Will foreign universities create elite islands?

Several foreign universities have formally committed to opening campuses in India, and a few are already operational. What motivates these universities from popular study abroad host destinations to establish footholds in India?

There are two main motivating factors for these universities to set up campuses in India. One is the opportunity aspect and the second is increasing difficulties faced by Indian students to go abroad.

Speaking of the opportunity aspect, students have very limited choice of high quality global learning in India. There is a mass segment which goes to public universities and private colleges. At the top of the pyramid is 1% of students, who may have access to international education and opportunities. But then there is a squeezed middle, who aspire to get better learning opportunities, but find it difficult due to limited options available in India.

At the same time, traditional host countries are consistently raising barriers of immigration and visa pathways for international students. There are two factors within this: one is the cost upfront, which has been going up because of the depreciation of the rupee, and second is the uncertainty to recover that cost through post-study work pathways. Fewer students are now able to recover the cost they have invested.

The opportunity to bring universities to students instead of expecting students to go to universities is a great philosophy and approach to drive internationalisation at home. That is the principle which National Education Policy has also requested to pursue or has already embedded in the policy framework.

When we talk about foreign universities in India as a solution to the challenges of admissions abroad due to geopolitical escalations, are we assuming that the operations of these universities in India will remain completely shielded by geopolitics?

There is a policy framework in India, which has allowed for and enabled these foreign universities to come and establish campuses here and offer the same degree which is offered in the home country. It solves one side of the political tension as other countries are being welcomed through a very thoughtful approach.

These universities are establishing campuses under certain policy frameworks. Rankings, for example, is a criteria which has been embedded and universities need to be in the top 500 to even apply for this consideration. So it raises expectations or bars for quality.

There is, however, always uncertainty and instability around geopolitical scenarios. But what’s important is that we should all support an endeavour which results in wider opportunities for our students. We want our students to succeed irrespective of the geopolitical tensions. While we cannot say that these universities or any university for that matter is shielded from any policy and political changes, there is a level of stability and structure and thoughtfulness which has gone into it to enable it, which will allow for a level of experimentation and growth.

How do you expect placement systems to work in these branch campuses: would it be global, or limited to India?

The placements are being localised because immigration policies can’t be controlled by anyone. Many universities don’t control them and the policies change based on political and other factors. With placements and career aspects, the aim is to provide talent for the Indian economy. So, students will be localised in the Indian market, in the Indian economy, not for global business.

Will the quality of education provided be on a par with that provided in home countries? Apart from the existing framework, are there any regulatory or policy safeguards that India should put into place?

The rankings criteria creates some selectivity that allows for a university which has existed for more than two centuries to take a much bigger risk to come to India in an unknown uncharted territory and put their reputation and brand at risk. So these universities want to do everything by the book and do it right, even though it may take more resources and more time. But they will invest in it because they want to safeguard their brand’s reputation and perception.

So, even from the UGC regulations and from the practical perspective, we need to consider that the experience and delivery is similar to what is in the home campus. An immersive study abroad experience, cannot be replaced or replicated by any of the following courses. We all are striving to provide a new set of experiences which are built around internationalisation at home, which are expanding the access and affordability for the students, and are also bringing global best practices to India.

The policy is already taking care of a number of rules and regulations even in the application stage, then it goes through a thorough review and audit and visits to come to the confirmation stage so that the student’s interest is always protected.

Will these universities integrate with the local academic system or will there be room for localisation in any sense?

We are, of course, operating in India, not only in the U.K. or Australia, so there will be contextual elements which have to be very much localised. Everything else will have an experiential element and contextual element, and will be offered and available in India and relevant to India’s societal and economic needs. The curriculum, faculty, framework, hiring, standards, quality assurance, assessments will come from the foreign university. Degrees will be awarded by them.

But there will be room for localisation of an international curriculum and academic experience. This internationalisation at home is the philosophy and the practice which is getting enabled here. It’s not a replacement or a replication of someone who is going overseas and experiencing something completely differently. It cannot be compared or experienced in the same way.