QS Best Student Cities Ranking: Mumbai on top followed by Bengaluru; two Indian cities make their debut

Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and Delhi — these are the Indian cities that have made it to the list of top 140 cities for international students. This has been revealed by the QS rankings.

On Wednesday, June 29, the QS Best Student Cities Ranking was released and Mumbai has made it as the highest-ranking city in India, as stated in a report by PTI.

When it comes to 'affordability' the Maximum City has scored very high but limps when it comes to 'student mix' and desirability'. Mumbai has a global ranking of 103.

Bengaluru has emerged in the 114th spot.

India has two new entries this year, Chennai which features in the 125th spot and Delhi occupying the 129th slot.

How many international students study in India?
International students represent only a small fraction of the overall student body in India.

As per the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2018-19, the number of international students enrolled in Indian universities was just 47,427.

By the end of the year 2023, India hopes to attract over 2,00,000 students, more than four times of what the country attracts currently. But this goal might need reconsideration keeping in mind the pandemic, which has restricted the mobility of international students.

"Unsurprisingly, Asia is home to some of the most outstanding student experiences in the world. Seoul is its standout location, primarily thanks to the concentration of quality it boasts in its universities," said Ben Sowter, QS Senior Vice-President.

"However, this is not exclusive to the South Korean capital. In fact, five of the world's top-10 cities in this metric are based in Asia, highlighting the continent broadly as a bastion of higher education excellence. Combine this with outstanding career opportunities in its metropolitan hubs and we see an exceptional region in which to study and live," said the Vice-President went on to add.

What are QS Best Student Cities Ranking all about? 
The QS Best Student Cities Ranking offers students with independent data regarding various factors relevant to their study decisions — affordability, quality of life, the standard of university, and the views of previous students that have studied in that destination.

It has 98,000 survey responses contributing to the desirability (prospective students) and student voice (former students) indexes.

Extending its stay at the top spot, London has emerged as number one and is followed by Seoul.

Seoul topped the chart among the Asian cities, followed by Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and Osaka.