Studying Abroad
Every year a large number of Indian students go abroad to pursue higher studies. The United States of America, England, and Australia are much-favored countries with a large proportion of Indian students. Studying abroad is an amazing opportunity to pursue your higher studies in a foreign country.
India is the second-largest source of international students after China. With political turmoil triggered in UK and America New president, there has been a restriction in immigration and visa policy. Australia and Canada have seen growth in demand to study overseas at the expense of the USA and the UK.
In ancient times, foreign students came to India to take knowledge at the universities of Taxila and Nalanda. These centers were considered the citadels of learning. But with the passage of time, these Indian universities lost their appeal. Presently most Indian universities lack proper infrastructure, good administrators, dedicated academicians, and sincere students. This has forced many students to go abroad for higher education in foreign universities, which enhances the status of the person.
Indian students are mostly interested in the United States of America, England, and Australian universities. However, the racial attack on an Indian student in Australia has dampened the spirit of those who were wanting to take admission to Australian universities. There has been a shift in destination preferences New Zealand, Germany, Singapore, and Canada are now thronged by Indian students.
The educational system of the United States of America has maintained a very high standard. It has been an extension of the American dream to attain excellence through hard work and labor, to usher in prosperity and opportunity for all its citizens. American academic infrastructure is well established, the British educational system is around 600 years old. It has some renowned universities like Oxford, Cambridge, and Aberdeen which were established in the 14th and 15th centuries and offers high-quality education.
Australia’s educational system is scientifically planned, it has about 35 international reputed universities. Canada is also preferred as the Canadian Government provides a low-cost educational system. Though studying abroad is an expensive proposition but it helps a person to enhance his knowledge and gain access to the culture of various countries.
The universities abroad offer high-quality education in the field of arts, science, computer science, engineering, architecture, medicine, management, nursing, tourism, hotel management, commercial pilot training. The academic program awards degree for bachelor, master, and doctoral courses as well as a diploma.
Students who wish to study abroad are required to appear for TOEFL, GMAT, IELTS, GRE, and SAT tests, depending on the course in which they wish to pursue. TOEFL or the Test of English as a Foreign Language is meant to check the proficiency of the candidate in written English and comprehension.
Those who wish to appear for Ph.D. need to appear in TSE or the Test of Spoken English. GMAT (Graduate Management Admission Test) is essential for a person aiming for an MBA degree in the USA or Canada. The test checks the proficiency of the student in mathematics, data sufficiency, reasoning, comprehension, sentence correction, and 30-minute essay writing.
IELTS or the International English Language Testing System assesses all the four language skills: listening, writing, reading, and speaking, and confirm the international standards of language assessment. IELTS is recognized by universities and employers of various countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the USA.
GRE or Graduate Record Examination helps the candidate to get admission to postgraduate programs in technical areas, SAT or the Scholastic Aptitude Test test a candidate in comprehension, mathematics, and verbal ability and is to be taken by a candidate interested in pursuing undergraduate studies in the USA.
The Best Places to Study Abroad in South America
There is a three-day education fair held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi every year. It provides a unified forum for students, working professionals in the field of education, and educational publishers. A large number of both Indian and foreign institutes and private bodies from nearly 30 countries participate in it.
The exhibitors represent international universities, colleges, business schools, recruitment consultants, and international education councils. If you wish to study abroad then this is the best platform to get the required information where you can interact with 50 leading universities and educational institutes and can get information and counseling.
Since applying for a course in a foreign university is a time-consuming and costly affair hence it must be planned and processed meticulously. Application fees are too high so a candidate needs to apply only to universities in which he wants to pursue further education. In England, the application is made through a computerized national system known as the Universities and Colleges Admission Services (UCAS).
A single UCAS form allows a candidate to make 6 choices, care should be taken that the university where applying should be accredited by the Council of Post-Secondary Accreditation (COPA). COPA also provides the rating of various universities making it easy for a student to decide the university where to apply. After the candidate is assessed for his merit and marks are obtained in various tests his admission offer is made.
Application for a student visa to that country should be made well in advance as it takes a lot of time. The total time consumed from planning a trip, applying for an application form, and getting a visa may take more than a year. So everything needs to be planned well in time. All the information regarding universities in various countries can be obtained from country embassies in India.
The total cost incurred in studies abroad may vary from university to university hence a student need to have a sound financial background. Many universities provide student scholarships that help the student to meet the fee requirement partly. A student can either stay in a hostel or have campus accommodation.
Students can earn their pocket expenses by doing part-time jobs. Apart from academics students may involve in various debates, sports, symposia held on the campus which will help the student to excel not only in academics but also bring the overall development of the student.
Studying abroad is a costly affair but a student feels that after completing their education in a foreign land it will guarantee them lifelong benefits. After completing their studies students wish to stay and continue their living in foreign land hence they search for a job abroad. In India, more emphasis is laid down on theoretical aspects rather than practical aspects and many subjects are taught but have no practical significance in later life.
Even after getting through the grind, they are frustrated after getting a job. There are nepotism and favoritism everywhere in the job market where the less competent candidate is securing better jobs. Because of the system of reservation in India the brilliant students are forced to go to the west where their talent and intelligence are respected and recognized.
Indian government should wake up to this plight of the students. There should be transparency in the educational system which would ensure justice to the meritorious students. Apart from a few universities like IITs, IIMs, AIIMs, IISc, TIFR not many are at par with international universities in various countries. The school curriculum needs to be revamped and they should lay emphasis on quality rather than quantity of education. The movement of brilliant students abroad for further studies has resulted in brain drain from our country. These students get lucrative job offers abroad and don’t wish to return to India.
Indian is the provider of the second largest foreign student population in the USA after China. India should lay more emphasis to make its education system more effective. This will not only ensure that brilliant mind stays within the country but also attract foreign students from other countries to India.
