Kolkata: The United States has become a popular destination for Indian students to study, announced Janice L. Jacobs, US Assistant Secretary of the state for Consular Affairs, while conveying that around 95000 students throng the country, to a media audience in Kolkata yesterday.

"The number of Indian students studying in US has seen a major up thrust. Their number has almost touched the one lakh mark and they now represent 15% of the foreign students' population in the country, which is the highest from any," Jacobs said.

India, since the year 2000, has been the number one source for the country to send its students to the US.

Janice L. Jacobs' is on a tour to India and Kolkata was her fourth destination in her itinerary including Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, and New Delhi

The diplomat visited the Hyderabad city and after talking to some university students was impressed by their eagerness to study in the US.

In her conversation with the students, she enumerated the prospects of studying in the US and said that, "Pursuing an international degree is surely going to be an enriching and a rewarding experience for your personal advancement. This is just the right time to think and advance your future for international opportunities. The US claims an old tradition for the Indian students to provide study, work, and immigration facilities."


The US embassy and its four Consulates in India have been working actively in the field of providing Indian students the opportunity to seek the international platform.

"It takes less than ten days for the students to obtain visa appointments, and we are committed to maintain that. More than 1200 students have already been issued visas last year by the Kolkata consultancy and we expect the number to double," added Jacobs.

United States and India Education Foundation work in tandem to provide the educational programs to the students.

As a part of the Fulbright program, the Foundation funds and facilitates academic exchanges between India and the US.

Since both the countries have signed a Fulbright agreement on February 2, 1950, more than 9,800 Americans have come to India and 5,000 Indians have traveled to the United States as Fulbright scholars.