Prodigy Finance, a pioneer in cross-border student lending, has released its Study Abroad Insights Report for the year 2022, highlighting the overseas education trends among aspiring Indian students.
The overseas education sector has grown significantly in recent times. According to the Education Ministry’s data, Indian students going abroad for higher education recorded a six-year high by a whopping 68% increase in 2022. Reflecting the same growth trajectory, Prodigy Finance revealed that it witnessed a 72% growth in loan applications in 2022 vs 2021.
Mayank Sharma, Country Head India & Head of Global Partnerships at Prodigy Finance, said,
“For Indian students who have placed large bets on international education programmes, the looming possibility of a global recession may be discouraging. However, it is a good time for students to invest in their internal education. India has seen a huge growth in 2022 in terms of applicants seeking to study abroad. At Prodigy, we saw a 73% increase in loan disbursements in India. We believe and are fully committed to removing barriers to financial access that will help aspiring students realize their dreams of better career and growth opportunities.”
Some key findings from the report include:
Winds of equity in higher education – female participation increases by 145% on average across courses:
- Management: Female applicants grew by 93% vs 32% male applicants
- Accounting: Female applicants grew by 350% vs 94% male applicants
- Analytics: Female applicants grew by 70% vs 51% male applicants
- Public Health: Female applicants grew by 154% vs 111% male applicants
Amidst global headwinds, new markets emerge for international education:
The report revealed interesting insights on emerging markets providing international education, with the Netherlands (124%) and Italy (118%) witnessing a boost because of favourable laws and post-study work opportunities. The most preferred study-abroad destinations among Indian students are anglophone countries such as the US, UK, and Canada – which witnessed an upward trend of 68%, 29%, and 9% respectively.
Foreign student loan applications spike concentrated in these cities:
Cities like Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi, and Chennai have the highest number of loan applications in 2022 versus 2021. In tier 1 cities, Delhi saw a massive increase of 237% followed by Hyderabad which saw a spike in the number of registrations with a growth of 193%. Mumbai witnessed a spike of 142%, followed by Bengaluru with a growth of 82%.
Tier 2 and tier 3 cities witnessed a growth of an average of 53% and 109% respectively in the number of applications. Vijayawada and Lucknow contributed largely to this uptick with 185% and 91% growth respectively.
New courses and countries that are increasingly preferred by Indian students:
The report observed an upward trend of women in STEM and other science-related fields, such as Bio/Biotech Engineering, Vehicle Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Information Systems, Operations Research, and Earth Sciences wishing to study in emerging markets such as Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
Top 5 preferred universities for aspiring students:
Among Prodigy Finance student applications, the top five most desired universities were:
- Arizona State University
- University of Texas at Dallas
- Hult International Business School
- Northeastern University
- University at Buffalo
India has been one of the fastest-growing markets for Prodigy Finance. In 2022, the company saw a 72% rise in applications from India and a 73% increase in loan disbursements for Indian students. Interestingly, Prodigy has been able to create a significant impact in Tier II & Tier III regions in India, where they saw an uptick of 162%.
In the last decade, Prodigy Finance has been consistently working towards removing financial barriers for students interested in international education. Through its various initiatives, Prodigy has been able to impact 30 000 international masters students and continues to grow within the Indian market and their other supported jurisdictions in the coming years.
Founded in 2007, Prodigy Finance is an international student lender that has helped over 30,000 international master’s students attend the world’s top universities. To date, Prodigy has disbursed over $1.75b in funding to students from more than 150 countries. Prodigy Finance is fueled by impact investors and other private qualified entities who invest in tomorrow’s leaders whilst earning a financial and social return. Prodigy’s borderless lending model enables students to apply for a loan based on their future earning potential and not just their current circumstances and credit history.
