Washington: The corridors of America’s universities now not echo with the identical rush of Indian voices. The group is thinning. The numbers inform the story.
U.S.-based enterprise capitalist Debarghya Das shared new knowledge that paints a placing image. As soon as the dreamland for bold engineers and knowledge scientists from overseas, the US is now not what it was once. The nation has seen an 18% total drop in worldwide college students since 2017 (its peak 12 months). For Indian college students, the autumn has been sharper, with a 42% slide in numbers.
Das’s put up attracts from the OPT Observatory, which tracks participation within the Non-compulsory Sensible Coaching (OPT) programme, a piece authorisation that lets worldwide graduates work of their discipline for as much as three years. The numbers present a transparent development: fewer Indian Science, Know-how, Engineering and Arithmetic (STEM) graduates are selecting to remain again in the US.
Years in the past, nearly all of them did. Round 95% of Indian STEM graduates as soon as opted for OPT extensions. That quantity now stands close to 78%. For Chinese language college students, the decline is steeper, from 75% to 50%.
The drop will not be merely statistical; it alerts a shift in sentiment.
“Indian STEM college students have traditionally been way more more likely to keep within the U.S. than their Chinese language counterparts. However even these numbers at the moment are falling,” Das wrote a put up on X (previously Twitter).
HUGE Immigration Stats! The US is now not as engaging for worldwide college students because it as soon as was.
— Worldwide college students are down 18% since peak in 2017 to ~205k/yr. Indians are worst hit (-42% from 2017).
— Indian STEM Masters college students within the US select to remain in US on… pic.twitter.com/jiPjVhsrfP
— Deedy (@deedydas) October 11, 2025
A chart shared by him exhibits the development line curving down 12 months after 12 months. It marks the silent retreat of international minds who as soon as noticed the US as the last word launchpad.
Behind the autumn lie many causes.
The immigration maze has grown thicker. The H-1B visa lottery stays unsure, leaving 1000’s of expert graduates in limbo. Pathways to everlasting residency have develop into longer and extra advanced. The nervousness over job sponsorships grows annually.
On the similar time, different nations have opened their doorways wider. Canada presents smoother everlasting residency routes. The UK now welcomes post-study work. Australia, Germany and even Gulf nations are rolling out clearer pathways for world expertise. They’re doing what the US as soon as did finest, turning college students into residents.
The OPT Observatory factors out one other layer to the story. Indian and Chinese language STEM grasp’s college students as soon as made up practically 30% of all worldwide graduates in the US. Their regular exit might reshape the nation’s tech and analysis spine.
For India, this decline cuts each methods. The shrinking numbers imply fewer college students overseas but additionally a potential return of expert minds, those that now discover new hubs in Bangalore, Hyderabad or Singapore as an alternative of Silicon Valley.
Nonetheless, the sign is evident. The USA is shedding its shine because the world’s educational magnet. The autumn from 95% to 78% amongst Indian STEM OPT contributors captures a reality, which is desires that when took flight over the Atlantic at the moment are discovering new skies.