When foreign universities come home
India is seeing a significant decline in the number of students traveling abroad for higher education, coinciding with the arrival of foreign university campuses within the country. This shift is largely driven by the National Education Policy (NEP-2020) and the opening of offshore campuses in cities like Bengaluru.
Why it matters
Reflects a major shift in global education trends and India's strategy to localize high-quality international academic resources.
Until recently, some 7 lakh students from India used to go to foreign universities every year. The United States of America, Australia, Canada, England,.and Germany were among the key destinations.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs data, the number of students going abroad from India has now decreased by about 40%. This year, only 2 lakh to 3 lakh students have gone to foreign universities.
At the same time, an increasing number of foreign universities are pitching their tents in India, opening their offshore campuses here and offering the “foreign-educated” tag. Bengaluru appears to be one of the key destinations for many of them, with two universities — one each from Australia and the United Kingdom - already opening their campuses and starting academic activities from 2026-27, while more are in the pipeline.
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