The Optional Practical Training (OPT) programme, which allows international students, including those from India, to gain work experience in the US after graduation, is facing scrutiny amid growing concerns over foreign worker programmes. The OPT programme has been criticised for being exploited to fill American jobs, with some arguing it’s being used as a long-term immigration pathway, bypassing traditional channels.

Originally designed for temporary skill development, the OPT programme permits foreign students on F-1 visas to work in the US for up to three years if they have a STEM degree. Critics claim it operates without Congressional approval and competes with US graduates for job opportunities, calling it a “backdoor” entry into the US job market.

US Tech Workers group has opposed the programme and said “The OPT programme is a guest worker scheme disguised as an internship for foreign students. Universities are selling work permits instead of education. Created illegally like DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), Trump should end OPT to protect American college grads from unfair competition,” on X.

In closing, the OPT program is a guest worker scheme disguised as an internship for foreign students. Universities are selling work permits instead of education. Created illegally like DACA, Trump should end OPT to protect American college grads from unfair competition.

— U.S. Tech Workers (@USTechWorkers) December 30, 2024

Moreover, Indian students rely on the programme for professional opportunities and H-1B visas. The Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech) took the programme to court in 2023, declaring that it harms American workers. However, a lower court’s ruling was upholded, which validated the programme.

The programme’s future is uncertain, with some policymakers pushing for its elimination, while others defend it as essential for attracting international talent and boosting the US economy. Historically, both Republican and Democratic administrations have extended the OPT programme, citing its economic and cultural benefits.

Eliminating OPT could impact the appeal of US universities for international students, affecting the financial and academic resources they provide. International students contribute billions to the US economy, making this a significant consideration.
 

The overall visa grant rate has dropped to below 80% in line with the new tightening. 

Affordable homes are becoming increasingly scarce in Australia. The government attributed last year’s sharp rise in immigration as a key factor that is contributing to the crisis. In response, it has implemented measures to restrict the inflow of students whose numbers skyrocketed last year, significantly outpacing the numbers of skilled migrants and other categories.

An Australian government department’s analysis shows that 60% of international students live in apartments, 26% in detached houses, and the remainder in hostels or university housing. These numbers, read along with the unprecedented surge in international students in 2023, shed light on the acute housing crisis, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, which attract most of these students.

Chart 1 illustrates the Rental Affordability Index in the greater capital areas of Sydney and Melbourne, where a higher index indicates better affordability. Rent affordability has plummeted in both regions, with the decline being much steeper in Sydney than Melbourne. This coincides with the sharp increase in student arrivals.

While the housing crisis, exacerbated by a surge in student numbers, provided a rationale for limiting student intake, a closer look reveals disparities in how these restrictions were applied. Students from certain countries, particularly India, were impacted disproportionately, while students from other countries, notably China, grew in number this year despite the restrictions.

Chart 2 depicts the visa grant rates for students from India, China, and all countries who applied for higher education and vocational education and training courses in Australia. China and India are shown separately because they form the top two shares of international students by a significant margin.

The overall visa grant rate has dropped significantly from more than 90% before the pandemic to below 80% after, in line with the new tightening. The grant rate for Indian students dropped from nearly 90% to 65%. But for Chinese students, it has remained close to 95% even in recent years.

Is this disparity because Indian students are more concentrated in regions with acute housing crises, while Chinese students are not? Chart 3 shows that Chinese students outnumber Indian students in Sydney (New South Wales), where the housing crisis is more severe, whereas Indian students outnumber Chinese students in Melbourne (Victoria), where it is comparatively better.

Chart 3| Number of students from India and China who began courses in New South Wales and Victoria over the years. K=1,000

Victoria:

New South Wales:

If the housing crisis was the primary factor for increased visa denials, Chinese students should have faced more rejections given their higher concentration in Sydney. So, what explains the higher denial rates for Indian students?

The answer might lie in another problem — mounting visa fraud. The Australian government’s Department of Education says there is a higher proportion of “high-risk” student visa applications from India, Nepal, and Pakistan.

Chart 4 shows the visa processing time in days for Chinese and Indian students between April and July this year and last year. The processing time is separately denoted for three types of student visa applications: straightforward (satisfies most necessities), typical, and complex (lacks many requirements).

Although the processing time has increased for Chinese and Indian students, Indian student visas are processed for a much longer time, which is attributed to their classification as “high-risk”. Thus the higher rejection rate for Indian students is better explained by an increase in visa fraud rather than the housing crisis.

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Indian students are being put off applying to UK universities, adding to their financial woes at a time when education institutions are already coping with constrained budgets, a new report into the stability of the higher education sector in England has revealed.

Based on UK Home Office data on confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) by UK providers from 2022-23 to 2023-24, an Office for Students (OfS) analysis released on Friday shows a 20.4 per cent drop in Indian student numbers – down from 139,914 to 111,329.

Indian student groups in the UK said the fall was to be expected amid limited job prospects and also safety concerns following recent anti-immigration riots in some cities.

“There has been a considerable decline in student visa applications from prospective non-UK students in some major source countries,” notes the report by OfS, a non-departmental public body of the government’s Department for Education.

“This data shows an 11.8 per cent decline in the total number of sponsor acceptances issued to international students, as well as considerable variation for students with different nationalities, with the largest declines reported in the number of CAS issued to Indian and Nigerian students, down 28,585 (20.4 per cent) and 25,897 (44.6 per cent) respectively,” it said.

It warns that universities with financial models that depend heavily on students from countries such as India, Nigeria and Bangladesh are likely to be significantly affected due to this downward trend.

“The number of international students from certain countries that send significant numbers to study in the UK has decreased significantly,” OfS cautions.

“By 2025-26, based on current trends and not taking into account significant mitigating action, we estimate a net income reduction for the sector of GBP 3,445 million, and, without significant mitigating actions, a sector-level deficit of minus GBP 1,636 million, with up to 72 per cent of providers being in deficit, and 40 per cent having low liquidity,” it adds.

The Indian National Students’ Association (INSA) UK said it was not surprised with the significant decrease in students from India given the government’s clampdown on foreign students being allowed to bring along their dependent partners and spouses.

“Students are not allowed to bring their partners to the UK under the new policy and given the economic conditions here and recent rioting stories, unless the government addresses this issue the outlook for UK universities is bleak as they rely heavily on Indian students,” said INSA UK President Amit Tiwari.

Indians overtook the Chinese in recent years as the leading nationality granted study visas to the UK and are the largest cohort to access the Graduate Route post-study work visa, which was thrown into disarray due to a review which has since concluded it is here to stay.

“Many reasons contribute to the decline in numbers, including the Conservative ban on dependents, confusion around post-study work visa, increase in skilled worker salary thresholds and an apparent lack of jobs in the UK,” said Sanam Arora, chair of the National Indian Students and Alumni Union (NISAU) UK.

“We discovered the scale of misinformation that continues to persist; for the first time, safety is also being raised as a concern… Universities need to ensure that they are communicating the UK offer adequately and at scale in India to address the confusions that persist,” she said.

“Universities also need to invest significantly in their employability support in order to stay competitive and provide a wholesome, outcome-oriented offer for students,” she added.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)