- “Study abroad is the single most effective way of changing the way we view the world.” – Chantal Mitchell
Table of Contents:
Introduction to the topic
Why do students opt for going to study abroad?
- Reasons for choosing to study abroad
- Challenges students face in current scenario
Alternative and options
Conclusion
For Indian students, higher studying abroad has always been a dream. Interacting with multicultural people will broaden your perspective of thinking. Also, it opens vast opportunities to experience practical ways of learning from the world’s top universities.
Moreover, interacting with the global community helps you enhance your communication skills and build confidence, thus developing yourself personally. After completion of your course successfully, it uplifts your standard of living with a high salary.
These were the common reasons why students from India used to find studying abroad a lucrative option after their 12th or graduation. However, the scenario is different in 2024 from what it was earlier. With the recession hitting in Western countries and safety concerns in Canada and the US, recent reports make students think twice before opting for this option.
Is it worth going to study abroad in 2024?
Going abroad to study and thinking about staying for work in countries like the US, UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and many more is a personal choice; understanding your individual needs and making a strategy around them. This article will help you analyze the facts and see both sides of the table to decide whether foreign education suits you.
Why students opt for studying in Abroad:
Reasons for choosing study Abroad:
Before we try to understand why Indian students want to move abroad, we must first understand the challenges they face in the Indian education system – According to a report published by Economic Times Career in August 2023, only 45% of students are employable after graduating from Indian institutions. In India, most courses we study in colleges and universities are of old curriculum and need more practical exposure, Like courses in Bachelor of Arts where it’s optional to do an internship.
Immersion of Diverse Culture– So around 13 lakh students are currently studying abroad to get practical experience meeting different multicultural people from around the globe, interacting with them and learning from their perspective (for any course you take up abroad, it is primarily mandatory to submit your research paper and doing an internship to complete the degree along with it student also get a 20-hour work permit during study every week and post-study work visa where after completion of the course a student can find a job relevant to their research and get experience).
Career Opportunities – When a student studying in India passes out from an Indian institution, the career growth is always approximately 40%, but if he learns abroad and then comes back to India, he can always get a job with a 120% hike in his salary (link)
Academic Excellence – In India, the student-teacher ratio is 68:1, whereas abroad, the same is 25:1, so students usually get better focus from their teacher. Moreover, if a student in India wants a PhD, it takes him years to publish a paper, but the scenario is also different. Nevertheless, students get access to top-ranked universities and exposure to cutting-edge research and technology.
Work-Life Balance – Abroad, you can work hourly, so it’s upon you if you want to work more or less. You don’t have to work odd hours even if you don’t want to. In India, working long hours is expected, which is usually a priority for many students who wish to make a career.
Personal Growth – When you leave your home country to study or work, you learn to be self-reliant and learn new skills. You build a global perspective and adaptability to look into world matters. You become more empathetic, grow personally and network well.
Quality of Life – The quality of life is another primary factor people want to migrate – it is subjective, so I will try to explain with specific examples. For some people, pollution can be what they want to avoid; some may focus more on professional work culture and pay, while others may like developed infrastructure like technological advancement, roads and transport or want to avoid frequent power cuts.
But is it easy to survive abroad, especially in 2024?
Challenges students face in current scenario :
Let’s also see some reasons why one may want to give it a thought to stay back in India.
Cost of Education – First, let’s talk about Return on Investment – in India, whenever we invest a considerable amount of money, in this case, at least 35 – 80 lakhs a year, sometimes we try to calculate the return too. So, after COVID and the ongoing wars (in the Ukraine and Middle Eastern conflicts), Western countries have been going through a recession since 2023, when the job market has become saturated.
Ongoing Inflation and Effect on the Market – Big companies are hiring less and firing more to lower their cost as bank interest charges have increased; thus, borrowing goes down for companies, so chances for fresh graduates to get hired decline.
Technological Advancement – With the emergence of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, there is a threat in the job market. Reports show nearly 32000 employees laid off from tech. Only University courses are not sufficient for graduates. Thus, students need help to acquire a job after completing the course. Along with many hustles, they must be quick learners to survive the global competition.
Change in Immigration Policy – 2024 is when most countries, like the US, Canada, France, and the UK, hold elections, and immigration policies will change. Australia recently announced they will cut short student intake in the next two years, and most admissions will grant students coming for higher education like Masters and Research Programs with IELTS scores of a minimum of six bands instead of 5.5 earlier.
Low-quality courses are also why many students do not survive the job market competition. In countries like Canada and the UK, a report declared that their governments are concerned that many unauthorized private institutions fail to provide students with the proper education. Here, agents and students must be careful when choosing their course and college. Public universities or institutions ranked under the QS would save time and money.
Feeling Homesick and Isolated – Living abroad alone has never been easy for someone from India. The way people here grow up among family and friends plays a significant role in their lives. Going to a new environment and adjusting to an opposite circumstance can be daunting sometimes. Social anxiety, loneliness and homesickness are common reasons for students coming back to their home country.
Safety Concerns – Safety has become a concern in Western countries now. Recently, some incidents in the USA and Canada have caused Indian students to think deeply about whether they want to go abroad.
Alternative and options:
Although studying abroad is a personal choice for everyone, if it is strategically decided on a few parameters, you may get a good outcome. Following, we will discuss on what basis one should decide on their study abroad option.
Start early planning – education and career should be planned to choose the right path. Most of our students in India study till their Master’s with a specific subject they like rather than understanding the job market. For example, many students opt for Maths hons without having a career path, whether they want to do a PhD in the future with this subject and go into academics or research. They lose interest after graduation and want to do a job, which is tough. Instead, one should understand the job opportunities in the market in the next five years and then decide to do a course.
More than half of the students in India have a limited choice of subjects to study abroad. You cannot just decide to study abroad because you want to earn in dollars and pounds. Your choice of subject has to be relevant, like engineering or science subjects are best taught in the USA and Germany. Likewise, management and arts are good in the UK and mining, environment, and agriculture are good in Australia because they face many challenges and experiment more on overcoming them – students can benefit from learning from industry experts. Thus, your course and institute determine how well your career will pay you off after completing a specific course.
How do you reduce your study costs? Taking a considerable loan may be a bad idea. You look for other options if you are planning to do a Master’s from abroad; then, after graduation, you can work in India for at least two years and acquire skills and then apply. You can save funds by earning yourself.
In addition, you may also make a good profile from your school (putting out your extracurricular activities and relevant job skills), which will help you gain good foreign sponsorship and scholarships.
Virtual Learning – During COVID, this pathway has opened for many students. If it is a two-year course – now many Indian institutions allow you to study one year of PGDM in India + 1 year of Masters in Abroad.
Apart from this, many universities in the UK and Australia allow you to complete a part semester from India and another part from the respective country’s campus offline.
I am sharing a link from Quora with some experiences of students currently pursuing education abroad. You can check out this forum on Quora for many other things, such as writeups personally written by students and sharing their experiences of study and work environments in Western countries.
Conclusion:
Going abroad is a long-term decision for many families. It would be best if you decided on your circumstances. The above are general pros and cons for an individual. Anyone who is planning to go abroad needs to do their situation analysis keeping in mind the courses you want to do + the demand of your course in the job market + the expenses you are going to make + the salary you are going to get as a fresher (also considering the job market).
To be always up to date with the trends in the market, students should read and listen to daily global news. Network with students and pass out students from India studying in different universities through social media platforms. Get a hands-on understanding of the actual scenario from them. In short, do your research.
Now that you know how to plan your study abroad, start taking the necessary steps. Please share your queries and feel free to comment and give your feedback.
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