INDIA: The trend of basic graduation has surged amongst the students from India, as it has never done before, with the world being globally globalized. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, in 2022, there have been over 13 lakh (1.3 million) Indian students studying abroad in 79 countries of the world, which reflect a huge increment of 68% from the year before. This burgeoning exodus not only signifies a massive outflow of financial resources — estimated at around $47 billion in direct expenditures for 2022, projected to soar to $70 billion by 2025 — but also raises pertinent questions about the underlying motivations and the broader implications for India’s socio-economic fabric.
The Gradding report emphasizes that Indian families invest heavily in education abroad, including tuition, accommodation, and living expenses. Such a staggering figure could hardly justify a revaluation of the value many perceive basic graduation studies overseas to offer, especially while juxtaposing the most successful entrepreneur in India’s educational backgrounds. A rather compelling observation where the qualifications of the ten richest Indians are seen. All, without exception except one, have graduated from local colleges within India and have, by the way, prospered across various sectors, irrespective of their fields of study. Another reality this goes against is a very often-accepted truth that international degrees are the most important precursor to making it professionally big.
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Reassessing India’s Role Amidst the Global Pursuit of Overseas Basic Graduation
It has always been the reputation of pursuing post-graduation from a foreign university, paying off in the form of top positions in multinational companies for many Indians. The present clamour, however, to secure basic graduation degrees from abroad seems, in essentiality, to have its source more from a prestige-driven mindset rather than a considered investment in future employability or entrepreneurial success. If this trend continues, it would place an undue burden on the foreign exchange reserves of India, which means that it can indirectly result in the diversion of large financial resources from its own frontiers in terms of domestic education and innovation.
The economic ramifications are just one facet of a multi-dimensional issue. Undertaking studies abroad at the undergraduate level would at least imply disengagement from the local context still further at a formative stage but perhaps even at this stage: loss of an umbilical connection with the socio-cultural milieu of India and dilution of the ability to add value in a meaningful way to challenges closer home. The value that one attaches to education is way beyond the academic qualifications and goes deeper into understanding and engaging with one’s surrounding environment.
Moreover, this trend overlooks the strides India has made in enhancing its higher education landscape. From setting up world-class institutions to enhancing research facilities and innovation, India is moving ahead to dissolve the gap between Indian education and world-class education. Encouraging students to leverage these opportunities will definitely help in plugging the financial outflow but also help in nurturing a generation of professionals and entrepreneurs who are deeply rooted in and attuned to the nuances of the motherland.
To reverse the tide, a multi-pronged approach is needed. Solidify the quality and competitive level of the Indian HEIs in the world, realignment of societal perception vs. domestic versus overseas education, and creation of additional pathways for professional growth and innovation for residents within India. Furthermore, scholarships, internships, and partnering of Indian and foreign universities could be a further bridge that provides global exposure without getting them fully transplanted into a completely new education system. Finally, both such deeply personal choices to pursue further education at home or abroad should be considered an imperative for collective introspection on the part of Indian society. The idea of studying abroad, especially for basic graduation, should not be weighed due to the lure of foreign degrees but its implications on individual growth and national development. Fostering an educational ecosystem that encourages students’ aspiration and growth not just in India but also across the world is part of economic prudence. It also rhymes with nurturing a generation that becomes globally competent yet locally anchored, poised to lead India’s charge onto the world stage.
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