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Picture Courtesy: The Hindu

Context:

India’s latest wave of student migration marks a decisive shift that is no longer confined to elite universities or programmes that are fully funded. Today’s migration is characterised by self-financed education where middle-class households invest heavily in the promise of a global degree and upward social mobility. In Ministry of External Affairs data, more than 13.2 lakh Indian students were enrolled in over 70 countries by 2023, which rose to 13.35 lakh in 2024, and projected to reach 13.8 lakh in 2025.

Current status of student migration:

• Around 8 lakh (1.88 million) students are currently studying abroad across 153 countries, this includes both school-level and university/college-level students.
• For the first time in several years, university/college enrolments have declined — down about 7% in 2025 compared with 2024.
• Canada, USA, UK, Australia, UAE remain the most popular destinations. Despite Canada’s traditional popularity, policy tightening and visa scrutiny have contributed to a slowdown there.

Why student migration is becoming increasingly prominent today?

Demographic pressure and youth aspirations

• India has one of the largest youth populations in the world, creating intense competition for quality higher education and high-paying jobs.
• For many middle-class households, overseas education is perceived as a shortcut to global exposure, social mobility, and economic security, especially in a saturated domestic job market. 

Perceived gaps in domestic higher education

• Despite expansion, India’s higher education system continues to face challenges related to quality variation, faculty shortages, research ecosystem gaps, and employability outcomes.
• Limited seats in premier institutions and uneven quality across colleges push students to seek perceived meritocratic systems abroad. 

Weak employment absorption at home

• Slower growth of high-skilled, well-paid formal-sector jobs has weakened the education–employment link within India.
• Student migration increasingly functions as a labour-market strategy, not merely an academic decision, aimed at accessing global job markets. 

Expansion of self-financing and education loans

• The availability of education loans, NBFC financing, and family-backed borrowing has enabled even non-elite households to fund overseas education.
• Migration decisions are increasingly debt-financed, reflecting financialisation of aspirations. 

Policy signals from destination countries

• Ageing populations and skill shortages in developed countries have encouraged education-led migration pipelines.
• Universities in these countries rely on international students for revenue, workforce replenishment and demographic balance, indirectly encouraging inflows.

Multidimensional implication of students’ migration:

Expansion without equity

• The rapid growth of Indian student migration is often described as a democratisation of global education, as students from non-elite and middle-class backgrounds now access foreign institutions.
• However, this access is unevenly structured, with a majority entering low-ranking universities, vocational colleges, and private institutions, rather than globally reputed centres of excellence. 

Institutional dependence in host countries

• In the United Kingdom, many post-1992 universities (earlier polytechnics) increasingly rely on international students for financial viability.
• Entry norms are often diluted and placement support remains limited, raising concerns over academic dilution.
• Evidence that only about 25% of Indian postgraduates secure sponsored skilled visas highlights the structural gap between educational aspiration and labour-market absorption. 

Debt-driven educational mobility

• Most students finance overseas education through education loans, family savings, or mortgaged property, with costs often ₹40–50 lakh per student.
• Migration thus becomes financialised, embedding households in long-term debt obligations. 

Reverse remittances

• When post-study employment fails to materialise, families face debt distress, delayed social mobility or forced return.
• Economists describe this as reverse remittances, where capital flows from India to advanced economies, subsidising foreign education and labour markets. 

Economic gains for destination countries

• In Canada, international students contributed $30.9 billion to GDP in 2022, supporting over 6 lakh jobs, with Indians forming nearly 45% of enrolments.
• In the United States, Indian students spend $7–8 billion annually, sustaining universities and local economies. 

What are the key measures to reduce students’ migration?

Global competitiveness of domestic institutions: A fundamental measure to reduce student migration is to upgrade the quality, global ranking and research capacity of Indian higher education institutions so that students are not compelled to look abroad for academic excellence. Government initiatives such as the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 aim to promote multidisciplinary universities, faculty autonomy, research orientation and international benchmarking, while schemes like the Institutions of Eminence (IoE) seek to develop globally competitive Indian universities. 

Expanding access to high-quality higher education: Student migration is often driven by limited seats in premier institutions, despite high domestic demand. The government has responded by expanding capacity through the creation of new IITs, IIMs, AIIMS and central universities, alongside the establishment of PM SHRI schools to strengthen the school-to-university pipeline, thereby reducing early academic exclusion that pushes students abroad. 

Strengthening research ecosystem and doctoral opportunities: Many students migrate due to inadequate research funding and infrastructure in India. The launch of the National Research Foundation (NRF) under NEP 2020 seeks to enhance funding for basic and applied research, improve doctoral and post-doctoral opportunities, and reduce the compulsion to pursue research degrees overseas.

Aligning education with employment and industry needs: A major push factor behind student migration is weak employability outcomes in India. Government initiatives such as Skill India, PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) and industry-linked internships under NEP 2020 aim to strengthen the education–employment linkage, ensuring that students see credible career pathways within the domestic economy. 

Attracting global universities to operate in India: Rather than exporting students, India is increasingly attempting to import global education ecosystems. The UGC regulations (2023) allowing top-ranked foreign universities to set up campuses in India, particularly in GIFT City, aim to provide international-quality education at lower cost, thereby reducing outbound student migration. 

Conclusion:

India’s expanding student migration reflects not just the pull of global education but deeper domestic constraints in quality education, employment prospects and social mobility. While overseas study offers opportunity, its growing financialisation, unequal outcomes and rising precarity expose contradictions between aspiration and achievement. Unless India strengthens its higher education ecosystem, regulates migration intermediaries and aligns education with meaningful employment, student migration will increasingly resemble a high-risk survival strategy rather than a pathway to genuine human capital development. 

Source: The Hindu