International students are travelling to foreign countries and the United States has emerged as one of the most popular locations in the midst of the pandemic.
According to experts that deal with international education, the United States has been more friendly than ever in terms of student visa approvals. That could indicate why the current increase of Covid-19 cases hasn’t dampened students’ spirits.
The rush to the United States corresponds with a decline in interest in countries that were once popular with Indian students, such as Australia and New Zealand. Both of these two countries’ covid-related limitations, as well as travel difficulties, are the factors keeping Gujarat students away.
According to Bhavin Thaker, a visa specialist in Ahmedabad, Indian students see a new light of hope in the United States while many other nations continue to implement harsh travel restrictions and make obtaining visas more difficult.
“The US visa success rate for Indian students is about 95% and this is by far the highest over the past many years,” said Thakker. “Gujarat students are preferring the US to Australia. This holds true for students from other parts of India too.”
According to Pranav Jotani, another visa counsellor from Ahmedabad, the existing rate of success for obtaining US visas is greater than it was in October. “Ironically, a number of students who got rejected earlier have got their visas during the pandemic time,” said Jotani. He stated that the United States is making all-out attempts to get its colleges back on track after the pandemic.
Many Indian students have been attempting to travel to the US since the pandemic-based travel restrictions. Darshil Patel, a mechanical engineering graduate, had been trying to travel to the United States since 2018. His visa applications had previously been denied five times. His efforts have just paid off.
“I have made a lot of effort to study in the US,” said Patel over the phone. “I have finally reached my destination and I am pursuing a master’s degree in retail management at a university in the state of New Jersey.”
According to education consultants, between 2015 and 2020, they had a 40% visa success rate; this ratio has since risen to more than 95%. One of the students, Meet Hapaliya, who after having his visa application was refused twice previously, was granted a student visa on December 24 to pursue a bachelor’s degree in business administration and finance at a university in San Francisco.
“I am very happy that I could finally fulfil my dream to come to the US,” Hapaliya said. “I am currently in Los Angeles and waiting for my college to start from January 17.”
Students coming from all over the world to the US contribute billions of dollars to the US economy, with Indian and Chinese students being the most significant donors.
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