Overview
- India’s Ministry of External Affairs counts 1,882,318 Indian students overseas as of January 1, 2025 across 153 countries, a tally that now includes school-level enrolments.
- A NITI Aayog report places outbound numbers at about 1.34 million in 2024 and estimates nearly 9% compounded annual growth in overseas study since 2016.
- Leap Scholar data indicates a clear pivot to lower-cost, predictable pathways, with interest surging for Germany (up 219% in 2023–24 and 377% in 2024–25), New Zealand (up 2,900% in 2024–25) and the UAE (up 5,400% in 2024–25), and Indians now forming the largest international cohort in Germany at nearly 59,000.
- Education New Zealand reports Indian enrolments up 34% to 10,640 between January and August 2024, while Dubai’s KHDA says Indians account for 42% of the city’s international higher-education intake in 2024–25.
- Reserve Bank of India data show education remittances rising from Rs 975 crore in 2013–14 to nearly Rs 29,000 crore in 2023–24, underscoring the scale of household spending on overseas study.