At a time when a new bill has been introduced in the US Congress calling for termination of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program, data shows that number of Indian students in the US dipped by nearly 28 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) in March 2025, and the move to end OPT is likely to further hit Indian students’ sentiments towards US education.
businessline’s analysis of monthly Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) data of the US Department of Homeland Security indicates a sharp month-on-month decline in Indian students enrolled in the US.
Active Indian students count took a sharp dive from 3,48,446 in July 2024 to 2,55,447 in August 2024 - a month that typically coincides with the admission cycle in the US. This decline was a reversal of the previously consistent upward trend in Indian enrollment and since then, from August 2024 to March 2025, the number of active Indian students in the US has hovered around 2,55,000.
This comes at a time when instances of ad-hoc deportations and tighter visa regulations under Donald Trump’s new administration have led to unease among students who are F-1 and M-1 visa holders. The soaring cost of tuition spends is also adding to the problems.
Adding to the anxiety is the proposed bill titled “Fairness for High-Skilled American Act 2025” that seeks to eliminate OPT. A gist of the bill shows that it argues that OPT, which gives international graduates to stay in the US for up to three years after graduation, gives foreign students an unfair edge over American graduates. Data from Open Doors shows a 41 per cent jump in Indian students on OPT between academic years 2023 to 2024.
Poorvi Chothani, founder and Managing Partner of LawQuest, an immigration and employment law firm in Mumbai, told businessline that the Bill was introduced in the last week of March and is now open for public consultation for around 60 days. “It has to pass through various stages such as the House Committee and various Senate Houses before it even goes for the Presidential assent. If passed, it will only be for future effect and will only impact future OPT issues,” Chothani said.
businessline also spoke to various experts and students who are either already in the US or in the process of applying to get a sense of the sentiment.
Take the case of Siddarth N (name changed), an engineering graduate from Chennai who has two offers for Masters - one in a top tier US university and the other in Germany. He is declining the US admission and heading to Germany because of little assurance on job prospects and the overall “hostile atmosphere” in the US. “If you are considering the US as an option for higher studies, you may be stuck in the past. Funding/scholarship is tough to come by for MS programs and fees are also exorbitant. On top of that, with tougher work visas it doesn’t just make sense to study there as jobs are not guaranteed,” he said. “My seniors who are there right now are struggling to find jobs,” he adds.
There are others reconsidering their decision to opt for higher studies in the US. “My son, who will be completing his B.Tech this June, wants to go to Germany instead of the US for his MS in computers… He feels insecure not only about the visa but also about the fast-evolving conditions in the US,” K. Ratnakar, an officer in SBI, said.
However, a few who have managed to get scholarship, continue to stay on with their plans for an American dream.
For those already studying in the US too, the mood is cautious. Another student at a top university in the US said: “It has become quite difficult in the current market situation to find a job as an international student. Visa sponsorship costs also deter companies from hiring even well-qualified candidates.” He notes that some of his batchmates had applied to over 1,000 roles to secure a job.
“There is a notion that if we step out from US, we may not be allowed back. I have cancelled my plan to come home in India in coming June,” A Shashank, a second-year student of MS in a US university, said.
Career consultants and other education experts admit to a reduction in aspirations among Indian students for US education but say this could reverse if many of the current administration’s proposals become clearer.
Akshay Chaturvedi, founder of study abroad platform Leverage Edu says there is a decline in students headed to US as per their platform stats but also adds that it has been a pattern whenever the US sees a Presidential change. “Around March April, the numbers generally start to pick up (those aiming for August-September intake) but we are not yet seeing that happen,” he adds. Most student admissions, especially STEM, are going towards Germany and Ireland, he notes.
Devaki Thiyagarajan, Chairperson of the Travel Agents Association of India (Southern Chapter) also sees similar trends. Around 15-20 per cent of students who had planned to go to the US have dropped out; there is now more interest in traveling to countries like Australia, Germany, and France, she said.
Amit Anand, senior analyst, Everest Group, says the waning interest of Indian students in the US education is driven by rising visa uncertainty, high costs, and muted job prospects. “While this shift appears more cyclical than permanent, it has already begun to impact university enrollments, particularly in STEM graduate programs. However, with improved tech hiring, clearer post-study pathways, and better policy alignment, the US can still regain its position as the top choice for India’s STEM talent,” he said. He notes a similar trend from 2017 to 2020, during the earlier Trump presidency, when US higher education saw a multi-year drop in new international enrollments.
(With inputs from TE Raja Simhan, Naga Sridhar, and Aishwarya Kumar)