This year, 54% hike has been observed for Indian students to consider France being the education destination from 2017-18. Currently, according to the French Embassy in New Delhi, 8000 students are observed to be pursuing higher education from French Institutes.
With Indian students starting to prefer France for Education, UK still remains above the priority list with a number 10,000 students studying in the UK, followed by the United States, with 1.5 lakh Indian Students pursuing higher education in the country.
It was also observed over the last year, that the student inflow to US and UK has been declining. Despite French, being an obstacle for students, many programs are offered in English in the institutes making it easy for Indians.
During the reign of President Emmanuel Macron’s, her trip to India in March 2018, it was concluded between India and France to open doors for over 10,000 Indian students by 2020.
French Ambassador Alexandre Zeigler said, “In 2018, we registered 8,000 student and research visas for talented young Indians. Though twice as much as a couple of years back, this is still too little. We want to reach 10,000 by 2020, but why not 20,000 in 2025? Our doors have always been open to Indian students, and our courses, many fully taught in English, are among the world’s best.”
He also added that the France Government will be providing subsidies for Indian children to pursue higher education in France.
“Moreover, the agreement on the Mutual Recognition of Academic Qualifications between India and France, signed during President Emmanuel Macron’s India visit, will enhance the already close ties between our two nations.”
France is considered to be the third most popular global study destination with four lakh students registering every year. Apart from the agreement of targeting10,000 students, France and India have also agreed for partnerships and exchange programs between institutions of higher education and research.
France was also reported to be conducting the second edition of its Knowledge Summit in Lyon this October. “The Knowledge Summit will gather a wide range of higher education institutions, as well as top academics from both India and France and highlight the wide range of opportunities this partnership offers,” said a communique from the embassy. It added that: “The Choose France Tour, held twice a year, enables French institutions to present their courses to Indian students. This year the Choose France Tour 2019 took place in Chennai (31 January), Kochi (2 February), Hyderabad (4 and 5 February), and will soon come to Pune (7 February) and Delhi (9 February).” said Macron’s visit to India during the first summit in New Delhi.