Indian Students in Iran: The ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel is now forcing many Indian students, especially from Kashmir, to come back home. The Indian government has started bringing them back from Iran, where they were studying at universities like Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, and Islamic Azad University. Safety has become a big concern, especially for those pursuing medical degrees.
In 2022, the Ministry of External Affairs said there were around 2,050 Indian students in Iran, and a lot of them were from Jammu and Kashmir. This situation reminds many people of what happened during the Russia-Ukraine war, when India had to run Operation Ganga to rescue thousands of medical students from Ukraine.
The Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) shows this trend. according to Asia Net News, almost 79,000 students took the FMGE in 2024, compared to around 61,000 in 2023 and about 52,000 in 2022.
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Why do Indian Students go Abroad?
Two big reasons make students leave India for medical, firstly not enough seats and and second are high costs in private colleges. In 2024, over 22.7 lakh students took the NEET-UG exam to compete for only around 1 lakh MBBS seats. Half of those seats are in government colleges, which are cheaper. The rest are in private colleges, where fees are often too high for many families.
For students from Kashmir, Iran has become a popular choice. Besides the lower cost, there’s also a strong cultural and religious connection. Iran is a Shia-majority country, and many Kashmiri students, who also follow Shia Islam, feel more comfortable there. Getting admission into Iranian universities is often easier and faster. Some students go for medicine, while others study Islamic theology in cities like Qom and Mashhad.
But even though Iran is affordable, it comes with its own set of problems. Dr. Lal explained that many universities in such countries don’t have strict entry rules for foreign students.
“There are few strict eligibility conditions. If a student can pay, they usually get in,” he said. Some universities have different standards for their own students and for international ones. In some cases, this means students get degrees but are not allowed to practise in the country where they studied.
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India has tried to fix this by setting new rules through the National Medical Commission (NMC). Now, students must be able to practise in the country where they study. Their course must be at least 54 months long, all from one university, and must include a one-year internship at the same place. This change has made things harder for students from places like the Philippines, where the courses are shorter than 54 months.
What will happen after they return?
Even after getting a degree, coming back to India and working as a doctor isn’t easy. Students must pass the FMGE exam, which many find tough. In 2024, only 25.8% passed it. The numbers were even worse in 2023 (16.65%) and 2022 (23.35%).
And passing the FMGE isn’t the only problem. Indian authorities also sometimes don’t recognize the foreign degree because the course doesn’t match with in India. So even after studying for years and spending a lot of money, some students still find it difficult to start their careers back home.
