Dip in no. of Indian STEM students in US

An analysis by National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) has found there has been a decline by over 25% between academic years 2016-17 and 2018-19 in Indian science and technology students going to the US for graduation courses.

“Many Indian students have been choosing Canada over the United States as the place to study and make their careers,” NFAP executive director Stuart Anderson opined. It is believed that US wants to cease the Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme that enables graduates in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to work for an additional 24 months in the US, followed by applying for an H-1B to continue working in the country.

The number of international students from all over the world enrolled at the graduate-level in computer science at US universities dipped by 6,050 between academic years 2016-17 and 2018-19. This was revealed by the Department of Homeland Security special tabulation of the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) published by the National Science Foundation. The decline in the number of Indian students was quite notable at 11,080.