After a record-breaking summer last year in which the United States issued 62,000 visas to Indian students, the US Chargé d’Affaires Patricia Lacina said the US Mission in India is expecting the numbers to rise further. Ms. Lacina was speaking at the sixth annual Student Visa Day organised by the US Mission in India on Tuesday.
“The United States places an immense value on international students and their rich contributions to our academic institutions and communities. This is particularly true in India. Indians are the second-largest group of international students in the US,” Ms. Lacina said.
She said that the Student Visa Day is organised to recognise the contributions of Indian students in shaping the US-India diplomatic relations, which completed its 75th anniversary this year.
In a statement, the Embassy stated that the Indian students comprise over 18% of the total number of international students in the US and that during the academic year 2020-21, nearly 1,70,000 Indian students studied in the US.
The Embassy also stated that over 40% of the Indians studying in the US were enrolled in graduate programmes and that the top academic majors for Indian students are mathematics, computer science and engineering. These three disciplines together account for nearly 70% of the Indian students. Giving details about the gender ratio, the Embassy said that almost 40% of Indian students in the US are female.
Don Heflin, the Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs in India, said, "We are interviewing approximately 3000 students today for the visa. This year, the Embassy has opened 100,000 appointments for student visas."
The Embassy asked all students interested in studying in the US to contact EducationUSA, the US government-sponsored advising service that offers credible and comprehensive information to help navigate the admission and visa process.
