UK’s post-study work opportunities and Graduate Route visa are a big draw for Indian students
(This story originally appeared in on Nov 07, 2023)
Last year Kunal Rajani, an architect from Mumbai, was considering several options of studying abroad including universities in the US, Australia and Dubai. The main reason for him to finally choose the MSc in climate resilience and environmental sustainability in architecture (CRESTA) at the University of Liverpool in UK was that it’s a one year course. “The University of Liverpool is famous for architectural courses. I plan to join a PhD course in the UK after I finish my post-graduation and will look for scholarships at that stage,” says Rajani who was able to find accommodation on campus easily and feels that availability of student housing and part-time jobs are some of the advantages for Indian students going to the UK for master’s degrees.
The UK has, in fact, emerged one of the most popular destinations for Indian students in the last few years especially with the introduction of the Graduate Route which allows eligible international students, including those from India, who have completed undergraduate and master’s degrees to stay for two years, and those who have completed a PhD programme to stay for three years, to work or look for work.
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“Indian nationals represent the largest international student group in the UK, receiving the largest share of our study visas and 42% of all Graduate Route grants. For the year ending June 2023, Indian nationals received nearly 143,000 study visas, that’s almost 1/3rd of all UK study visas issued globally. Grants to study for Indian nationals have risen markedly since the year ending June 2019 and are now around seven times higher,” a British High Commission spokesperson told
