Indian students rank high on positivity about finances in New Global Survey

LONDON: As many as eight in 10 or 80 per cent Indian undergraduate students feel hopeful about their finances in the future, the second highest of 21 countries surveyed for a new "Global Student Survey" released on Friday, with only China and Kenya jointly ahead at 84 per cent.

The findings, published by Chegg.org – the non-profit arm of education technology company Chegg, also reveal that after the COVID-19 pandemic, 54 per cent of Indian students would like their university course to incorporate more online learning, the fourth highest of any other country surveyed – equal to Canada (54 per cent) and behind Saudi Arabia (78 per cent), China (77 per cent) and South Korea and Australia (both 57 per cent).

The survey's worldwide results show that Indian students agree with their peers across all 21 countries when it comes to how higher education should embrace online learning. Around two-thirds (65 per cent) of students across the surveyed countries say they would rather want their university offered the choice of more online learning if it meant paying lower tuition fees.

“One thing that unites students around the globe is that they have experienced first-hand the greatest disruption to education the world has ever known. This survey shows the COVID pandemic has laid bare for students that the higher education model needs to be reimagined, shorter, on-demand, personalised and provide scalable support,” said Dan Rosensweig, President and CEO of Chegg.

“Technology and online learning are a permanent part of modern education and should dramatically reduce the cost of learning and make it more skills based. When approximately two-thirds of students across the countries surveyed say they would like their university to offer the choice of more online learning if it means paying lower tuition fees, and when over half of students say they would prefer their university course to be shorter, if it was more affordable, we know something has to change,” he said.

68% Indians think the country is a better place to live

The survey also finds that over two-thirds (68 per cent) of Indian students think the country is a better place to live in than it was five years ago, the third highest of any country polled after China (92 per cent) and Saudi Arabia (77 per cent).

By comparison, only 8 per cent of Argentinian students think their country is a better place to live, the lowest of any country polled. And, as many as 84 per cent of Indian students believe they will own their own home before they are 35, the third highest of all the countries polled after Kenya (92 per cent) and Indonesia (86 per cent).

By comparison, only 31 per cent of Japanese students believe they will see home ownership by the age of 35, the lowest of all the countries surveyed. Among some of the other key global findings, 56 per cent of students across all 21 surveyed countries say their mental health has suffered during the period of COVID-19 and over half (53 per cent) of all surveyed students have struggled with their living costs in the last year.

Also, around 54 per cent of students say if it was cheaper, they would prefer their university degree take a shorter amount of time to complete, with jobs found to be the main motivation for students going to university. “Across the world, students have told us loud and clear that the biggest issues facing their generation are access to good quality jobs and growing inequality. Addressing these challenges is more important than ever in the wake of the economic devastation wrought by COVID, and education is the key,” said Lila Thomas, Chegg’s Director of Social Impact and Head of Chegg.org. The survey is based on in-depth opinion polling by Yonder, formerly known as Populus, of nearly 17,000 undergraduate students aged 18-21 years across 21 countries around the world, including 1,000 students in India.

The Chegg.org "Global Student Survey" has been dubbed the most “comprehensive up-to-date survey” of the lives, hopes and fears of undergraduate students throughout the world in the age of COVID and beyond. It is intended to provide authoritative national and global data that will help answer crucial questions impacting the youth, with its findings aimed at helping education professionals, policymakers and leaders.

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