Indian students are sinking into crushing debt for U.S. degrees that may never pay off—Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu is sounding the alarm.
In a blunt warning on X, Vembu described a “distress call” from a student who borrowed ₹70 lakh (around $80,000) at 12% interest to pursue a master’s degree at a small U.S. college. With the job market faltering and loan payments looming, the future looks bleak. “The job scene in IT is bad, especially so for foreign students,” he wrote. “Payments on the loan are starting soon.”
Vembu didn’t mince words. “I urge students and parents to be cautious in borrowing heavily to pursue degrees abroad,” he said, adding that even borrowing for degrees in India is “unwise.”
As the U.S. IT job market slows and companies grow increasingly cautious in hiring—especially for international candidates on H-1B visas—thousands of students are finding themselves stuck: massive loans, minimal prospects.
The situation is aggravated by a global tech transition driven by AI. Companies are restructuring, and hiring has cooled dramatically. “We have not been hiring much as we transform ourselves for the AI era,” Vembu said of Zoho, citing the company’s policy against layoffs as a reason for the hiring freeze.
His critique strikes at the foundation of the modern education pipeline. “I strongly believe we should not trap young people in debt in the name of education,” he said. Instead, he called on the private sector to rethink workforce development. “The only smart course is for prospective employers to fund training programs and for the industry to broadly accept such alternative credentials rather than ask for formal degrees.”
With U.S. tech giants cutting jobs and immigration pathways narrowing, the ROI on an expensive foreign degree has never been more uncertain. The promise of a better future is, for many, turning into a debt spiral.
“The best investment we make as a company is in training and skill development,” Vembu concluded. “I hope companies do this widely so we don’t strand young people in debt.”
