Foreign Universities in India

IN NEWS:

• The University Grants Commission (UGC) announced the draft regulations for ‘Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India’ and invited feedback from stakeholders.

FEATURES OF THE UGC DRAFT:

• The proposal allows a foreign university among the top 500 global rankings or a foreign educational institution of repute in its home jurisdiction to apply to the UGC to set up a campus in India.
• Initially, permission would be granted for ten years, with renewal being subject to the fulfilment of requisite conditions.
• They can evolve their own admission process and criteria to admit domestic and foreign students. It will also have autonomy to recruit faculty and staff from India and abroad.
• They will have autonomy to decide its fee structure, and will be allowed cross-border movement of funds. However, the fee should be “reasonable and transparent”.
• The campus can only offer full-time programmes in physical mode and not online or distance learning.
• Such universities and colleges cannot offer any such programme of study which jeopardises the national interest of India or the standards of higher education in India.
• Also, there would be safeguards to protect enrolled students in case of unforeseen disruption, discontinuation, or closure of the Indian campus.
• UGC will have the right to inspect the campuses at any time and they will not be outside the purview of anti-ragging and other criminal laws.
• The draft regulations also require the foreign universities to submit audit reports and annual reports to the UGC certifying that their operations are in compliance with Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) 1999 and other relevant government policies.

SIGNIFICANCE:

• Enhance the quality of higher education:
  • Foreign universities can bring in global standards of curricula, pedagogy, and research, thereby improving the quality of higher education in India.
• Internationalisation of Indian higher education:
  • The presence of renowned foreign universities can strengthen India’s efforts to become a global destination for education.
• Reduce brain drain:
  • Nearly 13 lakh students were studying abroad in 2022 as per the Ministry of External Affairs data. After Chinese students, Indians are the largest category of foreign students in countries like the U.S., the U.K. and Australia.
  • Having globally renowned universities in India can not only help reduce the emigration of talent but also help attract overseas students to India.
• Save forex:
  • As per the RBI, Rs. 5 billion was lost in foreign exchange due to students going overseas in FY 2021-2022. Reducing the brain drain can result in saving valuable forex.
• Institutionalise the NEP’s vision:
  • In order to attain the gross enrolment ratio (GER) in colleges and universities to 50% by 2035, The New Education Policy, 2020 had stated that top universities in the world will be facilitated to operate in India. The UGC’s draft regulation seeks to realise this objective. 
• Improve standards in Indian institutes:
  • Having foreign universities can encourage competition with the Indian universities. It will also pave the way for collaboration among the universities through joint teaching and research opportunities, collaborative conferences, dual degree programmes etc.
• Increase India’s soft power:
  • Higher education institutions are an important part of India’s soft power diplomacy. According to the All-India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), there were 49,348 foreign students in India in 2019-20, most of them from the South Asian nations.
  • Having foreign universities can increase India’s soft power diplomacy to beyond South Asia.

CRITICISM:

• Monetisation of education:
  • India had so far not permitted for-profit educational institutions. However, the global branches would be aimed at making profit for the sponsoring university.
• Question of affordability:
  • Currently, Indian students pay over Rs 50 lakh per annum to study at Harvard, Yale or Oxford. Such high cost in India will result in the exclusion of a large section of our society, thereby vitiating the NEP’s vision of equity and inclusion.
• Undermines affirmative actions:
  • Foreign universities can develop their own recruitment policies and are not be expected to mandatorily follow reservation policies in India. Hence, those seeking quota benefits will be excluded, hindering the idea of empowerment through education and widening inequality in the country.
• Challenge in attracting top universities:
  • The funding of many foreign campuses, especially those of American universities, mainly comes from the host countries’ governments. But the Indian government has offered no such financial or infrastructural support.
• Challenge in attracting students:
  • Standard of living:
    • Indian students go abroad for studies because it gives them a chance to settle in those countries where the standard of living is much higher. So, the Indian campuses of such universities will not be of much help to retain them.
  • Infrastructure:
    • The home campus of foreign universities has well established infrastructure. Also, these institutions have evolved over a period of time with strong roots in local social and cultural milieu. So, a student would prefer to go to a university's home campus than a campus in India.
  • Changing nature of education:
    • The idea of brick-and-mortar international campuses are giving way to online/blended degree programmes and international collaborations.
• Criticism over cross border funding:
  • There is no requirement for foreign universities to maintain a corpus fund to operate in India. This could work against the development of research and academics within India.
• Deviation from NEP:
  • While the NEP talks about creating a legislative framework, the government is following the regulatory route. Also, the NEP proposes attracting the top 100 universities, while the UGC draft permits universities with top 500 global rankings or those considered reputed in their home country.
• Challenge to Indian universities:
  • As per the QS ranking, only three Indian institutions could mark a place amongst the global top 200 universities. Also, many regulations applicable to Indian institutions will not be applicable to foreign institutions. Hence, it could be challenging for Indian universities to compete against global universities.
  • Extra reading: Higher education in India: https://www.ilearncana.com/details/Higher-Education-in-India/2458
• Political backlash:
  • In the past, there were strong reservations against the entry of foreign capital in higher education. Adding issues like reservation into this could result in severe backlash.
• Regulatory hurdles:
  • The quasi-governmental bureaucratic set up of UGC is criticised for its over centralisation, red tapism, flawed system of rewarding research and allegations of corruption and nepotism. This raises questions over the UGC’s ability to effectively regulate foreign universities.

WAY FORWARD:

• India should prevent the entry of profit-seeking players into the Indian market. Instead, institutions with innovative educational ideas and a long-term social commitment should be encouraged.
• Besides paving the way for foreign institutions, India must focus on becoming a global higher education destination in our own right. This can be attained through:  
  • Expand the scope and scale of Institutions of Eminence (IoE) so that they become natural destinations for international students
  • Create Special Education Zones (SEZs) in all states and host universities that are global in their orientation and outlook.
  • Provide more resources to Indian universities and not just to select centrally established institutions like IITs and IIMs.
  • Encourage CSR and philanthropic initiatives with more tax incentives to enable private sector contributions to public and private universities.
  • Provide greater autonomy to Indian universities and upgrade the regulatory apparatus of UGC to prevent over regulation.
  • Improve the quality of infrastructure on university campuses. The safety, security and well-being of the students, especially women, must be ensured.
  • A robust rating system to promote healthy competition amongst universities and help improve their performance.
  • Encourage the development of private institutions, especially in the niche and futuristic areas of design, entrepreneurship, communication and innovation studies.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Q. The quality of higher education in India requires major improvements to make it internationally competitive. Do you think that the entry of foreign educational institutions would help improve the quality of higher and technical education in the country? Discuss. (GS 2, 2015)