U.S. Mission in India Approves Record Number of Student Visas in 2021
New Delhi: The United States Mission in India is pleased to announce that its Embassy and Consulates approved more student visa applicants in 2021 than ever before, despite the global COVID-19 pandemic. Through these efforts, more than 55,000 students and exchange visitors are boarding planes to study in the United States, and more students are being approved every day. The U.S. Mission looks forward to another great student season as it facilitates study for spring semester students over the coming few months.
Recognizing this achievement, Ambassador Atul Keshap, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi stated: “Studying in the United States is a unique and often life-changing experience for Indian students, granting fresh, global perspectives and frequently leading to invaluable career opportunities. Indian students also enrich U.S. society, achieve high levels of academic success, and deepen the bonds of friendship between our countries. The many hard-working women and men of the U.S. Mission to India are proud to facilitate their travel and study.”
The COVID-19 pandemic created tremendous logistical challenges for the U.S. Mission’s consular teams. Embassies and Consulates typically begin interviewing fall semester students for a given year in May, but the second wave of COVID-19 forced the Mission to delay the commencement of its student visa season by two months. In July, as soon as conditions allowed for the resumption of visa services without endangering applicants’ health and safety, consular teams worked not only to match, but surpass, their pre-COVID workload. The U.S. Embassy and Consulates opened additional hours for visa appointments and made every possible effort to ensure timely arrival for academic programs for as many students as possible. Ultimately, these efforts paid off, as more students than ever before received visas to study in the United States.
The diversity of the American higher education system is unparalleled with over 4,500 nationally and regionally accredited colleges and universities in the United States, recognized worldwide for the quality of their programs, faculty, and facilities. For more information on how to make dreams of U.S. study a reality, including information on academic consultations during the college application process, students can visit the following website: https://educationusaindia.usief.org.in/
Interested students can also participate in upcoming EducationUSA University Virtual Fairs, to be held on Friday, August 27, for prospective graduate students and Friday, September 3, for prospective undergraduate students. These fairs provide a unique opportunity for Indian students to engage with U.S. university representatives and EducationUSA advisers to better understand the wide spectrum of educational opportunities available in the United States. As the summer student rush dissipates, the Mission will turn its energy and effort to other visa categories.