Canada Leads the Way: Top Overseas Study Destination for Indian Students, NITI Aayog Reveals
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A recent report by NITI Aayog highlights the top five countries preferred by Indian students for higher education abroad. Canada has emerged as the leading destination, hosting over 4.27 lakh students in 2024, followed closely by the United States with nearly 3.38 lakh students. The United Kingdom, Australia, and Germany also feature in the top five, with 1.85 lakh, 1.22 lakh, and 43,000 students respectively. The report notes that India remains the world's largest source of international students, with over 13.35 lakh students studying abroad in 2024. However, it also points out that for every international student coming to India, 28 Indian students go abroad, highlighting a significant brain drain for the country. On the other hand, the report examines the inflow of foreign students into India, citing data from the academic year 2021-22. Nepal emerges as the top source country for international students in India, followed by Afghanistan, the United States, Bangladesh, and the United Arab Emirates. The report also reveals that Indian students who studied abroad in Canada, the US, UK, and Australia spent a total of ₹2.9 lakh crore on higher education in 2023-2024. Additionally, it notes that among the countries hosting Indian students, Latvia has the highest percentage of students, followed by Ireland and Germany. The report also highlights the growing trend of outward remittances from India, with a surge from ₹975 crore to ₹29,000 crore during 2014-24 under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme for Indian students studying abroad.
