There are conversations that stay with you long after the room has emptied. My recent roundtable on the Internationalisation of Higher Education in India, hosted by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was one of them.
The discussion brought together policymakers, education leaders and international higher education experts, including Mr. Ajay Bisaria, former High Commissioner of India to Canada, Ms. Esther Benjamin, CEO of WES, Mr. Vineet Gupta, Founder of Ashoka University, and Dr. M. Jagadesh Kumar, Chairman of the NEP 2020 Review Committee, among others.
For someone who runs an education consultancy and speaks to families about higher education and study abroad every week, the discussion put numbers and policy thinking behind something I see constantly: many Indian families still believe that if they want a genuinely global education, their child has to leave India.
The question I came away with was not whether Indian students should study abroad. It was much bigger: why does a global education still have to mean leaving India?
The 28:1 Problem in Indian Higher Education
One statistic from the discussion captured the imbalance. For every international student who comes to India, roughly 28 Indian students go abroad for higher education. The broader data tells the same story. NITI Aayog’s 2025 report on the internationalisation of higher education in India notes that more than 13 lakh Indian students were studying abroad in 2024, while India’s international student population remained around 50,000 in 2021-22. The report identifies this imbalance between outbound and inbound mobility as one of the central challenges for India’s higher education system.
The financial implications are significant as well. NITI Aayog estimates that Indian students’ expenditure on foreign education could reach approximately USD 70 billion, or ₹6 lakh crore, by 2025. The report notes that this is around ten times India’s higher education budget for 2025-26 and approximately 2% of India’s GDP.
These numbers are not an argument against study abroad. International education can transform how students think, learn and build careers. It gives students access to different academic systems, cultures, networks and opportunities. But the numbers do raise an important question for Indian higher education: what would it take to make global learning possible within India too?
Internationalisation Is More Than Bringing Foreign Faculty to India
One of the most important discussions at the roundtable was about what internationalisation actually means. It is not enough to invite an international professor for a lecture or sign an MoU with a foreign university. Internationalisation needs to become part of the way an institution teaches, researches and operates.
That can mean globally benchmarked curricula, international faculty, genuinely diverse classrooms, student and faculty exchanges, joint research, dual and joint degree programmes, and meaningful academic partnerships. NITI Aayog’s report similarly places “internationalisation at home” at the centre of India’s higher education ambitions. It recommends stronger global research partnerships, student and faculty mobility, international academic collaborations and mechanisms that allow students to experience international ecosystems without necessarily spending their entire education overseas.
There are already examples of what this can look like. The Indian School of Business, for instance, brings resident faculty together with visiting faculty from leading global institutions. Organisations such as the Observer Research Foundation regularly bring diplomats, policymakers, academics and international experts into the same conversations.
These are not theoretical models. They demonstrate that global engagement can be built into an Indian institution. The bigger challenge is making such models more widespread.
India Has the Talent. The Question Is Readiness.
Another discussion that stayed with me was about India’s demographic advantage. India has one of the world’s youngest populations. At the same time, the global economy is heading towards significant workforce shortages. The opportunity is therefore not simply to send Indian students and professionals overseas. It is to ensure that India’s talent is equipped to participate in a global economy from wherever they are.
That requires more than academic qualifications.
It requires internationally relevant curricula, stronger research ecosystems, global networks, transferable credentials, industry connections and institutions capable of preparing students for careers that may not even exist in their current form. This is where initiatives such as GATI, or Global Access to Talent in India, become relevant. The larger ambition is to position India not simply as a country that supplies talent to the world, but as a global destination for talent, education, research and innovation.
Why Are More International Students Not Choosing India?
If India has the talent, scale and intellectual capacity to build a globally connected higher education system, why does international student mobility remain so heavily skewed outward? The answer is not one-dimensional. Infrastructure matters. Safety matters. The global recognition of qualifications matters. Research capacity matters. So do regulations, student experience, international visibility and the ease with which students can move between education systems.
Mr. Vineet Gupta highlighted infrastructure and safety as important factors. Ms. Esther Benjamin brought another critical layer to the discussion: international mobility depends on trust in qualifications and the systems that recognise them. This is something families understand instinctively when they evaluate universities abroad. They ask about rankings, accreditation, employability, safety, campus infrastructure, faculty and global recognition. Indian institutions must be prepared to be evaluated through the same lens.
The good news is that the regulatory groundwork is moving. NITI Aayog’s report points to measures including the UGC’s internationalisation guidelines, academic collaboration regulations and the framework allowing foreign higher education institutions to establish campuses in India. The scaffolding is beginning to take shape. The real question is how quickly institutions can turn policy into student experience.
What Does This Mean for Indian Students and Parents?
For families planning higher education, this conversation should not become an argument for or against studying abroad. The better question is: what kind of education does the student actually need? For some students, studying abroad will remain the right choice. The academic programme, research opportunities, career pathway, cultural experience or professional network may make an international university the natural fit.
For others, an Indian institution with strong international collaborations, global faculty, research opportunities and a diverse student body may provide much of the international exposure they are looking for without requiring four years overseas. This is why higher education counselling needs to move beyond simply asking, “Which country should we apply to?”
The more useful questions are: What does the student want to study? What kind of learning environment will help them thrive? Which institution offers the right academic and career ecosystem? What global opportunities are genuinely embedded in the programme? And what does the student want their education to prepare them for?
Internationalisation of Higher Education Is a Design Problem
I left the roundtable with one thought that has become increasingly relevant to my work: Internationalisation is not a study-abroad problem. It is a design problem. If Indian students are leaving because they want diverse classrooms, global faculty, international research, stronger career networks and exposure to different ways of thinking, then we need to ask how those experiences can be designed into Indian higher education.
That does not mean replacing study abroad. It means expanding the definition of global education.
India does not need to choose between sending students out and bringing the world in. It needs to build a higher education ecosystem capable of doing both. The NITI Aayog report makes a similar case for “internationalisation at home”, arguing that globally integrated Indian institutions can strengthen domestic research, innovation, employability and talent development while helping India become a more attractive global education destination.
As an education consultant, I will continue helping students find the right opportunities abroad when that is the right path for them. But I also hope that, over time, the definition of a “global education” becomes much bigger than an international flight. The goal should not simply be to make India a country from which students leave to access global education. The goal should be to make India a country to which the world comes to learn.
Frequently Asked Questions About Internationalisation of Higher Education in India (FAQs)
What is internationalisation of higher education in India?
Internationalisation of higher education means integrating global and intercultural perspectives into teaching, research and institutional life. In India, this includes international faculty and students, global academic collaborations, student and faculty exchanges, joint research, international curricula and opportunities for students to engage with global academic ecosystems. NITI Aayog describes “internationalisation at home” as an important part of India’s higher education strategy.
Why are so many Indian students studying abroad?
Indian students choose overseas universities for a combination of academic, professional and personal reasons. These include specialised programmes, research opportunities, international faculty, global networks, career opportunities, diverse student communities and exposure to different education systems.
Does studying abroad provide a better education than studying in India?
Not necessarily. The right choice depends on the student’s academic goals, programme, institution, career plans, finances and preferred learning environment. Some Indian institutions now offer significant international exposure through global faculty, research collaborations and academic partnerships.
What does ‘internationalisation at home’ mean?
Internationalisation at home means bringing global learning into the domestic higher education experience. It can include international faculty, diverse classrooms, global curricula, research collaborations, virtual international programmes, exchange opportunities and joint or dual degree programmes.
Can international students study in India?
Yes. India is working to increase international student enrolment and strengthen its position as a global higher education destination. NITI Aayog has proposed targets and policy measures aimed at significantly increasing the number of international students studying in India.
What is NEP 2020’s role in internationalisation of higher education?
The National Education Policy 2020 places significant emphasis on internationalisation, including student and faculty mobility, international research collaborations, global academic partnerships and making Indian higher education institutions more globally connected.
People Also Ask (PAAs)
Why is internationalisation important in Indian higher education?
Internationalisation can strengthen the quality and global relevance of Indian higher education by expanding academic collaboration, research networks, faculty mobility, student opportunities and international engagement.
How can India attract more international students?
India needs to strengthen infrastructure, safety, research capacity, international visibility, qualification recognition, student services and globally relevant academic programmes while making international collaboration easier for institutions.
What are the benefits of internationalisation at home?
Internationalisation at home can give students access to global perspectives, international faculty, diverse peer groups and cross-border academic experiences without requiring every student to study overseas.
Why do Indian students prefer to study abroad?
Students may choose international universities for specialised programmes, research opportunities, global networks, career pathways, diverse cohorts and different academic environments. The decision is highly individual and should be based on the student’s goals rather than the assumption that foreign education is automatically better.
Is India becoming a global higher education destination?
India has significant potential to become a global higher education destination, and policy initiatives are increasingly focused on attracting international students, strengthening academic collaborations and building globally connected institutions. NITI Aayog’s 2025 report sets out a roadmap for this transformation.
