Covid-19 Pandemic Affects Students' Choices On Going To University: Report

In India, the majority of students are still choosing to pursue higher education courses at Indian universities, followed by international destinations like the US and UK

The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted students' decisions worldwide on where to study once they leave school. According to Cambridge International’s Annual Destinations survey, 84 per cent of schools surveyed reported that many of their students had changed their minds about their first-choice destination or university – largely as a result of general uncertainty, difficulties with travel or financial hardship caused by the pandemic.

"Three out of five (62 per cent) schools said some of their students delayed or deferred university due to general uncertainty and wanting to avoid travel away from home. The impact of Covid-19 on location choice was so important that 43 per cent of schools had at least some students change their plans to study at another university," the survey found.

The impacts of the pandemic had a big influence on the decisions students took about their next educational steps, the research also found that students are becoming more aware of the wide range of study options available to them internationally. Regarding students' choice of varsity overseas, 76 per cent reported they chose the UK because of strong university reputation, whilst 73 per cent reported they chose Canada because it was the most attractive for future job opportunities. 66 per cent cited university reputation as the reason for choosing a US university, and 34 per cent chose Australia because they were interested in exploring the region.

Globally, many teachers surveyed reported a diversification in the countries that students are prepared to consider, with a particular increase in applications to universities in Turkey, Germany, Canada, Indonesia, UAE and the Netherlands. Those responding to the survey felt one reason for this was that overseas universities in a wider range of countries are increasingly offering a greater choice of courses, which gives students wider career opportunities.