COVID-19 impacted students' decision to pursue higher education: Survey

The COVID-19 pandemic has a big influence on students while taking decisions about their next educational steps. The research also found that students are becoming more aware of the wide range of study options available to them internationally.

A survey has revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted students' decisions worldwide on where to pursue their higher education once they leave school. As per the Cambridge International’s Annual Destinations survey, 84 per cent of schools surveyed reported that many of their students had changed their minds about their first-choice destination or university – largely as a result of general uncertainty, difficulties with travel or financial hardship caused by the pandemic.
"Three out of five (62 per cent) schools said some of their students delayed or deferred university due to general uncertainty and wanting to avoid travel away from home. The impact of Covid-19 on location choice was so important that 43 per cent of schools had at least some students change their plans to study at another university," the survey stated.

The COVID-19 pandemic has a big influence on students while taking decisions about their next educational steps. The research also found that students are becoming more aware of the wide range of study options available to them internationally. Regarding students' choice of varsity overseas, 76 per cent reported they chose the UK because of strong university reputation, whilst 73 per cent reported they chose Canada because it was the most attractive for future job opportunities. 66 per cent cited university reputation as the reason for choosing a US university, and 34 per cent chose Australia because they were interested in exploring the region.

Globally, many teachers surveyed reported a diversification in the countries that students are prepared to consider, with a particular increase in applications to universities in Turkey, Germany, Canada, Indonesia, UAE and the Netherlands. Those responding to the survey felt one reason for this was that overseas universities in a wider range of countries are increasingly offering a greater choice of courses, which gives students wider career opportunities.

In India, the majority of students are still choosing to pursue higher education courses at Indian universities, followed by international destinations like the US and UK. Indian students have also shown increased interest in studying at Canadian and Australian universities, similar to the global student trend identified in the survey findings.

Students also shows concern on scholarships and funding, as they are looking for more cost-efficient solutions for university study. As per the survey, Turkey scored the highest (62 per cent) for being good value for money, followed by Netherlands (61 per cent) and Malaysia (60 per cent).

The study also revealed that travel restrictions imposed by various governments has made it difficult for students to travel to some traditional destinations, such as the UK and US. For instance, only 17 per cent of students chose the US as their preferred destination, a sharp drop from 34 per cent in 2019.

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