More than a third of the 1.3 million Indian students pursuing higher education abroad have identified the United States as their premier study abroad choice. They cite the United States’ education system’s excellence, the academic spectrum available, and the nation’s leading-edge technology as important factors driving this preference. This surge in student preference has coincided with the US government issuing an unprecedented 140,000 visas to Indian students from October 2022 to September 2023.
Julie Stufft, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services, has highlighted the substantial efforts undertaken to meet India’s demand for visas. Setting an ambitious goal to issue one million visas in India marked a historic milestone. Furthermore, over a million visas have been granted well in advance. Between June and August, the authorities issued a staggering 90,000 student visas to Indian students, aligning with the academic year 2023. A significant majority of Indian students, roughly 77 percent, have opted for disciplines within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Over one-third of Indian students are pursuing higher education, specifically in mathematics and computer science courses.
The United States’ prominence as the preferred study destination owes much to its exceptional educational standards. This is evident in 16 American universities securing places in the top 25 of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2023. Students also benefit from unparalleled flexibility in tailoring their academic trajectories, as per the reports.
The process of issuing over a million visas involved rigorous efforts on the part of the US, including staff working six to seven days a week to ensure student interviews could align with their class schedules. This record-setting visa issuance now firmly establishes India as the primary source of students coming to the United States for higher education.
