Should I Buy Student Travel Insurance from India or the University?

Student Travel Insurance Vs. Foreign University Insurance

This is among the greatest dilemmas faced by Indian students preparing to study in international universities. Mandatory or not, you should definitely get the right health insurance coverage for studying abroad.

Several universities and colleges abroad, such as those in the US, Canada, Germany, or Australia, require their students to provide proof of sufficient health coverage. This is usually because the country may be extremely costly for most foreigners and may affect the student's financial and mental health in case of emergencies.

For some people, buying insurance may be a mere formality as they speedily tick off their checklist. Especially if their university has made it mandatory to have adequate health insurance coverage, then comes the next big question:

Which Insurance Should You Get?

You may be strongly steered by your university to buy a cover from their list of insurers. In some cases, you may not have the choice to reject it as they have made it mandatory. These universities may have either a university-partnered insurance company from their local area, or may have deemed Indian travel insurance insufficient.

To give you a clear perspective, here are the key pros and cons of buying university & student travel insurance:

Depending on your unique situation, you must make a choice. As these are long-term health insurance plans, they can cost a lot, and people are vary of spending more money only for it to be a waste of money.

Now, you are left with the following options:

• Buy a university-partnered student health insurance
• Buy a student overseas health insurance from India
• Both both

Before you reject the third option, you should know that most foreign university-offered insurance offers coverage limited to medical emergencies only. Sure, they provide fast and efficient health coverage, but in most cases, that is all they do. They are also restricted to a geographical area, don't provide any stay-related or personal liability coverage, and more. We will get into these details in the next sections!

Can you Buy both Student Travel Insurance and University Insurance?

There is no rule that you must pick between the two. So, if you feel either of your options doesn't meet all your needs, you can opt for both. In most cases, your university health insurance will strictly cover health expenses, including sudden hospitalisation.

However, other important coverage, such as bail bond, passport loss, compassionate visit, and more, provided by Indian travel insurers, is not offered under your university insurance coverage. In such cases, you can buy parallel insurance from India that can act as a top-up cover for your foreign university insurance.

This is especially useful in cases where a university may demand an unlimited sum insured—a feature not offered by most insurers in India. However, considering that health emergencies are the greatest expense and will be covered under your university-recommended insurance, you can invest in a student travel insurance policy covering all other risks.

This makes sense, as even a semester abroad can cost lakhs of rupees, including the mandatory health cover provided by the university. Buying secondary insurance from India makes perfect sense to have additional coverage for other probable emergencies like loss of laptop, sponsor protection, study interruption, bail bond, baggage loss, trip cancellation, etc.

Conclusion

Over 1.3 million Indian students venture abroad to pursue their higher education from top international universities. Preparing for these universities requires considerable effort, well-written SOPs, LORs and never-ending formalities.

However, securing a place in the program isn't everything, you must secure your future by ensuring your studies are uninterrupted and fruitful. With appropriate insurance coverage, you can avoid several avoidable expenses as well as get much-needed support in a foreign land.