Introduction: The Mobility of India’s Students

Over the past two decades, the total stock of Indian students pursuing education abroad has increased from 0.68 million in 2019 to nearly 1.88 million^[a] by the end of 2024, reflecting a three-fold increase in five years.^[1],[2] This rise is driven by rising aspirations, the growing affordability of foreign education among India’s burgeoning middle class, and the increasing pull of global opportunities. Accordingly, what was once the privilege of an elite cohort has now become a mainstream ambition shaping household decisions, financial priorities,^[3] and even the national policy discourse on mobility and migration.^[4] It reflects the demand for quality education and a broader social transition: an India that is steadily becoming globally connected, upwardly mobile, and invested in transnational pathways of success.

The phenomenon is not entirely new—Indian students have long sought higher education overseas, particularly in English-speaking countries such as the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK).^[5] However,  the scale, diversity, and complexity of this movement are marking important shifts. For instance, outbound student flows grew sharply in the post-pandemic period, rising by 71 percent in 2021 and 69 percent in 2022, thereafter moderating to 19 percent growth in 2023, before declining by about 15 percent in 2024, indicating an inflection rather than uninterrupted expansion. In December 2025, the Ministry of External Affairs, for the first time, reported that over 0.628 million Indian students are studying abroad at the school level, underscoring how outbound education is no longer confined to tertiary pathways.^[6] Taken together, India is now the second-largest source of international students globally, next only to China.^[7]

At the same time, the contours of this mobility are changing. For years, Indian students were concentrated in what might be called the “Big Four” destinations, i.e., the US, the UK, Australia, and Canada.^[8] These countries were known to host world-class universities, offered English-medium instruction and post-study work opportunities, and were home to expanding diasporic communities that made integration easier. Recent policy shifts have disrupted this pattern. Stricter visa regimes, rising tuition fees, and tighter post-study work regulations in some of these countries have slowed growth, or in some cases even caused a decline in new enrolments.^[9] The US, for instance, has tightened visa norms, Canada has introduced caps and restrictions on student visas,^[10] while the UK has tightened rules around dependents accompanying international students.^[11] These changes reflect growing tensions between destination countries that seek international students for their economic contributions, while also grappling with domestic anxieties around jobs, immigration, culture, and identity.

Under these pressures, Indian students are diversifying their choices, exploring emerging destinations in European countries, East Asia, and also within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Germany, France,  the Netherlands, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are gaining prominence,^[12] often because of more favourable visa terms, lower costs, or niche programmes that align with industry needs. This diversification both signals the resilience of Indian student demand for quality education and global exposure, and raises important questions for India’s policymakers: What are the implications of this dispersion for India’s human capital development, and how should the country address both challenges and opportunities offered by this outflow?

On the one hand, foreign education represents a powerful opportunity. Union Minister of State (MoS) for Education Sukanta Majumdar described it as a “prospect for cultivating a successful, prosperous, and influential diaspora,” which could be an asset for the country.^[13] Accordingly, Indian students abroad are often seen as unofficial ambassadors, strengthening diaspora networks, contributing to soft power, and creating transnational bridges in trade, technology, and innovation.^[14] Many graduates return to India with global outlooks, advanced skills, and professional networks that help develop domestic capacities. Others stay abroad but act as bridges, opening doors to knowledge, investment, and influence.^[15] In today’s world, where talent itself is a form of power, India’s vast and dynamic student community can be an important geopolitical asset.

At the same time, the rapid outflow of students also poses challenges. Former Indian Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar once described the increasing trend of studying abroad as a “disease” and called attention to the resulting foreign exchange drain of US$6 billion from India.^[16] The immediate concerns are therefore financial: billions of dollars in foreign exchange flow outward each year as tuition fees and living expenses. This also diverts household resources that could otherwise be invested domestically. In the long term, the risk of brain drain becomes crucial. While many students eventually return, a sizeable proportion settle abroad, resulting in a permanent loss of talent and shortages in critical sectors at home.^[17] The attraction of better pay, work opportunities, and modern lifestyles often outweighs the incentives to return, leaving India with the paradox of being a major source of global talent while struggling to retain enough for its own development.

Against this backdrop, India’s outbound student mobility demands thoughtful policy choices. Should the government encourage greater domestic capacity-building to reduce the need for students to study abroad? Should it negotiate more favourable mobility pathways with partner countries? Or should it seek to strategically harness this flow, positioning Indian students as part of a broader strategy of economic diplomacy and diaspora engagement?

This paper underscores how India’s outbound student mobility cannot be reduced to simplistic binaries of loss versus leverage. The reality falls between these extremes: outbound mobility is a strategic flow of talent which, if actively managed, can fuel brain circulation and global influence. If neglected, however, it can deepen the loss of capacity and opportunity at home. Accordingly, it requires a layered policy response, encompassing so-called “retain, circulate, leverage, and reintegrate” strategies at the intersection of education, economics, and international relations.

The rest of this paper discusses the subject in greater detail by examining available data and the evolving landscape of India’s student mobility, deliberating the strategic implications of these trends, and outlining policy choices and recommendations. The objective of this analysis is not to halt mobility but to steer it: to balance individual aspirations with national priorities and transform potential brain drain into productive brain circulation, by positioning India’s student diaspora as both a development lever and a diplomatic asset.^[18]

Current Trends

The numbers of Indian students who migrate abroad every year are recorded by the Bureau of Immigration (BoI) as the number of Indians who disclosed “study or education” as the purpose of their exit from the country.^[19] According to this data, the annual outflow of students for university education has increased from 454,009 in 2017 to 759,064 in 2024 (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: Number of Indian Students Migrating Every Year to Study Abroad

Source: Author’s own, using data from the Ministry of External Affairs^{[20],[21],[22],[23],[24]}

*Does not include the 628,305 students going abroad at the school level.

Figure 1 shows that after a pandemic-induced contraction in 2020, outbound tertiary enrolments rebounded sharply, indicating a sustained post-COVID-19 acceleration rather than a one-off recovery. However, from 2023 to 2024, there was a drop in Indian student enrolments, particularly due to declines across the ‘big four’. The US saw a drop from 234,473 to 204,058 students (-13 percent), while Canada experienced a sharper fall from 233,532 to 137,608 (-41 percent). The UK also witnessed a substantial reduction, from 136,921 to 98,890 students (-28 percent), and Australia recorded a decrease from 78,093 to 68,572 (-12 percent) (See Figure 2).

Figure 2: Indian International Students, ‘Big Four’ (2023-24)

Source: Author’s own, using data from the Ministry of External Affairs^[25]

The decline signals a rebalancing in global student mobility patterns, driven by factors in the host country. As seen in Figure 2, enrolments to Canada dropped by over 41 percent in 2024. Indian media sources attribute it to tighter visa scrutiny, housing shortages, and restrictions on dependents.^{[26],[27],[28]} Similarly, the UK saw a 27.8-percent fall linked to changes in family visa policies and spiralling living costs,^[29] and the US registered a 13-percent decline, reflecting uncertainty around immigration pathways such as OPT and H-1B.^[b],[30] Student migration to Australia also fell by 12.2 percent, attributed to stricter migration settings and affordability concerns.^[31] Together, these trends underscore how restrictive policies and rising costs in established markets are reducing their appeal to Indian students.

They are, meanwhile, diversifying towards alternative geographies like Germany, France, Ireland, and Singapore, which offer lower tuition costs, English-medium instruction, and clearer post-study work pathways (See Table 1).

Table 1: Indian Student Enrolments (2021-2024)

Country	2021	2022	2023	2024	YoY % change (2024 vs 2023)
US	125,115	190,512	234,473	204,058	−13.0
Canada	102,688	185,955	233,532	137,608	−41.1
UK	77,855	132,709	136,921	98,890	−27.8
Australia	8,950	59,044	78,093	68,572	−12.2
Germany	16,259	20,684	23,296	34,702	+49
Russian Federation	15,814	19,784	23,503	31,444	+33.8
Bangladesh	10,493	17,006	20,368	29,232	+43.5
Uzbekistan	503	3,430	6,601	9,915	+50.2
China	3	1,967	7,279	4,978	−31.6
Cyprus	162	726	1,477	3,162	+114.1
Iran	600	1,063	1,325	1,977	+49.2

Source: Lok Sabha, Unstarred Question no  1730, 10 March 2025^[32] and Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question no. 2576^[33]

The 2023–2024 comparison shown in the table reflects a clear rebalancing rather than a uniform decline in Indian student mobility. Historically high-volume destinations, like Canada, the US, the UK, and Australia, all recorded year-on-year declines; in contrast, Germany, Russia, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, Iran, and Cyprus posted growth, albeit from smaller bases, indicating a continued diversification of destinations toward lower-cost, regionally proximate, or policy-accessible alternatives. Overall, data shows that overall outbound mobility is stabilising at a high level, with growth momentum shifting away from traditional Anglophone destinations toward Europe, Eurasia, and regional options, rather than signalling a retreat from international education altogether.

The recent years have also seen a shift in the subject choices of Indian students going abroad (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Disciplines Pursued by Indian Students Abroad (2010-11 to 2020-21)

Source: NITI Aayog, 2025^[34]

Figure 3 shows that Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields account for the largest and fastest-growing share of internationally mobile Indian students. In the US—which is the single largest destination for Indian students. About one-third of enrolments are in STEM programmes.^[35] This is also because of STEM extensions in optional training, where students are allowed to extend their visas by two months post-study to find work. Germany’s growth also aligns with this trend, as about 60 percent of Indian students in Germany study Engineering.^[36]

There is also a steady interest for professional and vocational qualifications like Medicine, MBA (Master’s in Business Administration) and Specialised Master’s in Finance, Analytics, Supply Chain Management, and Marketing: programmes driven by employability and network effects.^[37] Third, there is a growing interest in new interdisciplinary and applied areas like AI (Artificial Intelligence), Data Science, Cybersecurity, and Sustainability, often driven by their pull as so-called ‘future skills’.^[38],[39] Besides, medical education (MBBS) and allied health drive large student flows to specific countries like Russia, Bangladesh, and the Philippines, where lower tuition and quicker entry to clinical training attract aspirants who miss limited and highly competitive domestic seats.

Studies by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) show that the pattern of international mobility is heavier at postgraduate levels, followed by doctoral studies.^[40] Indian outbound flows tend to follow this general pattern: many students pursue master’s degrees and seek quick upskilling and employability upgrades.

There is also growing evidence that hybrid, blended, or twinning education models are rising, where students begin programmes online with partner universities and complete them abroad or do some part of the course virtually.^[41] These pathways offer cost savings, better planning flexibility, and reduced visa pressure for students,^[42] and are likely to gain further traction in India’s middle-class demographics.

The Push–Pull Dynamics of India’s Student Mobility

This paper argues that the dynamics underlying Indian student mobility are shaped by persistent push factors, i.e., domestic educational constraints and compelling pull factors of the host countries. They are also aided by some critical enablers, conditions that are neither push nor pull, but they fuel mobility, making it feasible for Indian students to act on their aspirations. 

Push Factors: Domestic Constraints 

1. Scarcity of High-quality, Research-intensive Capacity: In the last 15 years, higher education enrolment in India has increased threefold.^[43] Between 2014-15 and 2021-22, the total number of students enrolled in higher education grew from 34.2 million to 43.3 million: a 26.5-percent increase in seven years.^[44] While overall higher education capacity has also expanded remarkably in recent decades, the number of seats in high-quality, research-intensive and internationally competitive programmes—especially at the postgraduate level—remain limited. For example, in the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) Advanced examination in 2025, approximately 0.187 million candidates appeared for about 18,000 seats, creating an extremely competitive environment where fewer than 10 percent of candidates could secure a seat in an IIT (Indian Institute of Technology).^[45] This leaves hundreds of millions of Indian youth without access to top-tier domestic institutions,^[46] while many private engineering colleges operate far below sanctioned strength due to quality constraints.^[47]

2. Perceived Quality Gaps: A 2023 survey by Oxford International Education Services noted that the US and the UK were the top preferred destinations, mainly due to the quality and reputation of the universities.^[48] Similarly, the British Council’s’ Student Sentiment Survey 2022 had found an “overwhelming consensus” on superior quality of education and better career prospects as the key reasons for Indian students to pursue overseas education.^[49]In the QS International Student Survey, Indian students ranked high-quality teaching as most important (see Figure 4).

Figure 4: Considerations in Choosing a Foreign Study Destination

Source: Author’s own, using data from the QS International Student Survey (2024) ^[50]

The top three factors by which students assess teaching quality are: in-country ranking of the university; its ranking in independent ratings; and availability of high-end technology.^[51]

These perceptions are reinforced by ranking gaps and the limited performance of Indian universities in global rankings. In 2014, only 11 Indian universities featured in QS’s world rankings. Although this number has increased to 54 in the 2026 edition,^[c] gains are still concentrated among the IITs and a few top universities.^[52] Therefore, many students perceive that India’s mid-tier domestic institutions lag behind their international peers in competitiveness research, state-of-the-art infrastructure, and global rankings—a key driver of improved career prospects and upward mobility.

3. Poor Affordability: In certain professional degrees like Medicine, the outward migration of Indian students is linked to affordability. Although the number of medical colleges, along with their graduate and postgraduate seats have been consistently growing, the number of applicants has also increased and kept pace.^[53] Countries such as Russia, Ukraine, Bangladesh, and the Philippines offer MBBS programmes at a fraction of these costs, including accommodation and living expenses.^[54] This makes foreign medical education accessible to a much broader segment of aspirants who are otherwise excluded from India’s limited government quota and unable to afford private colleges. Estimates suggest that financial dynamics sway about 30,000-40,000 medical, dental, and paramedical students from India every year.^[55]

4. Global Exposure Deficit: The innovation deficit faced by many universities, particularly in terms of lack of global exposure through partnerships, faculty-student exchanges, and research linkages, is a persistent barrier to the retention of talent in India’s higher education sector. A 2024 QS I-GAUGE survey covering 165 Indian institutions found that 41 percent have no active international collaborations, 39 percent lack the necessary infrastructure to support foreign engagement, and 45 percent have no faculty for international outreach.^[56] QS rankings found that 78 percent of Indian universities experienced a decline in a key indicator—student-faculty ratio—highlighting systemic resource constraints.^[57] The lack of faculty devoted to international outreach reduces the chances of joint research projects, dual-degree programmes, or even simple cultural exchanges, resulting in constrained campus dynamism and global appeal, eroding confidence in domestic systems.

Taken together, these domestic constraints limit the aspirations of students. As a result, many of them view foreign universities as viable alternatives to overcome the bottlenecks at home and secure stronger career trajectories globally.

Pull Factors: International Motivations

Global universities and host countries have built robust ecosystems, offering not only academic opportunities but also pathways for career advancement, financial aid, and long-term mobility.

1. An Ecosystem of Institutional Support: Global education bodies such as the British Council, DAAD, Campus France, EducationUSA and others have built a robust ecosystem that plays a pivotal role in supporting Indian students to navigate foreign admissions, ranging from pre-departure counselling, test preparation, institutional matchmaking, visa coaching, and post-arrival orientation. They maintain local offices and establish a network of tie-ups with Indian universities, school counsellors, and digital platforms to ensure that students gain timely, trusted insights into study abroad options. The British Council alone facilitates thousands of student engagements annually through webinars, fairs, scholarships, and country-specific advice, making overseas education more accessible and navigable.^[58] Others, like DAAD, also publish detailed guidelines (like Pre-Departure materials, DAAD Scholarship Menu), and organise study exhibitions across major Indian cities.^[59] This ecosystem lowers entry barriers, offers students seamless guidance, mitigates information uncertainty, and helps students and their families gain confidence in their search for higher education opportunities abroad.

2. Attractive Post-Study Work and Career Pathways: The availability of post-study work visas and clear immigration pathways is one of the most potent pull factors. Germany, for example, grants international graduates a job-seeker visa that allows them to stay an additional 18 months to search for employment related to their degree. During this period, graduates may work without restriction to support themselves and can subsequently apply for a work permit or the EU Blue Card once they secure a suitable job.^[60] In the UK, under the graduate route visa, international students can stay for up to two years post-graduation (and three years for PhD holders) to work or look for employment without needing sponsorship.^[61] The US, despite recent restrictions on international students, continues to offer the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme, allowing international students on F-1 visas to work for up to two months after completing a degree, which is extended to 36 months for STEM graduates.^[62]
   
   Such favourable post-study work options encourage students to remain overseas temporarily or permanently, giving them a chance to integrate both professionally and culturally. Sometimes, it is also part of a broader family migration strategy, where the student’s overseas presence enables eventual family migration through skilled visas, driving multi-generational mobility.

3. Targeted Outreach by Host Countries: Various countries, like Germany, Canada, and Australia, actively promote Indian student recruitment through scholarship programmes and bilateral mobility initiatives. For instance, Germany’s Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Partnership (CMMP) with India, signed in December 2022, explicitly caters to Indian students as part of broader diplomatic and educational cooperation frameworks.^[65] It also offers thousands of fully funded opportunities to Indian students, Master’s Programmes taught in English and tuition fee waivers for public universities, and clear work visa policies to attract Indian candidates.^[66] Australia also launched the Maitri Scholars Program in 2023, committing AUD11.2 million toward scholarships for about 45 Indian students in STEM fields over the next four years, emphasising scientific collaboration between the two countries.^[67] Meanwhile, Canada offers Commonwealth and provincial scholarships and showcases career prospects to strategically attract skilled Indian students.^[68] These scholarships lower financial barriers, increase awareness, and reinforce the value of studying in these countries. 

Critical Enablers

A set of critical enablers function as facilitating conditions that lower barriers and smooth the migration pathway. They include:

1. Increased Credit Availability: Access to education loans and other credit facilities in India has increasingly enabled middle-class families to consider studying abroad. Between 2012-13 to 2021-22, 4,61,017 Indian students availed educational loans of INR 39,268.82 crore from Public Sector Banks for studying abroad.^[69] Around 65 percent of education loans in 2023 were for foreign education, with an average loan ticket size of INR 40–60 lakh. Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) like HDFC Credila are also offering loans up to INR 50 lakh without collateral, with a fully digitised and fast disbursal process.^[70] As scholarships remain limited, students who otherwise could not afford international tuition are now able to access foreign education due to accessible credit.

2. English-Medium Instruction: Several countries like the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia offer English-medium education across disciplines, lowering entry barriers for Indian students. According to the ICEF Monitor (2024), the English-taught bachelor’s and master’s programmes have tripled since 2014 and increased by 22 percent since 2021.^[71]This growth has particularly happened outside the big four, particularly in European study destinations like Germany, France, and the Netherlands.^[72]  This reduces the need for linguistic adaptation and enhances the employability of international students in global job markets.

3. Diaspora Networks and Social Capital: The presence of large Indian diasporas in countries like the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia creates enabling conditions, like offering housing support, community integration, career mentoring, and even financial assistance for newcomers. Studies by the OECD highlight that international students are more likely to select countries where they already have cultural and familial linkages, as it reduces risk and uncertainty.^[73] Existing diaspora creates a ‘network effect’, i.e., a known support system, which enhances the attractiveness of these destinations for Indian parents.^[74]

These factors reduce financial, linguistic, and social uncertainties, making overseas study an attainable choice for a wide spectrum of Indian families.

Policy Perspectives: Loss or Leverage

The increasing movement of Indian students abroad for higher education is viewed from two varying perspectives: one that frames it as a loss resulting in substantial foreign exchange outflow, the depletion of India's talent pool, and the diversion of national resources; and another that celebrates Indian student outflow as an avenue for creating sizable networks, remittances, knowledge flows, and diplomatic capital that can be leveraged. This section explores this duality, examining the implications, challenges, and opportunities presented by these opposing framings and the pragmatic policy implications that emerge from balancing these perspectives.

The Loss Perspective: The Brain and Forex Drain

The loss framing emphasises three linked harms: (a) direct foreign-exchange loss; (b) its distributional and opportunity-cost effects at home; and (c) the human capital loss from permanent or long-term emigration of skilled human resources.^[75] The scale of the outflow is the leading cause of this worry, with data from the previous section indicating that 7–8 lakh (0.7–0.8 million) students migrate abroad each year: a figure that is perhaps higher and expected to rise further. These scales matter because they translate into both forex drain and talent drain.

Multiple estimates capture the scale of direct spending. For example, the International Consultants for Education and Fairs (ICEF) estimates that tuition and living expenses by Indian students were increasing sharply, amounting to about US$70 billion in 2025 (see Figure 5).

Figure 5: Spending by Indian Students Migrating Abroad

Source: ICEF Monitor, 2023^[76]

This forex drain is not only a direct loss to India’s reserves but also a reduction in household capital available for domestic investment. The Reserve Bank of India’s Balance of Payments (BoP) data identifies educational travel as a contributor to India’s current account deficit, rising from US$2.46 billion in 2015 to US$6.3 billion in 2024.^[77] Further, according to a recent analysis by India Today, over the course of a decade, families sent INR 1.76 (lakh) crores to their children studying abroad—an amount which exceeds three times the annual budget allocated by the Indian government to higher education. Instead, this money could have built 62 IITs.^[78] This comparison starkly reveals the opportunity cost of such a large outflow.

At the household level, the finances needed to send a child abroad often result in borrowing (education loans) or the diversion of savings that could have funded local investment.^[79] There are also equity concerns: high-income households can buy global credentials, whereas poorer students cannot, which may further limit access to globally valued credentials.

A large share of internationally mobile students, especially at postgraduate and STEM levels, use post-study work pathways and settle abroad for long periods. OECD and migration policy studies show international students are an important feeder into skilled immigration, with the stay rates for STEM PhDs and many graduate disciplines being high in certain destinations like Germany.^[80] When highly skilled people do not return, sectors such as healthcare and advanced engineering in the home country can face gaps, not only in numbers but in the kind of global experience, networks, and research and development (R&D) capacity that returnees would otherwise bring. This exodus constrains India’s ability to innovate, produce scientific breakthroughs, or sustain growth in research-driven sectors and entrepreneurial dynamism. Such chronic shortages, skills gaps in the workforce, and institutional inadequacies in multiple arenas have a cumulative effect, further accelerating outward movement and deepening domestic inequalities.

With such immediate and long-term negative impacts, the government’s priority should be on promoting internationalisation at home so that fewer students need to go abroad, tracking and targeting critical skills or bottlenecked professions by expanding domestic capacity and mitigating short-term forex pressure through policy tools.

The Leverage Perspective: Diaspora as Opportunity

The outflow of Indian students has also been reframed as a strategic opportunity for national development, global influence, and long-term gains. One way it does this is by reframing it as a long-term gain.

The first is the diaspora narrative that positions Indian graduates abroad as transnational assets, i.e., ambassadors of culture, engines of knowledge transfer, and bridges for economic and diplomatic engagement. Since 2000, the government has utilised the High-Level Committee of Indian Diaspora to champion a multi-sectoral engagement model leveraging cultural affinity, economic potential, and intellectual capital, and has positioned the diaspora as a pivotal partner in India’s global outreach and development.^[81]

India created institutions such as the Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre (OIFC) and the Indian Development Foundation of Overseas Indians (IDF-OI) to encourage diaspora investments, philanthropy, and business partnerships by reducing bureaucratic hurdles and offering incentives like tax exemptions and streamlined foreign investment regulations.^[82] Diaspora networks have opened markets for exports, creating cross-border ventures, accelerating market access and technology diffusion—particularly benefiting segments like India’s software industry.^[83] Therefore, a vibrant and well-placed diaspora can amplify India's soft power, attract high-value foreign investment, and enhance the country’s international standing.

Student mobility also allows the Indian government to harness policy instruments like bilateral mobility pacts, joint research scholarships, and scientific collaborations, creating reciprocal channels for talent, investment, and collaboration. Examples include the Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Pact with Germany and scholarship schemes from partner countries like Australia that help create long-term ties.^[84],[85]

Migration scholars perceive student outflow as ‘brain circulation’, a dynamic where mobility creates skills, networks, and diffusion rather than permanent loss.^[86] Evidence shows that many returning migrants are highly educated and bring managerial know-how, technology, and international linkages.^[87],[88] Returnees also bring global experience, new business models, and capital to drive growth and job creation in India, founding startups and spinning up R&D labs, thereby reversing conventional brain-drain assumptions.^[89] For example, a 2002 survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found that 52 percent of the Indian-origin IT workers in Silicon Valley maintained strong business relations in India.^[90] Another example is the Indus Entrepreneurs, an organisation of Indian-origin IT workers in Silicon Valley who regularly fundraise for India’s elite tech universities and support meritorious students from poor families.^[91]

To reap such benefits, state governments are also targeting the diaspora through specific programmes. For example, the Tamil Talents Programme by the Tamil Nadu government is aimed at Tamil researchers and professionals abroad, especially those leaving countries like the US due to changes in immigration policy.^[92] The programme offers competitive salaries, startup research grants, housing assistance, and fast-tracked visa processing to encourage their return and collaboration with Tamil Nadu’s academic and research institutions. It also plans an annual conclave as a platform where diaspora researchers can engage with local academic leaders, students, and policymakers to boost basic science research in the state.^[93]

Although student migration drains resources temporarily, diasporic financial flows are two-way: they send remittances to families, their private capital is invested in buying homes and businesses, and savings parked in Indian banks contribute to domestic liquidity and investment. Remittances to India have been growing, reaching a record US$135.46 billion in FY 2024-25, a 14-percent increase from the previous year (see Figure 6). This surge reflects expanding diaspora earnings and improved digital transfer channels, which support foreign exchange inflows and indirectly bolster India’s economy.

Figure 6: Growth in Remittances to India (in US$ billion)

Source: Author’s own, using data from Reserve Bank of India^[94],[95] 

From this viewpoint, India can strategically leverage student outflows by positioning its graduates abroad as diaspora assets who enhance soft power, open markets, and enable technology diffusion. They can also be harnessed to negotiate bilateral mobility pacts and partnerships that protect India’s long-term interests. By actively engaging alumni and returnees through incentives for entrepreneurship and R&D collaboration, the government can convert mobility into reciprocal channels for skills and innovation. Finally, harnessing diaspora financial flows—especially record-high remittances—can offset forex losses and contribute to national development.

In sum, the leverage perspective sees this mobility as a critical opportunity to embrace ‘brain circulation’ over brain drain: facilitating return migration, encouraging collaborative projects, and leveraging foreign-trained talent for domestic priorities. However, the challenge is to develop policy frameworks, diaspora networks, and reintegration pathways that maximise these gains.

Bridging the Two Perspectives

The phenomenon of Indian student outflow is neither an unequivocal loss nor an automatic gain. The debate between loss and leverage perspectives is, therefore, not binary. Both frames contain truth: unchecked outflows can cost foreign exchange and critical skills, and this outflow can be converted into strategic assets. Policy options must therefore be deliberate and devise strategies to limit the losses while maximising leverage.

This paper recommends a four-layered framework for addressing Indian student outflows, which can be visualised as concentric layers, each representing a complementary policy strategy. At the core is ‘Retain’, emphasising the need to strengthen India’s higher education ecosystem so that talented students have compelling reasons to study and build careers at home. India’s new initiatives like ‘Study in India’, foreign university campuses and dual degrees programmes, and internationalisation at home efforts fit into this. Surrounding this is ‘Circulate’, which involves maintaining close professional and knowledge exchange with diaspora, converting mobility into sustainable brain circulation, and engaging directly with them for social and financial investments in India.

The next layer, ‘Leverage’, highlights the importance of tapping into the Indian diaspora as a stimulus for international partnerships, cultural exchange, and soft power influence. Finally, the outermost ring is ‘Reintegrate’, which involves creating pathways for returning graduates to seamlessly re-enter India’s academic, industrial, and policy ecosystems (see Figure 7).

Figure 7 : A Policy Framework to Bridge the Loss and Leverage Perspectives

Source: Author’s own

Many countries of the Global South, which have experienced similar, large-scale student migration, offer ideas that align with these layers. For instance, China, which has the world’s largest student outflow and a diverse diaspora, has adopted a comprehensive, state-led approach to transform its migrants into strategic assets. First, China has invested heavily in high-value job creation sectors such as technology and manufacturing, creating attractive careers in cutting-edge industries. Returnees find comparable professional opportunities at home, which motivates them to return or stay connected. Cities like Beijing and Shanghai have built ‘Returning Students Science Parks’ and innovation hubs offering funding, infrastructure, and incubation facilities specifically targeting overseas-trained returnees to start companies and scale ventures.^[96]

Unlike India, which lags massively in collecting credible data on student outflow, returnees, and their career trajectories, China has successfully tracked its diaspora, their demographics, associations, and career trajectories in real-time. Its digital or cultural engagement with the diaspora is continuous and systematic, compared to India’s ad-hoc or symbolic activities.

Similarly, Taiwan’s successful brain circulation model is built around the science-industry network model.^[d] Its Hsinchu Science Park is a world-class hub for semiconductor innovation that retains globally trained scientists through attractive research conditions and strong university-industry ties.^[97] Linkages between Taiwanese companies and global tech hubs allow boundaryless careers, permitting movement between countries while maintaining strong sectoral ties.

South Korea, for its part, has focused on home-based internationalisation through global curricula, global partnerships, and international faculty for specialised courses, with a targeted aim of reducing student outflow.^[98] Since the 1990s, the Korean government has sought to leverage the diaspora “as significant human and financial resources for the country to draw on.”^[99] This led to the establishment of a preferential visa for overseas Koreans and their descendants (F-4 visa), allowing them to work, invest, and buy land in the country.

Similar such strategies across the four layers of the proposed framework are in different stages of implementation in countries of the Global South. India has also undertaken important initiatives in the last few years. Internationalisation at home is a key focus area of the National Educational Policy (NEP), one that seeks to provide international curricula, offshore campuses of foreign universities, global collaborations, and joint degrees within the country, so that students can benefit from international-standard education without having to study abroad.^[100]

To enhance brain circulation, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has based its pre-game diaspora engagement on four Cs: Care, Connect, Celebrate, and Contribute. The establishment of Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendras, helplines, the Indian Community Welfare Fund and the Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana (Overseas Indian Insurance Programme), MADAD Portal, Know India Programme (KIP), Scholarship Programme for Diaspora Children (SPDC), Promotion of Cultural Ties with Diaspora (PCTD), and the celebration of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, reflect this initiative. Indian Missions/Posts abroad organise welcome ceremonies and orientation programmes to brief students on possible challenges or threats, and countermeasures during their stay abroad. However, a recent parliamentary standing committee noted that these efforts “do not seem to yield much.”^[101] The committee, like this present analysis, underlined the need for a more continuous, coherent, and coordinated set of strategies. Accordingly, based on the four-layered framework discussed above, this paper outlines a comprehensive list of recommendations. Some of these may overlap, but they have been placed where their relevance is most closely aligned.

Policy Recommendations

Recommendations to Retain Talent

A. Develop Domestic Capacity and Quality, Particularly in Bottleneck Fields

1. Targeted Capacity Building: It is imperative to create a phased plan to expand affordable and high-quality seats in fields like medicine, advanced engineering, data science, and biotechnology through public investment and PPP (public-private partnership) models. While at the undergraduate level, demand is heavily concentrated in top-ranked institutions due to quality variation across providers, at the postgraduate level, the more urgent challenge is the limited availability of high-quality programmes and research capacity, which requires substantial expansion. These models could be geared to meet affordability thresholds through fee caps and needs-based scholarships. Their expansion must include underserved Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities to reduce geographic concentration in metros.

B. Implement the NEP 2020 Internationalisation Reforms

2. Accelerate Foreign Campuses and Collaborative Degrees: Fast-track joint degrees, twinning, and branch campuses of world-class foreign universities as per the UGC Foreign Higher Educational Institutions (FHEI) Regulations.^[102] High-demand but undersupplied fields (like Medical Technology, Clean Energy, and Public Health) should be incentivised, with a portion of seats reserved for economically weaker sections.

3. Build Research Ecosystems: Fully operationalise the Anusandhan National Research Foundation^[103] (NRF) by linking grant disbursal to measurable outcomes such as meaningful industry-academic collaborations, recruitment, and reintegration of returning Indian scientists, as well as the involvement of international faculty as visiting scholars or joint investigators. The government can also promote international academic engagement by facilitating visiting professorships, joint appointments, and collaborative research projects, thereby bringing global expertise and networks into domestic institutes.

C. Enhance Higher Education Employability

4. Link Higher Education and Employability More Closely: Curricula should be strengthened for market-responsiveness and aligned with emerging technologies and sectoral skill demands. The provisions of structured, credit-bearing internships and industry engagements should be mandated as integral components of all academic programmes to provide hands-on experience, industry exposure, and professional networking opportunities, thereby improving employability and easing career transitions. Modelled on the US’s Gainful Employment rules, the government should mandate all higher education institutions to publicly report graduate outcomes like employment rates and earnings.^[104] This will enable informed student choice, accreditation, and funding decisions and will enhance academic quality, relevance, and alignment with labour market needs.
5. Support Post-Study Work and Career Transition: Streamlined reintegration pathways for Indian students returning from abroad are to be developed by recognising foreign qualifications, facilitating credit transfers, and creating targeted recruitment programmes in sectors facing skill shortages, ensuring the productive utilisation of global talent within India. The government should institutionalise a team to provide comprehensive career counselling, job placement services, and alumni networking platforms tailored to address returnee graduates’ unique challenges and opportunities.

Recommendations to Circulate Talent

D. Implement and Internationalise the National Credit Framework (NCF) 

6. Global Benchmarking: It is imperative to boost the NCF’s international acceptance by negotiating bilateral and multilateral recognition agreements (such as mutual acceptance of credit units and levels with major destination countries). This will help attract foreign students, improve the competitiveness of the ‘Study in India’ initiative, and support returnees in credential conversion.
7. Embed the NCF Across All Levels:The government can also mandate the phased adoption of the NCF for all accredited Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), technical and vocational colleges, and major skilling platforms. This will ensure that every major degree, diploma, and skill qualification is modularised, mapped to NSQF, and creditised under the NCF.

E. Diaspora Knowledge and Innovation Networks 

8. Map and Activate Diaspora Expertise: Live databases mapping sectoral expertise in the diaspora (STEM, entrepreneurship, academia, and policy) are to be created. In parallel, diaspora profiles should be updated and linked to domestic needs (of visiting faculty, mentors, advisory panels). Schemes like Ramanujan and Ramalingaswami (fellowships), VAJRA and GIAN (Global Initiative for Academic Networks) for research and faculty should be optimised and extended to other fields. Competitive packages, research grants, dual appointments, and leadership roles for visiting diaspora experts should also be offered.

9. Global Alumni Engagement: A mandate for Indian institutions to organise global alumni reunions, networking events, and collaborative research calls could be mandated, making alumni participation central to internationalisation efforts. There is also scope to launch joint labs and research hubs focused on emerging fields, such as AI, Biomedical Engineering, Green Technology and Digital Health in collaboration with diaspora scientists.

Recommendations to Leverage Diaspora

F. Reciprocal Mobility Partnerships and Bilateral Pacts 

10. Negotiate Structured Knowledge Transfer and Talent Return Agreements: Embed reciprocal terms in bilateral agreements (like CMMA with Germany, Maitri scholarship with Australia) for temporary returnees, knowledge-transfer obligations, and placements for Indian students abroad. For example, scholarships can include conditions for short return service obligations, joint PhD programs with guaranteed joint supervision, and industry-linked internships that include India placements. These create balanced mobility terms that protect the interests of the source country while enabling skilled migration.

G. Elevate Diaspora Engagement in Diplomacy and Soft Power 

11. Diaspora Ambassadors and Cultural Initiatives: India’s diaspora is among the largest in the world, with a deep influence in politics, academia, business, culture, and media across host countries. This ‘global Indian capital’ can be harnessed strategically through a formal Diaspora Ambassadors Programme that designates distinguished Indians abroad (scientists, CEOs, artists, policymakers) as honorary envoys to: a) promote Indian culture, values, and innovation in host countries, b) build grassroots goodwill through art forms, cultural festivals and language promotion, c) support diaspora-led initiatives in film, media, publishing, and policy spaces that shape narratives about India. This can be backed by official recognition, small grants, and institutional support from the MEA and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) for a sustained soft-power presence beyond one-off events like Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.

Recommendations to Reintegrate Talent

H. Create Returnee Pathways 

12. Strengthen Inbound Mobility Programs: India must be positioned as an attractive destination for international students by expanding the 'Study in India'^[105] initiative with flagship scholarships, streamlined student visas, and global marketing campaigns. National campaigns can also showcase the success stories of returnees and international graduates. This will balance two-way flows, strengthen partnerships, and reinforce India’s global education footprint.

13. Incentivise Return: India should launch an integrated Returnee Pathways programme that lowers the cost and complexity of coming back while maximising the incentives for highly skilled professionals and their families. This would include startup grants, seed-funded fellowships, fast-track research hiring, housing stipends, tax breaks, and accelerated tenure-track or senior appointments with recognition of foreign experience. A digital single-window should coordinate pre-return onboarding, handling immigration, credential verification, licensing, job placement, housing, banking, and tax clarifications. To enable whole-family return, the programme must also support spousal employment, education continuity for children, and streamlined professional licensing. Well-managed return pathways convert possible brain drain into brain circulation, amplifying national capability rather than the permanent loss of talent.

Cross-Cutting Recommendations

14. Enhanced Data Integration and Transparency: India needs harmonised and comprehensive data on student outflow, including enrolments abroad, annual departures, return rates by discipline, among others. Recent parliamentary answers and BoI releases show parts of this data. However, better cross-ministry sharing is needed to provide a credible and holistic view of mobility patterns for informed decision-making.

15. Coordinated Governance Framework: Establishing a high-level National Committee on Student Mobility and Diaspora Engagement, chaired jointly by the Ministries of Education and External Affairs, with representation from key ministries such as Labour, Skill Development, Finance, and Home Affairs, is key. This committee would be responsible for continuously monitoring mobility trends, identifying policy gaps, fostering inter-ministerial collaboration, and ensuring alignment between education strategies, migration policies, reintegration schemes, and international diplomacy. It would also function as a platform for multi-stakeholder dialogue, including academia, industry, and diaspora representatives, and provide strategic guidance to promote a unified national approach.

Conclusion

Indian student mobility is no longer just a personal choice; it is a structural phenomenon with wide-ranging fiscal, social, and strategic implications. Framing it purely as brain drain obscures the potential of global talent to contribute back through capital, knowledge, and networks. Yet, seeing it only as an opportunity also ignores the real and rising costs, as well as the skill shortages it leaves behind in critical sectors such as healthcare, science, and technology. A more productive path lies in deliberate management: reducing preventable outflows while maximising returns from global exposure.

This paper has outlined a layered strategy—retain, circulate, leverage, reintegrate—to convert outbound mobility into a system of sustainable brain circulation. It calls for deliberate interventions: expanding domestic capacity in bottleneck fields, building credible data systems, securing balanced bilateral mobility pacts, regulating education finance and intermediaries, and creating return pathways that are aspirational, not compensatory.

When aligned with the vision of NEP 2020 and supported by coherent policies across ministries, these steps can turn mobility into a managed flow of talent, fuelling innovation and competitiveness, and boosting India’s global standing. Simultaneously, institutionalised diaspora engagement through registries, return fellowships, co-investment vehicles, and mobility pacts can capture the upside of student migration through remittances, networks, and R&D spillovers.

India does not need to stop its students from going abroad. It needs to ensure they leave for the right reasons and are empowered, institutionally and personally, to return, contribute, and stay connected.

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Arpan Tulsyan is Senior Fellow, ORF.

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All views expressed in this publication are solely those of the author, and do not represent the Observer Research Foundation, either in its entirety or its officials and personnel.

Endnotes

• Education
• India
• big four study destinations
• indian student abroad education
• indian student friendly countries
• indian student migration
• international student migration
• student migration in india

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