000 in 2021 and 133,000 in 2022, to greater than 140,000 in 2023.
“The variety of college students from India to the US is repeatedly rising. We’re additionally actually proud to say that each first time scholar who needed a visa appointment bought it, one thing we weren’t in a position to obtain prior to now,” Brenda Soya, public affairs officer on the US Consulate Normal in Mumbai, instructed The PIE Information.
“Mumbai itself has had extra scholar visa interviews than wherever else on this planet,” she added, talking on the EducationUSA honest in Mumbai on August 24.
Regardless of 1 / 4 of worldwide college students within the US coming from India, the vast majority of them are male college students, with ladies making up about one third of all Indian college students learning within the US.
That is regardless of a current survey stating that almost all Indian ladies who want to examine overseas wish to go to the US.
“There are nonetheless fewer feminine college students than males within the US from India, and that’s one thing we are attempting to determine. The explanation might be that almost all of them are going for STEM, and historically extra males be a part of the programs,” said Soya.
“There are statistically extra ladies on US campuses, so in case you are a girl from India you’re a part of the highest half of the bulk, which ought to be comforting.”
In keeping with Soya, there are additionally key variations in how EducationUSA gala’s at the moment are organised in India in comparison with earlier years.
“I consider we at the moment are getting stronger candidates from India. Prior to now, there have been lots of questions on what number of college students will likely be let in, how a lot GPA is required, college students all the time needed to know a formulation,” stated Soya.
“At present the recruiters and college students coming to the honest are extra discerning. College students realise that it’s a mutual relationship between them and the colleges, and that American training could be very accessible.”
There are nonetheless fewer feminine college students than males within the US from India, and that’s one thing we are attempting to determine.
Brenda Soya, US Consulate Normal Mumbai.
In keeping with Shivam Gupta at MetaApply, the Indian market has superior with college students being extra educated about what they need, affordability of programs, and aiming for research in areas like information science and analytics.
US universities, which noticed a 35% progress in Indian college students in 2022/23 in comparison with 2021/22, are catering to a special market from the one they had been used to just some years in the past.
Whereas information seen by The PIE means that 76% of scholars from India are nonetheless pursuing STEM majors, extra college students are enquiring about non-STEM packages.
“I’m seeing extra curiosity in programs like Social Sciences than earlier than. Earlier once I was right here, the queries had been principally about engineering, laptop science, and enterprise programs,” stated Jason Cronk, director of recruitment and monetary support, College of Pennsylvania GSE.
“College students are additionally preferring careers in public coverage, counselling, and instructing. I used to spend so much of time educating college students on what a masters diploma appears like, now I’m seeing that college students are extra knowledgeable.”
With Indian college students going past STEM within the US, establishments like American Musical and Dramatics Academy are additionally pitching their packages in India.
“Whereas most different establishments are STEM-oriented, we’re a performing arts faculty. If college students want to go after careers in theatres, movies, OTT, it’s solely pure they may pursue training within the US or in India,” stated Palak Tejani, recruitment specialist at AMDA.
“We don’t have entry degree assessments for college students quite auditions. College students need to ship monologues to us, which we consider. We’re additionally conducting a dwell audition in Mumbai in November for potential college students.”
With India being one of many largest worldwide scholar supply markets on this planet, it’s a primary for a lot of US universities initiating direct recruitment efforts in India.
“That is our first time in India and we needed to get publicity within the nation. We’re a specialised college and our largest problem is that many questions are about UG programs however we don’t provide any,” stated Cherish-Hagen Swanson, worldwide scholar coordinator, College of Western States – a non-public well being sciences college.
Some establishments like Canisius College, a non-public Jesuit establishment in New York, are placing much less emphasis on assessments and extra significance on ‘actual world experiences’, which may enchantment to worldwide college students.
“We don’t deal with previous grades or assessments however quite take a look at the particular person as a complete. We are attempting to develop our worldwide workplace and seeing lots of curiosity in areas like India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and West Africa,” stated Sarah Burke, worldwide admissions counsellor, Canisius College.
Although the US nonetheless stays a precedence over the UK, Australia, Canada, and different in style international locations, a lot of remoted incidents have led to questions concerning the security of Indian college students.
Simply in 2024 alone, 11 Indian or Indian-origin college students within the US have died in accidents, violent incidents, and extra.
“Pupil security is a high concern for the US and establishments within the nation. Every US college has their very own security and safety plan. So when college students arrive on the campus, it’s on them to ask questions concerning the campus’s safety system,” stated Soya.
“College students want to concentrate on what sources they’ve equivalent to their entry to campus officers, if they’ve downloaded the mandatory apps, and many others. We additionally do workshops on the Consulate, so it’s vital for fogeys and potential college students to remain in contact with us as effectively.”
