Best Places to Study Abroad

In a country of over 1.3 billion people, India hardly has a few dozen higher education institutions imparting quality training and knowledge. Each year, thousands, if not lakhs, of students, compete for the few available seats in premier educational institutions in the country. To make matters worse, many of the seats are reserved for those belonging to marginalized communities, thereby making it even more difficult for students, especially those who fall under the ‘General’ category to get admission.

In such a scenario, students are left with only two choices; either to study at a less reputed educational institute in India or go abroad in pursuit of higher education. In this blog, Student Cover brings you a list of some of the best places to study abroad.

United States of America

The land of milk and honey is undoubtedly the most preferred destination for Indian students aspiring to study abroad. At any given time, over 1.5 lakh Indian students can be found enrolled in one or the other university in the U.S. Other than being home to some of the top-ranked educational institutions such as the Harvard University, Stanford University, Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, etc. some of them are called “Ivy League schools”, US also offers exciting job opportunities for students who graduate from US universities.

The U.S. is also home to some of the biggest companies in the world such as Google, Amazon, Apple, Ford Motors, IBM, Microsoft, etc. Undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (also known as STEM) )-related courses have better job prospects in the US.

Due to this reason, Student Cover provides both secured and unsecured education loans from banks and Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), on favorable terms and interest rates, to help students pursuing those courses in the US. Students can get secured loans of up to Rs. 1 crore from commercial banks and unsecured loans of up to Rs. 40 lakhs from NBFCs through Student Cover to study in the US.

Canada

A member of the British Commonwealth, Canada is a much sought-after destination for Indian students both in terms of quality higher education and employment opportunities. The country is known for its liberal policy towards immigration. It is not only easier to get admission to higher education institutions in Canada but comparatively cheaper as well. According to QS World University Ranking 2019, the University of Toronto, McGill University, and the University of British Columbia figure in the list of top 50 universities in the world.

Getting admission in Canada is also easier as compared to the US. Unlike the US, the Canadian higher education degrees are similar to the British system. A bachelor’s degree in Canada is three years as compared to 4 years in the US. This means that Indian students applying for a postgraduate degree (referred to as a graduate degree in Canada) after completing a 3-year bachelor’s degree course in India do not have to make up for the shortfall in credits through bridge courses.

In terms of employment opportunities, Canada is currently witnessing a period of boom as far as job creation is concerned. According to a report published in the Financial Post on 10th May 2019, Canada’s current unemployment rate at 5.6 percent is hovering close to its record low in the last four decades. In April itself, 106,500 new employees were hired by different organizations across the country. This, coupled with its perennial shortage of manpower due to its small population and a liberal immigration policy makes Canada a prime destination to study abroad.

Students who get admitted to a bachelor’s degree course in STEM subjects in Canadian universities can get unsecured loans of up to Rs. 15 Lakhs through Student Cover.  For a post-graduate degree, the unsecured education loans can be up to Rs. 25 Lakhs. For Secured loans, students can get up to Rs. 1.5 crore education loan through Student Cover.

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is home to some of the oldest and most prestigious educational institutions in the world. Till the last couple of decades, the UK was the most preferred destination for higher education among Indian students. Universities such as the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, London School of Economics, Imperial College of London, etc. are known to be alma maters of many globally renowned personalities.

In the UK, an undergraduate course generally takes 3 years to complete with Scotland being an exception where it takes 4 years to complete a graduate degree course. Master’s degree courses generally take 1 year to complete. Since, India follows British English, Indian students who can prove their proficiency in the English language either through their academic performance or work are exempted from taking IELTS (International English Language Testing System) exams.

As compared to Canada, higher education in the UK is very costly with the average tuition fee for international students for undergraduate courses may range from £9,000 (Rs. 8.23 Lakhs)  up to £58,000 (Rs 53 Lakhs) for a medical science degree. For graduate degree (Post Graduation Degree) courses, the fee may range from £5,800 (Rs. 5.3 Lakhs) to £44,500 (Rs 40.7 Lakhs) for medical science degree and £55,000 (Rs. 50.3 Lakhs) for MBA. Students can get up to Rs. 1 crore secured education loan to study in the UK through Student Cover.

Australia

Situated down south of the equator, Australia, like Canada, is a former colony of the British Empire. It has emerged as one of the most preferred destinations for higher education among Indian students in the last couple of years. This is primarily due to lower fees as compared to the US and the UK. On average, the fee for international students in Australia for undergraduate courses ranges from AUD 20,000 to AUD 41,000. With 1 Australian Dollar (AUD) being equal to 49 Indian Rupees, it comes out to be Rs. 9.81 Lakhs to Rs. 20.1 Lakhs.

Australia also has some of the most well-ranked universities in the world. According to QS World University Ranking 2019, 7 out of 33 universities in Australia figure in its list of top 100 universities in the world. They include Australian National University, Universities of Melbourne, Sydney, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and Monash University.

Indian students going to Australia to pursue a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in STEM discipline in the top 10 universities in Australia can get unsecured education loans of up to Rs 40 Lakhs from NBFCs through Student Cover. Students can also get secured education loans from banks and NBFCs through Student Cover for pursuing bachelor’s or master’s degree courses in any other university in Australia.

We hope that readers will find the content of the above write-up helpful and informative. Student Cover not only provides education loan for international students for higher education but also student and health insurance services through our partner organizations. To learn more about Student Cover’s education loan services, readers may click the following link: https://www.studentcover.in/education-loan-study-abroad/