Monday, April 26, 2004
More bad news on the intl admissions front?
This story by Siddharth Srivastava seems to confirm my hunch that the new visa screening procedures for students are beginning to hurt the United States -- both from a financial (fees, multiplier effectetc) and advanced research (try filling those advanced science research posts without Asians) perspective. Though written from an Indian viewpoint, I think this trend probably holds true for most other countries that send students in large numbers to the U.S. to do advanced studies. It's the combination of tough screening procedures with the outsourcing backlash that has caused many Indian students to think twice about where to obtain the higher degree from.
Though the US remains by far the most popular destination for students from around the world, including India (over 70,000 students are currently studying there), a slow and definite change may be in the offing due to the tightening visa norms. Indian students, who form the single largest group of international students on US campuses, are looking at more friendly destinations.
According to the Council of Graduate Schools, an organization of institutes of higher education which has been tracking application numbers at 132 graduate institutes in the US, there has been a decrease in applications from international students in 90 percent of these schools this year. The master's and PhD-level schools enroll nearly half of all international graduate students in the US. The biggest decline has been in student applications from China and India - the two countries which send the largest number of students.
An indication of a shift away from the US becomes more glaring when compared to an almost exponential growth in the number of Indian students heading for other destinations. Affordable education, permanent residency, a more conducive environment, as well as lucrative employment opportunities, are the main attractions.
The number of Indian students heading to Australia doubled from 2,800 in 2001-02 to 5,700 in 2002-3, and is expected to rise to 9,000 students this year. Canada hopes to double the number of Indian students to over 5,000 this year. A study conducted by the British Council and Universities of the United Kingdom has indicated that Indian students will be the third largest contingent of overseas students in the UK by 2020, outnumbering those from the US, Germany and France. The study said as many as 29,800 Indians are expected to study in the UK by 2020, against 8,600 in 2005. A separate government-funded study has calculated that education has become one of Britain's most important export industries, earning 11 billion pounds (US$19.4 billion) annually, placing education in the same league as exports of oil and financial services.
PS: I know for a fact from well-heeled people I have spoken to personally that holiday ideas in the U.S. have been abandoned as Indian tourists head increasingly to more welcoming locations, be it Europe, South-East Asia or Australia/New Zealand. Put all of these together -- if I were a U.S. policy maker, I'd begin to get a little concerned about the trends, even assuming they may be atypical.
Though the US remains by far the most popular destination for students from around the world, including India (over 70,000 students are currently studying there), a slow and definite change may be in the offing due to the tightening visa norms. Indian students, who form the single largest group of international students on US campuses, are looking at more friendly destinations.
According to the Council of Graduate Schools, an organization of institutes of higher education which has been tracking application numbers at 132 graduate institutes in the US, there has been a decrease in applications from international students in 90 percent of these schools this year. The master's and PhD-level schools enroll nearly half of all international graduate students in the US. The biggest decline has been in student applications from China and India - the two countries which send the largest number of students.
An indication of a shift away from the US becomes more glaring when compared to an almost exponential growth in the number of Indian students heading for other destinations. Affordable education, permanent residency, a more conducive environment, as well as lucrative employment opportunities, are the main attractions.
The number of Indian students heading to Australia doubled from 2,800 in 2001-02 to 5,700 in 2002-3, and is expected to rise to 9,000 students this year. Canada hopes to double the number of Indian students to over 5,000 this year. A study conducted by the British Council and Universities of the United Kingdom has indicated that Indian students will be the third largest contingent of overseas students in the UK by 2020, outnumbering those from the US, Germany and France. The study said as many as 29,800 Indians are expected to study in the UK by 2020, against 8,600 in 2005. A separate government-funded study has calculated that education has become one of Britain's most important export industries, earning 11 billion pounds (US$19.4 billion) annually, placing education in the same league as exports of oil and financial services.
PS: I know for a fact from well-heeled people I have spoken to personally that holiday ideas in the U.S. have been abandoned as Indian tourists head increasingly to more welcoming locations, be it Europe, South-East Asia or Australia/New Zealand. Put all of these together -- if I were a U.S. policy maker, I'd begin to get a little concerned about the trends, even assuming they may be atypical.
