With 1 % decline in Indian students going to the US, a huge 44 % rise noted in arrivals of US students in India
American universities may be the best in the world and Indian educational institutions may not even figure in the global top 10. But that hasn’t stopped a surprisingly large number of US citizens to study in India.
The latest Open Doors Report, published in partnership with the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, says there was a 1% drop in the number of Indian students going to US universities in 2010-11. But more surprisingly, there was a 44.4% increase in US nationals coming to India to study and is expected to rise further.
On of the factors attributed to this sudden jump is the Swades effect. An increasing number of non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian Origin (PIO) have gravitated back home in recent years. Nilesh Shah, NRG entrepreneur and founder of Return to Ahmedbad (RTA) club with 30 members, said, “Rising cost of education in the US is one of the major factors prompting the reverse trend.”
Improved educational infrastructure, rising foreign institutional tie-ups and lower costs have brought US students to India. Tuition fess alone can range between $50,000 and $60,000 annually.
The Open Door Report says 2,70,604 US students studied abroad in this academic year, compared to 260,327 the previous year. Though the UK, Italy and Spain remain top destinations, there is a notable increase in US students going to study in the less traditional destinations, including India.
American students opt for social sciences (22%), business and management (21%), humanities (12%), and fine arts or applied arts (8%) in foreign universities The report adds that the students seek affordable opportunities to gain valuable international experience. The rise is ascribed to the overseas campuses adding new short-term faculty-led programs and new bilateral exchange programs to enable more US students to have overseas experience.
Nirav Shah, a US citizen who moved from California to Ahmedabad, says, “Many NRGs like me prefer to relocate to their hometown so that their children get the right cultural exposure and good schooling. However, this new trend of more students from US choosing to come to India for higher education shows that now global education exposure is available in India at affordable costs.”
