The Indian higher education sector has seen continuous growth, as the enrolment numbers stand at 4.50 crore in 2023-24, as per the recent All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) report released by the Ministry of Education, Government of India on Wednesday. This report indicates that there have been continuous improvements in the fields of enrolments, accessibility of higher education, participation of women, and increasing numbers from SC, ST, and OBC categories.
The Ministry simultaneously released the AISHE 2022-23 and 2023-24 reports, which serve as the country's official database on higher education. The survey collects information from higher education institutions (HEIs) on enrolment, faculty, infrastructure, examination results and other academic indicators through an online data collection system.
Higher Education enrolment continues to grow
The report shows that higher education enrolment has increased steadily over the past decade. From 3.42 crore students in 2014-15, enrolment rose to 4.46 crore in 2022-23 and further to 4.50 crore in 2023-24, marking an overall growth of 31.5% during the period.
Female enrolment has grown even faster. The number of women pursuing higher education increased from 1.57 crore in 2014-15 to 2.24 crore in 2023-24, registering a 42.2% increase over the last ten years.
Gross enrolment ratio reaches 30
The Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER), which measures the proportion of people aged 18-23 enrolled in higher education, also recorded its highest level so far.
The national GER increased from 23.7 in 2014-15 to 29.5 in 2022-23, before touching 30 in 2023-24.
The report also brings to attention continuous improvement in female GER. Female GER increased from 22.9 in 2014-15 to 31.2 in 2023-24, from 30.2 in the previous year.
From the group of socially backward sections of society, GER of Scheduled Castes increased from 18.9 to 27.8, and that of Scheduled Tribes increased from 13.5 to 22.8.
Women continue to outnumber men in Higher Education participation
The Gender Parity Index (GPI) in 2023-24 was 1.08, which shows that the participation of women in higher education is still greater than that of males.
According to the findings of the study, the GPI has been above 1.0 for seven consecutive years, which shows that there has been steady progress in women's higher education.
Rise in SC, ST and OBC Enrolment
The survey points to significant growth in enrolment among students from reserved categories.
SC enrolment increased from 46.07 lakh in 2014-15 to 69.72 lakh in 2023-24, a rise of 51.4%.
ST enrolment grew from 16.41 lakh to 28.83 lakh, registering the highest increase of 75.7%.
OBC enrolment rose from 1.13 crore to 1.80 crore, reflecting a 60.2% increase over the same period.
These figures indicate broader access to higher education across different sections of society.
STEM courses attract more students
Enrolment in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programmes crossed the one-crore mark for the first time.
The number of students in STEM disciplines increased from 91.5 lakh in 2014-15 to 1.02 crore in 2023-24.
Women's representation in STEM education also improved considerably. Female students now account for 44% of total STEM enrolment, up from 38.4% a decade ago.
Strong participation by Higher Education Institutions
The Ministry noted that participation in the survey remained high during both years.
2022-23: 56,180 institutions participated out of 60,380 registered.
2023-24: 59,533 institutions participated out of 64,756 registered.
In both years, the participation rate remained above 90%, providing a broad picture of the country's higher education landscape.
