On a quest for social mobility: The high-risk educational strategies of Indian medical students in Georgia

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2021 and 2024, this article presents an empirical investigation of the aspirations and educational strategies of Indian students pursuing medical education in the post-Soviet country Georgia. Contrary to the stereotype often connected to international student migration, the students in this study are not a part of an affluent global middle-class, nor have they grown up in internationally oriented families with long traditions of medical doctors. Their decision to pursue education in Georgia is motivated by ambitions of social mobility and, as part of this pursuit, the goal of securing a sustainable livelihood in India. The students arrive in Georgia armed with the hope that an international degree will have an ‘escalator effect’, entailing that a spatial move will facilitate a social mobility outcome. The success of their mobility project is, however, far from assured. Upon returning to their homeland, India – where most students intend to practice – a rigorous and highly competitive screening test with a very low pass rate awaits them. This article highlights how the journey of Indian aspiring medical doctors is precarious, best understood as a ‘high-risk’ educational strategy. Despite investing 6 years in studies abroad, obtaining the anticipated medical licence remains uncertain. Therefore, these students’ stories are not defined by assured success but by a blend of hope, ambition, and the possibility of both progress and substantial challenges.