69% Indians prefer US for higher education over UK, Canada, shows survey

Despite concerns about affordability, safety, and security, the US continues to be the preferred destination for 69 per cent of Indian students planning to study abroad, according to the Oxford International’s Student Global Mobility Index (SGMI).

The UK ranks second with 54 per cent, followed by Canada at 43 per cent, and Australia at 27 per cent, as reported by a survey-based study.

"In a time when global education is increasingly without borders, the findings from the SGMI report shed light on the ongoing appeal of quality education and respected institutions, despite the existing concerns about costs and safety," Mohit Gambir, MD of Oxford International Education Services.

Key highlights of the report:

— 69% of the surveyed Indian students voted for US as the preferred country to pursue higher education over other countries like UK (54%), Canada (43%) and Australia (27%)

— Quality of education and reputed universities stand out as top reasons for Indian students to choose a country for higher education

— Parents/guardians are the biggest influencers in shaping the decision to pursue education abroad among Indian students

Quality and reputation of education a key factor

The study reveal, 45 per cent of students value the quality of education in the US, while 42 per cent appreciate the reputation of its universities. Conversely, in the UK, 59 per cent of students focus on the quality of education and 61 per cent on the reputation of the institutions.

Parents and guardians as primary influencers

According to the SGMI survey, 71 per cent of Indian students said their parents or guardians were the main influencers in deciding to study abroad. This trend is consistent among students from Nigeria (72 per cent), Pakistan (71 per cent), and Vietnam (62 per cent), with 44 per cent of Indian students also citing their closest friends as influential.

Affordability and scholarships influence destination choices

In terms of affordability, 28 per cent of Indian students chose the UK due to its reasonable course fees, followed by Australia (20 per cent), Canada (18 per cent), and the US (9 per cent). Moreover, 34 per cent of all surveyed students prefer Australia for its scholarship opportunities, with Canada at 32 per cent, the UK at 27 per cent, and the US at 23 per cent.

Higher education agents play a big role

Notably, 35 per cent of Indian and Nigerian students engage with higher education agents for information when deciding on courses and universities, compared to 23 per cent from Pakistan and 22 per cent from Vietnam.

The SGMI study is a collaboration between Oxford International and the Knowledge Partnership.

Other highlights: Overall university rankings websites (51%), University webpages (50%), Search engines (49%) and Social Media sites (42%) were the most popular information sources.

The most valuable sources of information were university webpages, search engines and teachers, but a range of sources was highly valued by respondents. Students from India don’t think social media sites are as valuable as students in other countries.