Archive · 2 Sep 2026
Indian Students Choose Local Degrees Before Overseas Master’s Study
Many Indian students are changing when they study in another country.
Instead of going abroad immediately after school, more may first attend an Indian university.
They may then go overseas for a master’s degree.
Families may see this path as offering better value and clearer job opportunities.
Indian colleges are also offering more flexible courses in subjects such as data science and artificial intelligence.
Some foreign universities are opening branch campuses in India too.
This does not mean Indian students have stopped wanting international careers.
The United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia are becoming less dominant choices, while several other countries are attracting more interest.
Sri Lankan students, by comparison, still generally prefer to study abroad if they can afford it.
The Cambridge Destination Survey 2025-26 found that more Indian students are considering undergraduate study in India before pursuing a master’s degree abroad.
The survey covered 404 schools across 49 countries and an estimated 24,637 learners, including 112 schools in India.
Cambridge described India’s changing preference as a “structural shift,” rather than only a response to costs, visas, geopolitics or currency weakness.
Indian universities are becoming more attractive through private and interdisciplinary institutions, flexible courses and foreign university branch campuses.
Indian students still retain global ambitions, while destinations such as Singapore, the UAE, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Ireland and the Netherlands gain interest.
- Who
- Indian students and families, according to the Cambridge Destination Survey 2025-26; the survey also included schools and learners in other countries.
- What
- More Indian students are considering Indian undergraduate degrees followed by overseas master’s degrees instead of leaving abroad immediately after Class 12.
- When
- The findings come from the Cambridge Destination Survey 2025-26.
- Where
- The reported shift concerns India; the survey covered 404 schools across 49 countries, including 112 schools in India.
- Why
- Students and families are reassessing the value of the full education-to-employment pathway, while Indian universities offer more attractive and flexible options.
India’s Delayed-Study-Abroad Path
Continued Overseas Preference
Timing of international study
India’s Delayed-Study-Abroad Path
In India, more students are comfortable completing undergraduate education domestically before pursuing a master’s degree abroad, according to the survey.
Continued Overseas Preference
In Sri Lanka, a school counsellor said most students would still prefer to study abroad, although high costs may prevent them from doing so.
Meaning of domestic study
India’s Delayed-Study-Abroad Path
Indian universities are increasingly being viewed as a first choice for undergraduate education rather than merely a fallback option.
Continued Overseas Preference
The Sri Lankan trend described in the report suggests that overseas study remains the preferred option where students can afford it.
- Survey
- Cambridge Destination Survey 2025-26
- Survey coverage
- 404 schools across 49 countries and an estimated 24,637 learners
- Indian participation
- 112 Indian schools responded
- Emerging pathway
- Indian undergraduate degree followed by an overseas master’s degree
- Indian course areas
- Data science, business analytics and artificial intelligence
- Traditional destinations
- The United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia
- Growing destinations
- Singapore, the UAE, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Ireland and the Netherlands