Kathmandu, June 11 -- Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration's visa restrictions make their future uncertain.

The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.

However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.

India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis goi...