Are more women applying to study abroad than men? How many are from small towns?

More and more Indian women are seeking to pursue higher education overseas in the US, UK, Europe, Australia as they are using a greater number of dedicated scholarships and funding opportunities, data from loan providers and education consultants showed.

Nearly half the students applying for overseas courses and those seeking financial assistance to fund their studies are women, data showed. These women are not just from the big cities but also from small towns, it showed as education consultants said that applications from female students jumped from 20-30% in FY21 to 40-45% in FY24. Financing companies said that there is an increase in female aspirants seeking education loans – up from 25-30% in FY21 to 35-45% in FY24.

Akshay Chaturvedi, founder and CEO, Leverage.biz, which operates Fly.finance, said, “About 31% of applicants who applied for a loan with us were female applicants in the September 2022 intake. That number surged to a striking 40% in the recent September 2023 intake and we expect this female share of applicants to grow further this year.”

Avanse Financial Services MD and CEO Amit Gainda said, “During FY21, more than 30% of the students funded by Avanse were women. This number increased to more than 33% during FY22 and remained range-bound in the following financial year. As of the year to date (in FY24), 34-36% of the students funded are female aspirants.”

Nearly 45% of the students funded from the non-metro cities were women, rising from 34% in FY21, data showed.

Study abroad consultant Collegify’s co-founder Rohan Ganeriwala said as per Economic Times, “In recent years, we’ve seen a significant shift in study abroad demographics, particularly among women in the Collegify network. Historically, female applicants comprised 30-35% of the total. However, in the past two-three years, this figure has risen to 40-45%.”

“Societal shifts towards gender equality and empowerment have encouraged more women to seek enriching experiences abroad,” Rohan Ganeriwala explained.