Study abroad applications for US, Aus rise amid pent-up demand post Covid

Easier norms support upsurge; US remains top destination for STEM students

After a lull due to the Covid-19 pandemic and closed borders, the likes of the US, Australia, Canada and the UK are back in vogue for Indian students preparing to study overseas ahead of the Fall 2022 semester.

While the US continues to lead as the lead destination for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) students, better post-study visa norms and reopening of borders have brought Australia back in the fray with the UK and Canada.

According to overseas education consultants, the rise in number of applications due to pent up demand has in fact led to delays in processing from university end.

"This year, the interest is very high because of pent-up demand and greater awareness about studying abroad. This has caused a lot of delays in processing from the university end. There is an expected delay in visas as well due to that. The US has made changes to the process giving priority to students who have not been rejected visas earlier.Canada has seen a huge rise in applicants and many rejections as well. Quality has become a big concern for all countries. They are looking for students with a primary purpose as education," Sumeet Jain, Co-founder, Yocket, one of India's leading platforms for study abroad aspirants told Business Standard.

The US Embassy in India too recently announced that student visa appointments were available and that students who had received an I-20 form from their universities and needed to arrive at their campuses by mid-August should begin booking an appointment.

For the US, the continuation of its optional practical training (OPT) which provides an extended 24 months of visa on top of 12 months for STEM courses has led to Indian students filing applications for the Fall 2022 semester in large numbers, likely to sustain it as the top destination from India.

However, along with opening up their borders, other destinations like the UK and Australia have also extended their post-study visas to attract international students, leading to a rise in applications by Indian students. "The UK has recently launched a post study work visa which has got it more interest. Australia is trying some experiments with work visas to make it more attractive for students. We need to see how it turns out," Jain added.

A jump in overseas education applications from India has also led to a 300 per cent hike in student education loan enquiries at overseas education and accommodation solutions provider University Living, according to its founder and CEO Saurabh Arora.

"The US government has now made software changes to ensure that those who are refused the visa once in Summer-Spring 2022 will not be able to see another visa appointment again in 2022. They even announced the interview waiver scheme is beneficial for many Indian students," said Arora. Arora added that in the UK, changes in the new post-study work (PSW) visa include students being allowed to work and live in the UK for three years after completing a PhD, stay and work for two years after completion of a master's degree which can be extended by the government from two years to four years.

On the other hand, while Canada continues to attract student applications from India, the easy route to permanent residency (PR) has led to a rise in visa rejections as well.

According to overseas education consultant Sameer Yadav, the number of student applications for Canada has shot up in recent years, leading to a higher rate of rejection. "Earlier, the visa rejection rate for students used to be less than 50 per cent. Last year it went up to 70 per cent and this year it is 75 per cent. This is because not just serious students but also those who simply apply in a bid to gain permanent residency have seen an increase post pandemic," Yadav told Business Standard.

As a result, several applications are either not supported by relevant documents or lack intent in their university applications, leading to higher rate of rejections, Yadav added.

Meanwhile, with the rupee depreciating against dollar, while the same has become a bit expensive in rupee terms, many students are taking dollar-based loans as well where it is not making a lot of difference, Jain said.

"The bright side to this is that students who had taken an INR loan two years back are repaying a smaller amount in USD because of appreciation. But this is not the biggest concern because students and parents realize that education is a great investment and some amount will not make a very big change," Jain added.