The word "طالب" (talib, meaning "student") is a masculine singular noun. In Arabic, nouns can form plurals in several ways:
جمع تكسير (broken plural): the internal structure of the word changes, e.g., طالب → طُلّاب
جمع مذكر سالم (sound masculine plural): adds ون/-ين to the singular, e.g., طالب → طالبون
جمع مؤنث سالم (sound feminine plural): adds ات to the feminine form, e.g., طالبة → طالبات
The most standard plural (جمع تكسير) of طالب is طُلّاب. This is the broken plural form where the internal vowel pattern changes from فاعِل to فُعّال. It is the most commonly used plural of طالب in both classical and modern Arabic.
طالبون is a sound masculine plural, which is grammatically possible but less commonly used. طلبة is another broken plural form, also valid. طالبات is the feminine plural of طالبة (female student), not of the masculine طالب.
