The global educational tourism market is poised to surge from USD 754.6 billion in 2025 to over USD 3,732.5 billion by 2035, expanding at a robust CAGR of 17.2%. This remarkable growth is being driven by increased global mobility among students, a rising appetite for international exposure, and growing policy-level support from governments and academic institutions worldwide. Educational tourism now encompasses not only full-time academic degrees but also research exchanges, language immersion programs, and specialized short courses.
Compared to 2024, the year 2025 is witnessing a more structured and competitive landscape, particularly in higher education and postgraduate offerings. Countries such as Canada, the UK, and Germany have streamlined visa procedures and introduced scholarship schemes, further incentivizing international student flow. Simultaneously, emerging education hubs like Malaysia, South Korea, and the UAE are investing in world-class academic infrastructure to attract inbound educational tourists.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Industry Size (2025E) | USD 754.6 billion |
| Industry Value (2035F) | USD 3,732.5 billion |
| Value-based CAGR (2025 to 2035) | 17.2% |
Digital platforms are playing a crucial role in simplifying the application and documentation process for cross-border learners. Educational fairs, hybrid program formats, and study-abroad consultancies have become mainstream channels that guide students toward destinations that offer both academic excellence and cultural exposure. In 2025, virtual reality campus tours and AI-driven program match tools are being used extensively to enhance the pre-admission decision-making experience.
As of 2025, the 19-25 age group accounts for the majority of educational tourists, contributing to over 70% of global revenue. Postgraduate education remains the most preferred type, aligning with a strong desire for specialization and professional advancement. Master’s degree programs, particularly in technology, business, and life sciences, are the top choices among globally mobile students due to their strong linkages to employability and global networks.
With rising cultural openness, institutional partnerships, and long-term residency pathways for international graduates, the educational tourism market is set to evolve into a major pillar of the global education economy-bridging cultures, enhancing skills, and shaping global citizens.
In 2025, the 19-25 age group is projected to account for approximately 73% of the global educational tourism market, making it the largest contributor across all age segments. This cohort includes undergraduate students pursuing international degrees, recent graduates enrolling in postgraduate programs, and young professionals engaging in academic exchange or certification courses abroad. Their strong participation is driven by the need for global credentials, international work exposure, and diversified learning environments.
This age bracket is highly responsive to international ranking systems, student exchange agreements, and institutional partnerships. Countries like Canada, Germany, and the Netherlands have tailored programs with built-in internship and post-study work options to attract students within this group. Additionally, the rising number of English-taught master’s programs in non-Anglophone countries is widening destination choices for these mobile learners.
In 2024 and early 2025, the proliferation of government-sponsored scholarships, language preparation tracks, and streamlined visa processes significantly boosted enrollment rates. Many students in this category are first-time travelers, so university location, cultural compatibility, and support services remain decisive factors.
Postgraduate education is anticipated to account for the largest share of the educational tourism market by education type in 2025. The increasing demand for specialized knowledge, international credentials, and research exposure has made postgraduate programs a primary motivator for academic travel. This segment includes master’s degrees, doctoral programs, and advanced diplomas, often aligned with career progression or global employability.
Students pursuing postgraduate degrees abroad benefit from access to cutting-edge research, global faculty, and networking opportunities. In 2024 and 2025, countries like the United Kingdom, Australia, and Germany reported a surge in international enrolments in STEM and business programs at the postgraduate level. Institutions have responded by expanding scholarship offerings, developing industry-linked curricula, and enhancing career support services to attract talent globally.
Employers increasingly value candidates with international academic exposure, especially in leadership, R&D, and innovation roles. A postgraduate degree earned abroad is seen as a mark of adaptability, multicultural competency, and language fluency-qualities that align with global workforce demands.
To increase value for customers and for higher sales, various promotional activities like direct marketing, sales and discounts, offering free giveaways, hosting an event and many other activities to promote their countries are being followed in the educational tourism industry.
Given the scenario, digital marketing plays a vital role in the promotion or advertising of products or services being offered by any company. As the potential customers of edu-tourism are mostly millennials who spend much of their time on the internet using search and social media, creating an online presence will definitely increase the business value.
Hosting a seminar also has become a trend for the educational tourism industry, through which a company can engage with its students to better understand their needs and desires. FMI has forecast the educational tourism market to rise at 17.2% CAGR between 2025 and 2035.
School trips are usually prearranged by the teachers or the students’ parents through private agencies or through scholarships provided by Ministries of Education. They are usually of short or medium stays since the students are of low age.
The main aim is to develop cultural knowledge and other languages. Moreover, the modality to learn foreign languages among young children is spurring, as they have more sharp and flexible minds than adults and therefore a greater ability to learn another language.
Thus, rising demand for national and international school trips is expected to supplement the market growth throughout the forecast period.
Private universities offer the opportunities to learn and explore alongside world-class faculty, for a lifetime of personal achievement. Further, many private universities have started the trend of foreign internships or international tours for a period of 2 to 3 months, which is creating a lot of traction among millennials.
As a result, they are willing to pay high prices for the courses in order to visit abroad. In addition, governments around the world, particularly those in developing countries, face significant educational challenges. As a result, students are more attracted towards private universities and colleges for further studies.
In Feb 2021, India gave the green-light to dual and joint degrees which are awarded by Indian universities with international partners as part of its internationalization plan being pushed through forcefully since its inclusion last year in the National Education Policy (NEP).
According to Future Market Insights, the USA. is expected to account for over 3/4th of market share in educational tourism market. The market is acquiring popularity with regards to education, as it provides and strives to maintain the best educational facilities, encourages educational tours and spends on quality learning and research.
Presence of ivy-league collages and informative & profitable courses offered in the country for the students is propelling the market growth. Diverse international study programs and student exchange programs offered in the universities are attracting the international student bodies to the USA. ivy and community colleges.
Brazil is identified as the most attractive region for educational tourism and international studies among youth. The most significant economic feature of activities is that they contribute to three high-priority goals: the foreign exchange earnings, generation of income, and employment.
One of the main advantages of educational tourism is the ability to earn money through foreign exchange. Educational tourism expenditure generates income for the host economy. The money that the country makes from tourism is then reinvested in the economy.
Some countries like Brazil utilize the money on increasing their tourism industry further, while some countries in Latin America region spend the money on public services such as healthcare and education. In this respect, the educational tourism sector can play an important role as a driving force of economic development.
One of the benefits of educational tourism is the opportunity to have a new experience and witness different cultures especially in South-Asian countries such as India. Traveling outside one’s home region and comfort zone enhances the knowledge about different cultures in the world.
Educational tourists visit the area in order to learn more about a culture, or visit cultural and tourist attractions point, such as museums and live shows during the journey, which further helps to contribute to the economic growth of the area. Attractions must be staffed, bringing with it employment prospects, and tertiary businesses can also benefit, such as restaurants, taxi firms and hotels.
Furthermore, for those seeking in-depth cultural experiences, options such as homestays can have positive economic benefits for the members of the community which hosts the tourists. As a result, educational tourism activity helps oneself to understand the history and culture beyond their geographical location, which is further driving the education tourism industry.
Besides this, favorable government initiatives and offers on attractive Master’s degree and secondary education are expected to woo a lot of foreign exchange students, propelling the growth of educational tourism market.
The players are primarily engaged to establish a new standard for education and international development organizations and social enterprises. Further, several players run National Scholarship Programs (NSP) worldwide to enable and fund local nationals to participate in their programs and receive all relevant training.
Moreover, the players are adopting a virtual and online approach to connect with potential people/students. For instance, GVI Company provides virtual internship program and online classes. This approach helps the company to attract more people.
| Report Attributes | Details |
|---|---|
| Current Total Market Size (2025) | USD 754.6 billion |
| Estimated Market Size (2035) | USD 3,732.5 billion |
| CAGR (2025 to 2035) | 17.2% |
| Quantitative Units | USD billion for value |
| Age Groups Analyzed (Segment 1) | Less Than 12 Years, 13-18 Years, 19-25 Years, 26-40 Years, 41-55 Years |
| Education Types Covered (Segment 2) | Primary, Secondary, College, Post Graduate |
| Occupation Types Covered (Segment 3) | Students, Scholars, Teachers, Government Officials, Corporation Managers, Enterprise Owners, Workers, Others |
| Course Types Covered (Segment 4) | Master Degree, Secondary Education, Primary Education |
| Regions Covered | Global |
| Key Players Influencing the Market | Meridean Overseas, GVI Company, Global Volunteers, Capital Tours, EF Educational Tours, Road Scholar, AAI Edutourz, ACIS Educational Tours, GoIreland, Qadri International Education Consultancy, Intelligent Partners, Futures Abroad, ProEd DMCC, Education Resources Network (ERN), Education Zone, Fact, IQ Education Consultants, M.K.H Consultancy Services, Stratix Consultants |
| Additional Attributes | Dollar sales by age group and education type, regional demand trends, program popularity, growth of study abroad and volunteering tourism |
| Customization and Pricing | Customization and Pricing Available on Request |
In 2025, the educational tourism market is expected to reach a valuation of over USD 754.6 billion.
The educational tourism market grew at an impressive CAGR of 12.9% from 2020 to 2024.
Meridean Overseas, GVI Company, Global Volunteers, Capital Tours, Inc., EF Educational Tours, Road Scholar, AAI Edutourz, ACIS Educational Tours, GoIreland, Qadri International Education Consultancy, and Intelligent Partners are some of the leading market players, cumulatively accounting for a 15%-20% value share.
The U.S., the U.K., France, Canada, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Russia, Japan, Germany, China, Australia, and India, are major countries reflecting consistently high demand for educational tourism.
The educational tourism market grew by USD 56.6 Billion between 2020 and 2021.
Demand for new courses, increasing government initiatives to boost country’s tourism industry, and millennials growing interest to experience the culture and understand history of different places are some of the key factors that will fuel the growth.
As per Future Market Insights, North America will account for over 31% of global market share during the forecast period.
Europe will contribute nearly 27% of the global market share in educational tourism market over the next decade.
Increasing focus on promoting educational tourism as a development strategy by various countries around the world will continue positively affecting sales. Besides this, government policies aimed at boosting a country’s image as destination for educational tourism will create opportunities for growth.
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