Study Abroad News & Alerts

The IIT madras Zanzibar campus is inviting students for its second batch of BS in data science and BTech in data science and AI. Considering the interest of candidates from different parts of the world, the institute is also contemplating increasing the number of seats being offered. The last date to apply for the BS program is 15th April, 2024. 19 international centres have been chosen for the conduction of tests for the BS program. 

The test will have questions from maths, physics and chemistry along with English comprehension and analytical understanding. IIT Madras Zanzibar campus also offers MTech programme. The admission test for the MTech programme will be conducted on 31st March, 2024. Questions from technical and general aptitude will be asked from students in the entrance exam for the MTech programme. This test will have a weightage of 60 marks.

NTA has released the JEE Mains session one final results on its official website. Recently, the JEE Mains session 1 exams were conducted in January after which the answer key was released. Students were then given a time window to submit their doubts related to the answer key after which the final answer key was expected to be released. Now NTA has finally released the results for JEE Mains session 1. Candidates can check the results on the official website of JEE Mains. To download it, candidates will have to enter their personal details. Along with the answer key, JEE has also released the answers attempted by the candidate so that calculation of final marks is easier. Some candidates have reported discrepancies related to the calculation of percentiles. JEE and NTA are yet to reply regarding the same.

Recently, a few students who had applied to Australian universities, including the University of Wollongong and some other Australian institutes have been told to withdraw their applications. The students have been told that they won't be able to pass the new migration criteria so it is better to not waste their time and think of something else. Australia has created a new Genuine Student Test that is mandatory for all students to pass to get a student visa for Australia. Any student who falls under the high risk category will be given the least preference. 

The finer details of this policy have yet not been described which is why everyone is extremely tensed. Students are receiving letters and mails from different universities in Australia, asking them to withdraw their visa application and start with the process of getting a deposit fee return. It is morally disheartening for students as they are being rejected not by just the immigration department but also by the universities.

Board exams conducted by CBSE can be called the paramount stage of the school in the life of a student. In a lot of ways board exams, determine the competency level of a student and also decide their future trajectory. CBSE has a proper marking scheme guide that is given to examiners while checking board exams. Having a good understanding of this marking scheme can actually help a student score better in their exams. Mostly multiple-choice questions are to be attempted in the beginning as they take the least amount of time. 

These are followed by short answers that generally carry a weightage of 2 to 3 marks. Mostly these questions revolve around analysis, explanation, or comparison context. Mathematical and statistical problems that take a lot of time should be solved carefully while paying attention towards the time being taken. One must not kill all the time while solving these questions. Students must not adopt a single approach for all types of questions in subjects. It is important to examine the question and understand what is being asked. For example, some questions require you to cite some historical facts, whereas the others demand your personal opinion and critical thinking.

The Common University Entrance Test for UG courses has been conducted in online mode for the past two years. This year the exam will be conducted in hybrid mode and fewer subject choices will be offered to students as compared to the previous two years.  NTA will start the registration process for CUET UG most likely from 19th February, 2024. The exam will be organised between 15th May to 31st May. This year, instead of conducting the exam only in CBT mode, in some parts of the country it will also be conducted by using OMR sheets. Any subject that has a higher number of registrations will most likely be conducted in the form of OMR. For the past two years, NTA has faced a lot of problems while conducting CUET. There has been a shortage of examination centres and management issues. To solve these problems, a hybrid mode of test taking has been introduced so that there is no need for computer based centres. Very much like previous years, the examination will be conducted in three different shifts. Also, the choice of subjects has been cut down to 6 instead of 10.

The National Testing Agency is most likely to release the results for JEE Mains session one on 12th February, 2024. Students will be able to access their results from the official website of JEE Mains. Previously the official answer key along with the answers attempted by the candidate were released by NTA. Students then had the opportunity to submit any kind of grievances they had related to the answer key. After taking all the concerns of the students, the official results for JEE mains session one are now going to be released.

95.8% of the total registered students appeared for the exam which is the highest percentage in the past few years. The participation of students in the JEE Mains has been all time high this year.

Pursuing higher education from a foreign country has become a choice for many students these days. Getting a scholarship for studying abroad makes the journey easier as a scholarship or a bursary provides a lot of financial help. There are different types of scholarships that international students can apply for. Here are some top scholarships that will be open for students in February 2024.

• France Excellence Charpak Masters Program 

This scholarship will cover the tuition fees, the living expenses and the health insurance of interested students. Students can register for the scholarship till 20th March, 2024.

• Aga Khan Foundation International Scholarship

This scholarship is specifically for students who want to pursue their masters degree from foreign a country. The application deadline for this scholarship is 31st March, 2024.

• Guildhall School of Music And Drama 

This scholarship is specifically for students from Indonesia, Malaysia, India and Vietnam. A scholarship worth £10,000 is offered to students to study a music degree from the UK.

• Asian Development Bank Internship Program 

This is not a proper scholarship opportunity, but an internship program that gives selected students the opportunity to develop their skills in finance, economics and public administration. The last date to apply for this program is 15th February, 2024.

The NMC which is the apex body responsible for regulating all the medical colleges in India has announced that from now on students pursuing a PG in medical cannot be forced to stay in the college hostel. Previously, it was compulsory for all students to live in the college hostels despite their personal will not live in the college hostel. But from now on no such rule is applicable on students. In fact, if any medical college fails to comply with this rule, then they will have to pay a penalty fee. 

This decision has been taken considering a lot of unfortunate accidents are taking place in the college hostels. A lot of times, the peer pressure and living with classmates puts a lot of mental strain on the student. This new rule will allow the student to choose an accommodation for themselves and even live with their family members. The option will also provide more flexibility.

In the past few years, there has been a significant surge in the number of students enrolling in Dutch universities. Considering this high demand of Dutch universities and the inflow of students, more than 14 higher education institutes in the Netherlands have decided to put a restriction on the inflow of international students. For the time being, Dutch universities will also put a pause on the English programmes being offered in the institutions.

Most universities in the Netherlands are planning to have an assessment of the courses being offered in the country and the ones that can be fully translated into English. Although the Masters in English program will remain unaffected, all the other courses will come under scrutiny. This has been done to make sure that while international students do get the opportunity to study in the Netherlands, the native language is also given equal importance

As per sources, the government of Sri Lanka is in discussions with IIT Madras to open an overseas campus in the country. A group of delegation from Sri Lanka have recently visited Chennai to see the campus of IIT Madras and get a basic idea about the infrastructure and education facilities. The government of India had already made it possible for Sri Lankan students to get into IITs from 2017 onwards.

 If everything turns out to be successful then this is going to be the second overseas campus of IIT Madras.IIT Madras has already opened a campus in Tanzania last year and this is officially going to be the second overseas campus. The campus of IIT Madras in Tanzania has already started functioning partially in its temporary campus. It is currently offering courses in data science and artificial intelligence.

The United States of America has been a top study destination for many years. But recently the crime against international students in the US has been increasing. Here are six major challenges that an international student might face while studying in the US.

• Adjustment related problems

Sometimes it is extremely hard for a student to adjust in a new environment completely. This may lead to a lot of other problems that might become serious in the long run.

• Mental Health

Sometimes staying away from family, taking so much pressure all at once takes a toll on mental health.

• Hesitation 

Due to hesitation, a student might also not ask for help and keep facing the challenges by themself.

• Cultural adjustment 

The culture of the United States of America is very different as compared to other countries, especially India. It is important to build a community and friend circle while living abroad to avoid feeling isolated.

• Less Friends

Sometimes the lack of friendship and less social circle might push a person towards social isolation. It is all important to remember that while living outside one has to push their boundaries and talk with new people.

These are some of the top challenges that international students are prone to facing while living outside. While it is important to build a future for yourself, it is equally important to take care of your mind and emotions.

CBSE has issued proper guidelines for private candidates who are yet to give their practical board exams. These are the students from the 2021 batch onwards who have to give their practical exams again because of absenteeism or failure in the practical exams. The exam for the students will be conducted at the theory exam centres decided by the CBSE. CBSE will be responsible for selecting regional officers to conduct the practical exams of these students. The examiners will be uploading the marks of the students on the day of the conduction of the practical exam itself. All the data including the signatures must be uploaded on the respective portal. Students can check their assigned practical centres at the official website of CBSE. It is important to reach the centre at the specified time.

The National Testing Agency is expected to start the process of NEET UG registration anytime soon. The registration portal for 2024 will be opened in a day or two. NEET is the largest medical entrance exam in India and is responsible for giving admission to students into the top government colleges of the country. Even if a student wants to study abroad, clearing NEET is important to secure admission. The NEET application form will be released very soon along with the brochure specifying the correct information related to form filling and any change that has been made. The candidate has the liberty to choose their examination centre and can choose the one that is close to their home. The payment for the examination has been made in the online mode. The NEET 2023 was organised in 13 different languages. The specifications related to NEET UG 2024 are yet to be released.

The University Grants Commission has accepted the proposal of 196 different education institutes to get an autonomous status. There were a total of 328 proposals that were received by the UGC. Out of this only 196 were cleared after scrutinising the applications in the colleges. 83 applications were also received by the UGC regarding the conversion of autonomous status to colleges. Out of this 71 universities got clearance.

 UGC released new guidelines related to the autonomous status and the rule of the parent university last year in April. Following this, it was decided that the role of a parent University will be limited and it will be involved in examining the proposal of a particular education institute to get an autonomous status. If the university doesn't update UGC then it will be assumed that the university has no objection in granting that institute an autonomous status.

As per the latest statistical report, more than 15% of the immigrants who have arrived in Canada's Ottawa

 in the last 20 years have left the country. More than 17.5% of the total immigrants who migrated to Canada between 1982 to 2017 have gone back to their respective countries recently. The same study has also revealed that the chances of a student or an immigrant leaving the country is pretty high in between 3 to 7 years of immigration.

These 3 to 7 years reflect the average time that all immigrants spend in Canada navigating the study and work conditions. 25% of the immigrants from countries like Taiwan, United States of America, Lebanon, France and Hong Kong have left Canada in the last 20 years. Last year due to the political stand-off between Canada and India, many Indians decided to move back to their own country. The Canadian government has not been successful in providing job opportunities and good living conditions to immigrants in the past few years. The healthcare system is flawed and the housing options are pretty scarce. The competition for both full-time and part-time jobs is also pretty high.

The rate of Australian student visa approval is declining as new policies related to immigration have been introduced by the government. All these policies aim towards attracting only genuine candidates to the country and picking out the loopholes in the system. Currently one out of every five student visas is getting rejected. These policies were announced by the Australian government in December 2023. The requirement for minimum English proficiency has been increased. 

Also students will have to give the Genuine Student Test. There will also be an additional level of scrutiny for high-risk individuals. Any kind of unauthorised education providers or middlemen will also be taken out of the system. All the universities in Australia will also be assessed and the attendance of students will be kept under a check. All these tools will help in weeding out students who migrate to Australia with the aim of just working part-time and not studying.

As per UGC, more than 200 universities in India are all set to offer a four year graduation program to students from the session 2024 to 2025. Earlier the graduation degree used to be only three years long but making it four years long is a part of the New Education Policy. The lengthy tenure will ensure that students will have skills that are needed to find a job in the market. Students will also be given internship opportunities to get a practical exposure. There will also be an introduction of a credit based system in all universities, irrespective of the course.

These 200 universities include public, private, central, and deemed to be universities as well. Implementation of modern technology has become extremely important in education. The job market has become extremely competitive and there is only a demand for students who come with the required skill sets. The transition of the Indian education system to the contemporary requirements is necessary as per the UGC.

IIT Delhi has launched a brand-new course that is MSc in biological sciences for students. Students can register for this course by first appearing for the JAM. This is the Joint Admission Test for Masters which is compulsory to get admission in any masters program to IITs. There are a total number of 20 seats that will be offered to candidates. IIT Delhi has over 30 academic entities and offers an extremely collaborative space for students to work and research.

The environment is ideal to have a conceptual understanding as well as building an interdisciplinary research approach towards the subject. This programme comes as an opportunity for students who have an interest in research. Being a highly selective programme, students must score extremely well in the JAM to get selected.

IIM Ahmedabad has launched a two-year executive MBA programme that will be conducted online. This is for working professionals who have at least three years of experience in their industry. The institute has already started accepting applications for the programme. There will be an intake of 120 to 160 students for this year. The cost to pursue this program will be INR 20,00,000 for two years. This degree is specifically for working professionals who want to pursue MBA but do not have the time for a commitment of two years. It is a flexible online program that will help working professionals balance their classes that will mostly be conducted on weekends along with their regular jobs. Earlier the institute was only offering a one-year diploma executive programme for students but now a full-time MBA program for two years has been launched for working professionals.

In December 2023 UGC opened a portal for international universities to submit applications for opening a campus in India. Recently, UGC has received an application from the Lincoln University College of Malaysia. The university is interested in opening an overseas campus in Telangana.

UGC is currently reviewing the application of the university before permitting it to establish a campus in the country. Already Australia’s Deakin University and Wollongong University have received permission from the UGC to open campuses in GIFT city of India. India is planning to invite more international universities from around the world to open their foreign campuses in the country. This will provide high-quality education to Indian students at the low tuition fees as well as prevent brain drain.