India Leads International Student Influx In Germany

The winter semester of 2022-23 exhibited significant progress in educational collaboration between India and Germany, as Indian students surpassed the Chinese as the largest bloc of international students in Germany. 

“43,000 young talents of India are international students in Germany. Indian students at German universities exceeded that of the Chinese group for the first time in just four years,” said Joybrato Mukherjee, the president of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), in a recent press briefing.

Mukherjee was speaking at the DAAD conference “Innovation and Global Cooperation for Sustainability” held in New Delhi from Mar 12 to 14. 

The DAAD’s “A New Passage to India” programme impacted the Indo-German academic exchange in recent years. This initiative, jointly funded by the BMBF and the Indian government, promotes numerous university collaborations and provides internship opportunities to students.

DAAD’s partners, including the Ministry of Education, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), and the Council for Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), along with researchers at universities, highlight the collaborative efforts between the two countries. 

According to the German Rectors Conference, presently there are 450 university collaboration programmes between German and Indian institutions. Additionally, 11 German universities and research institutions have a permanent presence in India.