By Admin 
The trend of studying abroad from India is continuously increasing. Not just colleges or universities, now a large number of Indian families are sending their children abroad even at the school level. The new figures released by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in the winter session of Parliament clearly show how rapidly the presence of Indian students is increasing in the countries of the world and how India is emerging as a major power on the global education map.
For the first time, the ministry has also included school level data, making the picture even clearer. This change is being considered necessary because now the complete and real picture of student mobility has come to light, where earlier only college or university students were counted, now the entire education system is being looked at.
Number of Indian students to cross 18.8 lakh in 2025
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, by 2025 the total number of Indian students studying in 153 countries of the world will exceed 18.8 lakh. Of these, 6.28 lakh are school students and 12.54 lakh are in higher education i.e. universities and colleges. This is the first time that school level children have also been included, making the total number appear to have increased suddenly.
Decline in university students compared to 2024, but total number increases
In 2024, the Ministry of External Affairs had informed that 13.3 lakh university students would be abroad. Now the report of 2025 shows that the number of students in universities and higher education is 12.54 lakh, which means that after the continuous increase of the last three years, there has been a decrease for the first time. But the total number has increased because school data has now been added.
Top three countries for Indian students
The three countries which are most attractive for Indian students both at school and college level are Canada, 4,27,085 students, America, 2,55,447 students and United Arab Emirates, i.e. UAE, 2,53,832 students. The number of Indian students in these countries continues to remain high. Whereas in 2025, the highest number of Indian students for university and college education is in Canada 4,27,085, America 2,55,247, United Kingdom 1,73,190, Australia 1,38,579, Germany 49,483, Russia 27,000, Kyrgyzstan 16,500 and Georgia 16,000. These countries especially attract undergraduate and post graduate students.
New school-level data has changed a lot. There are a large number of Indian expatriate families in the Gulf countries, whose children study in the schools there. In this, the number of school students is UAE 2,47,325, Qatar 47,846, Kuwait 50,000, Saudi Arabia 75,000 and Oman 44,547, that is, Indian school children form the largest student population in many Gulf countries.
Why did higher education decline?
The decline in the number of college and university students compared to 2024 is due to many reasons. Like India-Canada diplomatic tension, visa process slowed down. Plans of many students got stopped. New checks and strictures in the US, additional scrutiny of immigration rules and documents, stringent student visa and dependent rules in the UK, especially affecting entry for master’s courses, and increased financial requirements and difficult verification in Australia, despite all this, the overall presence of Indian students abroad is still very high.
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