Bengaluru: Karnataka has overtaken Gujarat to become the fourth-largest state in terms of TOEFL-takers, according to data shared by Educational Testing Service (ETS), which administers the English-language test. The state’s share of test-takers has seen a consistent increase, up from 8.1% in FY 2023-24 to 8.7% in FY 2024-25 and 9.3% in FY 2025-26.Telangana leads overall with a share of 18.1%, followed by Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh (15.1% each). Karnataka is marginally ahead of Gujarat at 9%.“Bengaluru continues to be a significant centre for TOEFL participation. The city ranked fourth among India’s leading TOEFL iBT test-taking cities in 2021 before moving to third place in 2022 and 2023. Mysuru also featured among the country’s top 10 test-taking cities in 2023,” said Karan Lalit, executive director – South Asia, TOEFL & GRE, ETS.According to ETS, it currently has more than 60 active institutional partners across Karnataka, including Bengaluru, Mangaluru, Mysuru, Hubballi and Dharwad. These partnerships support student outreach, awareness initiatives and access to TOEFL preparation resources.However, access to testing infrastructure remains concentrated in Bengaluru, which has four TOEFL test centres. ETS said it is in discussions with several universities and colleges across Karnataka to strengthen student support, particularly in test preparation and registration.While the US, UK, Canada and Australia continue to be popular choices among Indian students, interest in destinations such as Germany, France, Ireland and countries in the Middle East is also growing. “At a global level, TOEFL score reports sent to universities in Japan increased by 10% in FY 2025-26, while reports sent to universities in Hong Kong increased by 24% in 2025. These figures reflect global ETS data and should not be interpreted as trends specific to Karnataka,” Lalit said.ETS said students are increasingly evaluating multiple countries before making study-abroad decisions, taking into account visa regulations, affordability, admission requirements, and post-study work opportunities.“Germany enrolled approximately 59,000 Indian students in the 2024-25 winter semester, representing a year-on-year growth of around 20%. France recorded approximately 9,100 Indian students in 2025. Ireland recorded 9,175 Indian students in 2024-25. The Niti Aayog report on internationalisation of higher education also identifies the UAE as a destination for Indian students. These figures illustrate the range of international education markets attracting Indian students,” he said.TOEFL iBT is accepted by more than 13,500 institutions across over 160 countries as a common English-language proficiency assessment when applying to universities in different destinations.
