As Racial Attacks on Indian Students Rise in Australia, U.S. Bills Itself as Safe Alternative

New Delhi — With attacks on Indian students in Australia increasing in number and brutality, other higher-education destinations, including the United States, Canada, Britain, and New Zealand, are stepping up efforts in India to promote themselves as safe alternatives, the Mail Today reported.

“We will project the U.S. as a safe destination for students and highlight the liberal financial aid that is available for meritorious students in U.S. universities,” said Sunrit Mullick, regional officer of the United States India Educational Foundation.

Australia has been fast emerging as a favored higher-education destination for Indian students and has edged closer to the United States in sheer numbers. An estimated 95,000 Indian students enrolled at Australian universities in the first 11 months of 2008, about the same as the 94,563 Indian students who attended American universities in 2008. Now, following the brutal attacks, interest in going to Australia has begun to wane, and Indian students are looking at other countries, The Times of India reported.

New Zealand, which came late to the Indian market, has been aggressively promoting its universities and is expected to be the biggest beneficiary of the fear created by the attacks. The country has already seen a 75-percent increase in the number of Indian students since last year. Britain and Canada are also drawing more interest from Indian students. —Shailaja Neelakantan