As global travel restrictions had begun to ease a month ago right before the new Covid-19 variant Omicron raised its head again, Singapore was the latest country to allow resumption of air travel from India.
Students with study abroad ambitions are gearing up eagerly applying to foreign universities while keeping a lookout for how the fresh precautions regarding the new strain would look like.
The US, UK and Canada remain the top preferred destinations for Indian students wanting to study abroad.
Students choosing UK over Australia
While many countries have opened up to students from India completely, one of the biggest destinations for Indian students — Australia — is still working to find a way as per recent reports.
So, many students who were interested in studying in Australia moved to the UK or Canada as these countries were prompt in granting vaccine approvals and welcoming back Indian students following the pandemic-induced lockdowns.
Most students did not want to lose another year and were not ready to wait for Australia to start allowing travellers from India.
After Brexit, there have been reports of labour shortages in the UK. Additionally, the pandemic has also increased the demand for qualified professionals in sectors such as healthcare, logistics and information technology.
Also, students who complete an undergraduate or master’s degree in the UK can now stay back and work in the UK for two years, through the new Graduate Route. This is also influencing students in their decision to study in the UK.
Many pivoting to Canada
When the US was ravaged by the pandemic last year, Canada seemed to be tackling the health crisis in a better way, and as a result many students pivoted to Canada.
However, students are now warming up to the US again as the country is now in a much better position to manage the pandemic.
One other factor behind students choosing to study in Canada is the much easier immigration opportunities that the country offers. Canada also has many top ranked universities which offer quality education at a much lower cost than US universities.
According to a recent report from consulting firm RedSeer, the number of Indian students studying abroad is expected to reach 1.8 million by 2024.
Despite the barriers induced by the Covid-19 pandemic student interest in studying abroad has remained resilient, driven by easier immigration and better job opportunities, the report said.
Students want to stay closer to home
As students faced difficulties last year in returning home due to the travel restrictions and lockdowns, many students are also choosing to study at Dubai campuses of American, Canadian and UK universities, as it is much closer to India.
Singapore, which has globally reputed universities, is now seeing more interest from students. Many parents are also choosing not to send their children too far away for higher studies as the pandemic is still far from over.
Twinning programs becoming more popular
As a result of a series of pandemic-related restrictions, many are now opting to get their higher education through twinning programs.
Twinning programs are agreements between local institutions or pathway providers with partnering foreign universities.
This arrangement allows students to pursue their education in the home country for a period after which they can travel abroad to complete the remaining course in the foreign institution.
In the scope of twinning programs, Indian institutions and pathway providers enable undergraduate and postgraduate courses with regular curricula of the partnering foreign institution.
Students can transfer their credits to the partnering foreign educational institution after completing a certain portion of the course in the home country.
Pursuing higher education in foreign institutions is an exciting and memorable experience. Ambitious Indian students who have wanted to pursue their dream of studying abroad, are not letting the pandemic come in the way and are charging ahead towards a promising future.
– Article by Vaibhav Singh, Co-founder of Leap
Read: Why US is the preferred higher education destination for Indian students over other countries
Read: Reasons why EB-5 visa is the best route for students who want to study abroad
