Chandigarh, Apr 4:Searching for some lucrative studying options overseas, youth from Punjab is increasingly testing international waters. If facts collected from the British Council are to be believed, out of the total candidates appearing for IELTS examination, about 25-30% belong to Punjab.

At present, more than 27,000 Indian students are studying in the UK and the number is growing at the rate of over 10% every year. As for north India, while the number of Indian students in the UK stood at around 5,000 last year, the numbers rose by 17% this year at above 7,000.

Talking to FE, Kevin McLaven, first secretary (education services), British Council said, “Great many students flocking to the UK comes from Punjab and more than 75% prefer 1-year masters degree course in fields like management and business studies, engineering, IT & communication, art/design, life sciences, media studies, medicines and law etc.”

McLaven was in Chandigarh for the launch of British qualifications programmes offered by the Association of Business Executives (ABE)—an international examining body and provider of Business and Management qualifications. Maria Wejshag, business development manager of ABE UK, informed that ABE can lead to an MBA with their approximately 55 universities in UK, USA, Australia, Canada, Kenya, Malaysia or Switzerland.

Talking about job opportunities in the UK, Kevin further added, “There are various schemes like the Fresh Talent and International Graduates Scheme that allow students to work after they have finished their study in the UK. Moreover, the new point system, which will replace the existing system might encourage more students to file their applications to study in UK.”

As a key focus area to promote the English language in India, the UK government, through British Council, will be assisting about 7.5 lakh teachers across various states over five years to brush up their English language skills.

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