New Delhi: After issuing a record 1,40,000 student visas last year, the US consular team in India is fully prepared to meet the expected increase in the number of applications from Indian students in 2024, a senior embassy official said here. Said the estimated total number this year would be "same or higher" than last year.
The US Mission in India on Thursday held its eighth annual Student Visa Day across the country, with consular officers from New Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai interviewing Indian student visa applicants.
Long queues of students were seen at the US Embassy in Delhi since morning. American universities attract a large number of Indian students, and last year, the US consular team in India issued more than 1,40,000 student visas - the third consecutive That's more than any other country that set a record that year.
"By the end of the day, we should have interviewed about 4,000 students," Syed Mujtaba Andrabi, acting Consul General at the US Embassy in New Delhi, said in a conversation at the embassy.
“This (student visa) is one of our top priorities.Educational exchange between the two countries is one of the top priorities of this Administration and our mission here. Last year, we issued a record number of student visas, amounting to 1,40,000, which has been a record…and, we will continue to focus on this area as we move through this year, Andrabi said, “Our focus will remain the same and the number of students will be maximum.”
Asked about the extent of the expected increase in student visas in 2024, he said, "It will be the same or higher than last year".
US Ambassador Eric Garcetti said in an interview here in late April that the US gives a "high priority" to student visas because it knows that relationships between people "last a lifetime".The US Embassy said in the statement that there has been a significant increase in the number of Indians choosing to study in the US in the last three years.
In 2023, the US Mission in India "issued more student visas than in 2018, 2019, and 2020 combined."
It said this "unprecedented increase" reflects the US government's ongoing commitment to prioritizing students and facilitating their travel, even as the mission sees a 400 percent increase in demand for all other visas between 2021 and 2023. The increase was met.Garcetti also previously said that "a heroic effort" by many dedicated public servants, who worked over the weekend to arrange days off for students, was instrumental in ensuring that students met their deadlines. and American universities can welcome Indian students in historic numbers.
Andrabi said it's really been a heroic effort on the part of consular offices across the country, and one way to do it is "to start our student summer session earlier than in previous years.,
“For example, we usually start the student summer session in June and it runs till the end of August. This year we started in May, and it will continue till the end of August, so that the number of students can be maximized ...that opportunity, for the first time, for eligible applicants to apply for an interview,” he said. Asked how the Mission plans to reduce the waiting time for visas, he said, “We have given an opportunity to first-time applicants Wait times have been eliminated for almost every category of visa, except B1/B2 tourist visitor visas. And we've even reduced that wait time by more than 70 percent over the last year."
The statement quoted Garcia as saying, "Like those who went before, today's Indian students represent tremendous potential – the knowledge you will unlock, the new skills and opportunities you will experience, and the The relationships you will build are worth the investment.“Every student is an ambassador for India. Together we are driving US-India relations forward!” David Moyer, Counselor for Cultural and Educational Affairs at the US Embassy here, talks about the projected increase in the flow of Indian students seeking higher education in the US.
Currently, he said, the latest is that there are about 2,70,000 Indian students in the US and this is "more than a quarter" of the total international students there. Moyer said, "We're really excited by the enthusiasm and demand we're seeing."
Asked whether many students are also choosing universities beyond the Ivy League and other universities, he said, “The good news is that there are over 4,500 accredited universities in the US to choose from.We are here to provide support and counseling so that every Indian student who wants to go to America can find the right match for themselves."
“We would like to see more female applicants turn to American universities,” she said."
The US Mission in India on Thursday held its eighth annual Student Visa Day across the country, with consular officers from New Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai interviewing Indian student visa applicants.
Long queues of students were seen at the US Embassy in Delhi since morning. American universities attract a large number of Indian students, and last year, the US consular team in India issued more than 1,40,000 student visas - the third consecutive That's more than any other country that set a record that year.
"By the end of the day, we should have interviewed about 4,000 students," Syed Mujtaba Andrabi, acting Consul General at the US Embassy in New Delhi, said in a conversation at the embassy.
“This (student visa) is one of our top priorities.Educational exchange between the two countries is one of the top priorities of this Administration and our mission here. Last year, we issued a record number of student visas, amounting to 1,40,000, which has been a record…and, we will continue to focus on this area as we move through this year, Andrabi said, “Our focus will remain the same and the number of students will be maximum.”
Asked about the extent of the expected increase in student visas in 2024, he said, "It will be the same or higher than last year".
US Ambassador Eric Garcetti said in an interview here in late April that the US gives a "high priority" to student visas because it knows that relationships between people "last a lifetime".The US Embassy said in the statement that there has been a significant increase in the number of Indians choosing to study in the US in the last three years.
In 2023, the US Mission in India "issued more student visas than in 2018, 2019, and 2020 combined."
It said this "unprecedented increase" reflects the US government's ongoing commitment to prioritizing students and facilitating their travel, even as the mission sees a 400 percent increase in demand for all other visas between 2021 and 2023. The increase was met.Garcetti also previously said that "a heroic effort" by many dedicated public servants, who worked over the weekend to arrange days off for students, was instrumental in ensuring that students met their deadlines. and American universities can welcome Indian students in historic numbers.
Andrabi said it's really been a heroic effort on the part of consular offices across the country, and one way to do it is "to start our student summer session earlier than in previous years.,
“For example, we usually start the student summer session in June and it runs till the end of August. This year we started in May, and it will continue till the end of August, so that the number of students can be maximized ...that opportunity, for the first time, for eligible applicants to apply for an interview,” he said. Asked how the Mission plans to reduce the waiting time for visas, he said, “We have given an opportunity to first-time applicants Wait times have been eliminated for almost every category of visa, except B1/B2 tourist visitor visas. And we've even reduced that wait time by more than 70 percent over the last year."
The statement quoted Garcia as saying, "Like those who went before, today's Indian students represent tremendous potential – the knowledge you will unlock, the new skills and opportunities you will experience, and the The relationships you will build are worth the investment.“Every student is an ambassador for India. Together we are driving US-India relations forward!” David Moyer, Counselor for Cultural and Educational Affairs at the US Embassy here, talks about the projected increase in the flow of Indian students seeking higher education in the US.
Currently, he said, the latest is that there are about 2,70,000 Indian students in the US and this is "more than a quarter" of the total international students there. Moyer said, "We're really excited by the enthusiasm and demand we're seeing."
Asked whether many students are also choosing universities beyond the Ivy League and other universities, he said, “The good news is that there are over 4,500 accredited universities in the US to choose from.We are here to provide support and counseling so that every Indian student who wants to go to America can find the right match for themselves."
“We would like to see more female applicants turn to American universities,” she said."
