India attracts just 0.52% of US students studying abroad, a significant drop from 4,583 students in 2013-14 to 1,578 in 2023-24, according to the Institute of International Education (IIE).
By contrast, more than 360,000 Indian students are currently studying in the US, accounting for 30.8% of the international student population, making India the largest source of foreign students in America.
Education consultants attribute the low numbers to factors such as relatively low-ranked Indian universities, differences in academic systems, and inadequate infrastructure for international students.
US student numbers in India began falling before the COVID-19 pandemic, plunged during the crisis, and have yet to recover, with India now attracting fewer American students than Belize, Vietnam, and Ghana.
