promoting excellence in HE management

November 2009

Study Tour IndiaDesign

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Contact

The AUA National Office, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PLTel: +44(0)161 275 2063 Fax: +44(0)161 275 2036 Email: aua@manchester.ac.uk

promoting excellence in HE management

Cert no. SGS-COC-003591

AUA National Office The University of Manchester Oxford Road Manchester M13 9PLTel: +44(0)161 275 2063 Fax: +44(0)161 275 2036 Email: aua@manchester.ac.uk Web: www.aua.ac.uk

India is a vast, complex and fascinating country, adjectiveswhich we found also aptly describe its higher educationsystem. It is a country in a state of flux, experiencing rapideconomic growth and with a new majority Government keento take India forward on a journey to become a major worldeconomy. With a bill proposing reform of higher educationhotly debated in Parliament, the first AUA study tour to Indiawas very timely. The experience was a very informative andrewarding one and has left a strong impression of a diverseand committed HE sector, ready to embrace change andexpansion to meet India’s future needs. This report wasproduced collectively by the study tour team and outlinesour findings – we hope you enjoy reading it.

I am very grateful to our Indian hosts, to the tour team fortheir hard work and professionalism and to the AUA for theopportunity to lead this tour.

Sonia Virdee

Introduction 2

Partnerships 7

Student Experience 11

Governance 17

Appendices 23

Mumbai fishermen

1

Welcome

Temple and Isha yoga centre outside Coimbatore

AcknowledgementsWe would like to formally thank our hosts for their kindand generous hospitality and for their willingness toengage in open discussion with us. We met with manysenior staff who gave up considerable time making eachvisit all the more valuable and informative. We are verygrateful to everyone and to our main contacts for lookingafter us so well:

Dr VN Magare Director Board of Colleges and UniversityDevelopment, University of MumbaiMs Manjula Rao Head of Programmes (West India), British CouncilMs Shamira Abdulla Director International Programmes, HR College of Commerce and EconomicsMs Shyamala Iyer Executive Officer (Alumni and InternationalRelations), Indian Institute of Technology BombayDr Ravindrasinh Pardeshi Principal, Fergusson CollegeMr Vikas Kakatkar Vice Chairman, Deccan Education Society, Pune

Ms Janaki Murali Head of Education and Research, Infosys LtdProf Pankaj Chandra Director, Indian Institute ofManagement Bangalore Prof Santhana Krishnan Liaison Officer, Tamil NaduAgricultural UniversityMr P Manoj Head of Indo-US and International Initiatives, Amrita University Thanks also go to those who assisted in the planning of the visitand in the production of this report. Mr Rod Pryde formerly Minister (Cultural Affairs), British Council, IndiaProf Nirmala Rao Leadership Foundation for HE project leaderand Deputy Vice-Chancellor, SOASMr Matthew Andrews AUA Board member and AcademicRegistrar, Oxford Brookes UniversityMs Noreen Muzaffar AUAProofreaders Michele Wheeler, University of the West of EnglandMartine Somerville, Leeds Trinity University CollegeSuvi Streatfield, University of WestminsterNeil Matthews, Wendy McDonald, Goldsmiths College, University of London

Tem

ple

and

Isha

yog

a ce

ntre

out

side

Coi

mba

tore

India is a vast, complex and fascinating country, adjectiveswhich we found also aptly describe its higher educationsystem. It is a country in a state of flux, experiencing rapideconomic growth and with a new majority Government keento take India forward on a journey to become a major worldeconomy. With a bill proposing reform of higher educationhotly debated in Parliament, the first AUA study tour to Indiawas very timely. The experience was a very informative andrewarding one and has left a strong impression of a diverseand committed HE sector, ready to embrace change andexpansion to meet India’s future needs. This report wasproduced collectively by the study tour team and outlinesour findings – we hope you enjoy reading it.

I am very grateful to our Indian hosts, to the tour team fortheir hard work and professionalism and to the AUA for theopportunity to lead this tour.

Sonia Virdee

Introduction 2

Partnerships 7

Student Experience 11

Governance 17

Appendices 23

Mumbai fishermen

1

Welcome

Temple and Isha yoga centre outside Coimbatore

AcknowledgementsWe would like to formally thank our hosts for their kindand generous hospitality and for their willingness toengage in open discussion with us. We met with manysenior staff who gave up considerable time making eachvisit all the more valuable and informative. We are verygrateful to everyone and to our main contacts for lookingafter us so well:

Dr VN Magare Director Board of Colleges and UniversityDevelopment, University of MumbaiMs Manjula Rao Head of Programmes (West India), British CouncilMs Shamira Abdulla Director International Programmes, HR College of Commerce and EconomicsMs Shyamala Iyer Executive Officer (Alumni and InternationalRelations), Indian Institute of Technology BombayDr Ravindrasinh Pardeshi Principal, Fergusson CollegeMr Vikas Kakatkar Vice Chairman, Deccan Education Society, Pune

Ms Janaki Murali Head of Education and Research, Infosys LtdProf Pankaj Chandra Director, Indian Institute ofManagement Bangalore Prof Santhana Krishnan Liaison Officer, Tamil NaduAgricultural UniversityMr P Manoj Head of Indo-US and International Initiatives, Amrita University Thanks also go to those who assisted in the planning of the visitand in the production of this report. Mr Rod Pryde formerly Minister (Cultural Affairs), British Council, IndiaProf Nirmala Rao Leadership Foundation for HE project leaderand Deputy Vice-Chancellor, SOASMr Matthew Andrews AUA Board member and AcademicRegistrar, Oxford Brookes UniversityMs Noreen Muzaffar AUAProofreaders Michele Wheeler, University of the West of EnglandMartine Somerville, Leeds Trinity University CollegeSuvi Streatfield, University of WestminsterNeil Matthews, Wendy McDonald, Goldsmiths College, University of London

Tem

ple

and

Isha

yog

a ce

ntre

out

side

Coi

mba

tore

3

The cost of UK HE and the rise ofinternational competition for overseasrecruitment present significant threats tothe UK’s position as a leading centre forinternational recruitment. Long-termpartnership and strategic collaboration areseen as the way forward, with lessemphasis on recruitment-onlyarrangements, and a different type ofinvolvement from university management.This scenario suggests collaborativeexchanges will increase in prominence inuniversity strategy as a means of securingthe long term sustainability ofinternational activity and income.Furthermore, a new Indian HE billstreamlining regulation and opening upthe sector to non-Indian providers is inprogress and is anticipated as paving theway for expansion and partnership.

The move towards deeper more sustainedinternational collaboration implies that UKuniversities will engage in a wider range ofcollaborative activities touching on abroader spectrum of universityadministrative roles. The India Study Tourwas an opportunity to better understandthe Indian HE system and to reflect onhow HE is managed in India. We hope itprovides insights that will help participantsand the wider AUA membership tocontribute to their universities’international agendas, and to reflect onpractice at home as we present HE issuesand priorities from a radically differenteconomic and cultural perspective.

The Indian HE system is vast andcomplex, comprising an array ofcentral/state universities, deemeduniversities, distance learning universities,institutes of technology, institutes ofmanagement, specialist universities andprivate and partially private universities.The Tour sampled a range of institutiontypes visiting some highly prestigiousuniversities among the best in their class.

Introduction

A shrine to ‘Amma’ at Amrita University

The Tamil Nadu countryside

The tourist trap, downtown Mumbai

2

Facts and Figures

• With a population of 1.13 billion, India is expected to overtake Chinaas the world's most populous country by 2030

• India currently has the 12th largest global economy, but is predictedto be in the top three by 2050

• It has 378 universities, up from 201 in 2002, in three categories:State, Central and Deemed

• It has 18,064 colleges

• There are almost 300 agents representing UK education institutionsin India, up from 40 in 1999

• About 160,000 students leave India each year for higher educationinstitutions overseas

• The UK share of the market for Indian students studying overseas is 30%, up from 16 per cent in 1999

• India has 492,000 faculty members and 14 million students

• 40 per cent of its students are women

• Only 21 per cent of the population graduate from upper secondarylevel and higher education (HE) participation is 10 per cent

Universities in the UK are increasingly viewing internationalisation and international collaboration, in addition to international recruitment, as part of their core mission.

3

The cost of UK HE and the rise ofinternational competition for overseasrecruitment present significant threats tothe UK’s position as a leading centre forinternational recruitment. Long-termpartnership and strategic collaboration areseen as the way forward, with lessemphasis on recruitment-onlyarrangements, and a different type ofinvolvement from university management.This scenario suggests collaborativeexchanges will increase in prominence inuniversity strategy as a means of securingthe long term sustainability ofinternational activity and income.Furthermore, a new Indian HE billstreamlining regulation and opening upthe sector to non-Indian providers is inprogress and is anticipated as paving theway for expansion and partnership.

The move towards deeper more sustainedinternational collaboration implies that UKuniversities will engage in a wider range ofcollaborative activities touching on abroader spectrum of universityadministrative roles. The India Study Tourwas an opportunity to better understandthe Indian HE system and to reflect onhow HE is managed in India. We hope itprovides insights that will help participantsand the wider AUA membership tocontribute to their universities’international agendas, and to reflect onpractice at home as we present HE issuesand priorities from a radically differenteconomic and cultural perspective.

The Indian HE system is vast andcomplex, comprising an array ofcentral/state universities, deemeduniversities, distance learning universities,institutes of technology, institutes ofmanagement, specialist universities andprivate and partially private universities.The Tour sampled a range of institutiontypes visiting some highly prestigiousuniversities among the best in their class.

Introduction

A shrine to ‘Amma’ at Amrita University

The Tamil Nadu countryside

The tourist trap, downtown Mumbai

2

Facts and Figures

• With a population of 1.13 billion, India is expected to overtake Chinaas the world's most populous country by 2030

• India currently has the 12th largest global economy, but is predictedto be in the top three by 2050

• It has 378 universities, up from 201 in 2002, in three categories:State, Central and Deemed

• It has 18,064 colleges

• There are almost 300 agents representing UK education institutionsin India, up from 40 in 1999

• About 160,000 students leave India each year for higher educationinstitutions overseas

• The UK share of the market for Indian students studying overseas is 30%, up from 16 per cent in 1999

• India has 492,000 faculty members and 14 million students

• 40 per cent of its students are women

• Only 21 per cent of the population graduate from upper secondarylevel and higher education (HE) participation is 10 per cent

Universities in the UK are increasingly viewing internationalisation and international collaboration, in addition to international recruitment, as part of their core mission.

Village scene in Tamil Nadu

54

While the UK is suffering from the globalrecession, the Indian economy is booming,growing by 7 per cent last year after severalyears at 9 per cent. India aspires to be aworld leader and is alive to the need tooverhaul its higher education system tounderpin growth and enable it to participatefully in the global knowledge economy. Itscompetitiveness depends on the availabilityof high quality graduates and concerns arebeing raised about whether the Indian HEsector is up to the job. Over the last fewyears, the Indian government has beendebating HE reform, including growing thesector, improving quality, reducingbureaucracy and inviting in foreign providers.

Participation is low at 11 per cent, comparedto the world average of 23.3 per cent, andthe government has plans to raise this to 30per cent. HE has grown very rapidly overthe last two decades, but demand still vastlyoutstrips supply and a major expansionprogramme has recently been approved.Fees are often very low by UK standardsand higher education is the most heavilysubsidised form of education in India.

However, there is recognition that morefunding is needed if India is to recruit thebest staff to its universities and increase itsresearch output. The Government’s five yearplan commits to raise public spending on HEto 6 per cent of GDP, representing a fivefoldincrease in spending over the previous plan.

There are moves to reform the regulatoryframework to raise standards and enablemore flexibility and innovation, both stifledunder the current rigid and multi-agencysystem. This regulation has includedrestrictions on overseas providers, but this isnow set to change and India’s doors will beopened to overseas investment, creatingopportunities for many UK universities. Thenew minister with responsibility for HE, KapilSibal, has recently visited the UK and talkedabout a range of joint ventures such astwinning, joint degrees and new campuses.When Sibal announced that he would pressfor legislative change, he said: "I wouldhope that come 2010, universities aroundthe world will be sprinting to India.”

Navigating the IndianSector

In India most universities are established bythe various state governments. There are asmaller number of central universities set upand directly funded by the Ministry ofHuman Resource Development. About halfof Indian universities fall into these twocategories. The state governments alsoestablish professional and specialistinstitutions such as agricultural universitiesand medical colleges. Most universities are'affiliating universities', which prescribe tothe affiliated colleges, the admission criteriaand courses of study, hold examinations andaward degrees. Colleges can be formallyaffiliated to universities or established byprivate or charitable trusts. Some long-standing HE level institutions have beengiven “deemed to be university” status,although this has been controversial andsome universities have recently had thisdesignation withdrawn.

Pune outskirts

Presentation at Fergusson College

Introduction

Central Universities

Multidisciplinary, large city universities and their affiliated colleges, established by an Act of

Parliament and funded directly by central Government. Central Government determines policy

and emphasises research and teaching of national importance.

E.g.University of Delhi

Institutions of National Importance

These are central universities and include the Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes

of Management and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.

E.g.IITs, IIMs, NITs

State Universities

Central universities are set up, overseen and funded by state Governments. Can also receive

central Government funding for strategic developments and research.

E.g.University of Mumbai

Deemed Universities

Institutions of long-standing and/or high academic reputation. Can be government-funded,

privately funded or a combination of both. They have autonomy to award degrees, design their

own courses and set fees.

E.g.Amrita University (private)

Indian Institute of Science

OtherIncludes private universities with or without University Grants Commision (UGC) approval.

CollegesColleges fall into four categories:

• University Colleges – university-owned, usually on the same campus

• Government Colleges – managed by state governments and affiliated to a university

• Professional Colleges – mostly medicine, engineering and management, sponsored by either

the government or by private initiative

• Privately Managed Colleges – governed by their affiliate university, these account for about 70

per cent of colleges; some are state government-funded.

Village scene in Tamil Nadu

54

While the UK is suffering from the globalrecession, the Indian economy is booming,growing by 7 per cent last year after severalyears at 9 per cent. India aspires to be aworld leader and is alive to the need tooverhaul its higher education system tounderpin growth and enable it to participatefully in the global knowledge economy. Itscompetitiveness depends on the availabilityof high quality graduates and concerns arebeing raised about whether the Indian HEsector is up to the job. Over the last fewyears, the Indian government has beendebating HE reform, including growing thesector, improving quality, reducingbureaucracy and inviting in foreign providers.

Participation is low at 11 per cent, comparedto the world average of 23.3 per cent, andthe government has plans to raise this to 30per cent. HE has grown very rapidly overthe last two decades, but demand still vastlyoutstrips supply and a major expansionprogramme has recently been approved.Fees are often very low by UK standardsand higher education is the most heavilysubsidised form of education in India.

However, there is recognition that morefunding is needed if India is to recruit thebest staff to its universities and increase itsresearch output. The Government’s five yearplan commits to raise public spending on HEto 6 per cent of GDP, representing a fivefoldincrease in spending over the previous plan.

There are moves to reform the regulatoryframework to raise standards and enablemore flexibility and innovation, both stifledunder the current rigid and multi-agencysystem. This regulation has includedrestrictions on overseas providers, but this isnow set to change and India’s doors will beopened to overseas investment, creatingopportunities for many UK universities. Thenew minister with responsibility for HE, KapilSibal, has recently visited the UK and talkedabout a range of joint ventures such astwinning, joint degrees and new campuses.When Sibal announced that he would pressfor legislative change, he said: "I wouldhope that come 2010, universities aroundthe world will be sprinting to India.”

Navigating the IndianSector

In India most universities are established bythe various state governments. There are asmaller number of central universities set upand directly funded by the Ministry ofHuman Resource Development. About halfof Indian universities fall into these twocategories. The state governments alsoestablish professional and specialistinstitutions such as agricultural universitiesand medical colleges. Most universities are'affiliating universities', which prescribe tothe affiliated colleges, the admission criteriaand courses of study, hold examinations andaward degrees. Colleges can be formallyaffiliated to universities or established byprivate or charitable trusts. Some long-standing HE level institutions have beengiven “deemed to be university” status,although this has been controversial andsome universities have recently had thisdesignation withdrawn.

Pune outskirts

Presentation at Fergusson College

Introduction

Central Universities

Multidisciplinary, large city universities and their affiliated colleges, established by an Act of

Parliament and funded directly by central Government. Central Government determines policy

and emphasises research and teaching of national importance.

E.g.University of Delhi

Institutions of National Importance

These are central universities and include the Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes

of Management and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.

E.g.IITs, IIMs, NITs

State Universities

Central universities are set up, overseen and funded by state Governments. Can also receive

central Government funding for strategic developments and research.

E.g.University of Mumbai

Deemed Universities

Institutions of long-standing and/or high academic reputation. Can be government-funded,

privately funded or a combination of both. They have autonomy to award degrees, design their

own courses and set fees.

E.g.Amrita University (private)

Indian Institute of Science

OtherIncludes private universities with or without University Grants Commision (UGC) approval.

CollegesColleges fall into four categories:

• University Colleges – university-owned, usually on the same campus

• Government Colleges – managed by state governments and affiliated to a university

• Professional Colleges – mostly medicine, engineering and management, sponsored by either

the government or by private initiative

• Privately Managed Colleges – governed by their affiliate university, these account for about 70

per cent of colleges; some are state government-funded.

7

Student exchanges

There is great enthusiasm in Indian HEIs for student exchange partnerships.There is strong demand for opportunitiesto internationalise the student populationand some of the visited institutions werealso very keen to recruit some studentsfrom overseas. Student exchangeagreements have been proactivelypromoted and supported by the UniversityGrants Commission (UGC). v

The differential in living costs means it is very important to manage students’expectations regarding exchange. Indianstudents are used to sharing rooms,paying around 3,000 Rs (£40) per monthand 100 Rs (£1.30) per meal in thecampus canteen. Even when fees aremutually waived, it is unlikely many Indianstudents could afford the living costs inthe UK. Agreements which seek toaddress this cost differential by equatingone Indian exchange student to a larger

6

Collaboration initiatives

The UK government has been verysupportive of educational links betweenthe British and Indian HE sectors and in2006 the former British Prime MinisterTony Blair launched the UK India Educationand Research Initiative (UKIERI).i TheInitiative committed £23 million, which has been fully allocated, to supportpartnerships between UK and India, with additional cash from the IndianGovernment and “corporate champions”BAE Systems, GlaxoSmithKline and Shell.UKIERI has encouraged teachingpartnerships, research cooperation andstudent mobility programmes.

Other significant initiatives are:

Afro Asian Higher Education Agencyfor Developmentii

Promotion of Indian HigherEducation Abroadiii

number of UK exchange students areoften stymied by lack of demand from UK students. Why are our students oftenso reluctant to travel abroad?

Not surprisingly, very few of the Indianinstitutions we visited had a studentexchange agreement with the UK.However, we saw some impressiveprogrammes in place with other countries:HR College exchanges students with aCanadian partner; the Indian Instituteof Technology (IIT) in Mumbai hasagreements with USA, Switzerland,Germany, France, Singapore and Japanand they are trying to set up some withthe UK. An impressive student exchangeprogramme is in place at the IndianInstitute of Management (IIM)Bangalore, with 70 exchange studentshosted every academic year supported by its international office. IIM Bangaloreprides itself on its c100 exchange partnersto which they send about 40% of theirstudents, a fact that will greatly contributeto their EQUIS accreditation.

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University(TNAU) operates a global studentexchange programme with Canada, USA, Singapore, Israel, South Africa,Mexico, Japan and the UK- represented by the University of Reading. TNAU offers an exciting opportunity to theincoming students to carry out a ruralagricultural research project in a localvillage. The expertise and experiencegained through such exchange isacademically truly invaluable.

Partnerships between British and Indian institutions have been flourishing for a number of decadesresulting in success stories but also some unfortunate failures. The regulatory HE environment in Indiahas gradually become protective, complex and restrictive as a result of negative experiences withoverseas institutions that were perceived as pursuing financial rather than educational benefits.

Currently, Indian HE institutions that are publically funded do not have much freedom to develop theirown curricula, preventing them from entering into partner agreements with foreign institutions andfrom venturing into new subject areas. Some institutions have been able to create joint degrees butthese are still rather rare and not always recognised by the regulatory authorities.

Study India ProgrammeAffiliated colleges are not permitted to set up partnerships with overseas institutions

leading to degree awards; however such colleges are imaginative and enthusiastic

when it comes to more informal collaboration such as student and staff exchange.

The principal at HR College Ms Shamira was a strong advocate of the Study India

Programmeiv that encourages mobility to India rather than out of the country.

This UKIERI funded programme is delivered jointly by the University of Birmingham

and King’s College London in partnership with the University of Delhi and HR

College of Commerce and Economics (an affiliated college of the University of

Mumbai). It encourages students from the UK to visit India for three weeks to gain

experience of Indian culture, way of life, people, arts, politics, economy and

language which may open up opportunities for further study in India. In summer

2009, 200 participants from across the UK took part in the programme.

TNAU. Agricultural universities pay an important role in the Indian economy

Partnerships betweenIndian and UK HE institutions

Mumbai slum - poverty is endemic in India and even forthe better off travel overseas is often out of the question

i http://www.ukieri.orgii http://www.aheadonline.org/iii http://www.ugc.ac.in/new_initiatives/promothe.html

iv http://www.studyindia.org.uk/v http://www.ugc.ac.in/more/cultural_exchange.html

7

Student exchanges

There is great enthusiasm in Indian HEIs for student exchange partnerships.There is strong demand for opportunitiesto internationalise the student populationand some of the visited institutions werealso very keen to recruit some studentsfrom overseas. Student exchangeagreements have been proactivelypromoted and supported by the UniversityGrants Commission (UGC). v

The differential in living costs means it is very important to manage students’expectations regarding exchange. Indianstudents are used to sharing rooms,paying around 3,000 Rs (£40) per monthand 100 Rs (£1.30) per meal in thecampus canteen. Even when fees aremutually waived, it is unlikely many Indianstudents could afford the living costs inthe UK. Agreements which seek toaddress this cost differential by equatingone Indian exchange student to a larger

6

Collaboration initiatives

The UK government has been verysupportive of educational links betweenthe British and Indian HE sectors and in2006 the former British Prime MinisterTony Blair launched the UK India Educationand Research Initiative (UKIERI).i TheInitiative committed £23 million, which has been fully allocated, to supportpartnerships between UK and India, with additional cash from the IndianGovernment and “corporate champions”BAE Systems, GlaxoSmithKline and Shell.UKIERI has encouraged teachingpartnerships, research cooperation andstudent mobility programmes.

Other significant initiatives are:

Afro Asian Higher Education Agencyfor Developmentii

Promotion of Indian HigherEducation Abroadiii

number of UK exchange students areoften stymied by lack of demand from UK students. Why are our students oftenso reluctant to travel abroad?

Not surprisingly, very few of the Indianinstitutions we visited had a studentexchange agreement with the UK.However, we saw some impressiveprogrammes in place with other countries:HR College exchanges students with aCanadian partner; the Indian Instituteof Technology (IIT) in Mumbai hasagreements with USA, Switzerland,Germany, France, Singapore and Japanand they are trying to set up some withthe UK. An impressive student exchangeprogramme is in place at the IndianInstitute of Management (IIM)Bangalore, with 70 exchange studentshosted every academic year supported by its international office. IIM Bangaloreprides itself on its c100 exchange partnersto which they send about 40% of theirstudents, a fact that will greatly contributeto their EQUIS accreditation.

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University(TNAU) operates a global studentexchange programme with Canada, USA, Singapore, Israel, South Africa,Mexico, Japan and the UK- represented by the University of Reading. TNAU offers an exciting opportunity to theincoming students to carry out a ruralagricultural research project in a localvillage. The expertise and experiencegained through such exchange isacademically truly invaluable.

Partnerships between British and Indian institutions have been flourishing for a number of decadesresulting in success stories but also some unfortunate failures. The regulatory HE environment in Indiahas gradually become protective, complex and restrictive as a result of negative experiences withoverseas institutions that were perceived as pursuing financial rather than educational benefits.

Currently, Indian HE institutions that are publically funded do not have much freedom to develop theirown curricula, preventing them from entering into partner agreements with foreign institutions andfrom venturing into new subject areas. Some institutions have been able to create joint degrees butthese are still rather rare and not always recognised by the regulatory authorities.

Study India ProgrammeAffiliated colleges are not permitted to set up partnerships with overseas institutions

leading to degree awards; however such colleges are imaginative and enthusiastic

when it comes to more informal collaboration such as student and staff exchange.

The principal at HR College Ms Shamira was a strong advocate of the Study India

Programmeiv that encourages mobility to India rather than out of the country.

This UKIERI funded programme is delivered jointly by the University of Birmingham

and King’s College London in partnership with the University of Delhi and HR

College of Commerce and Economics (an affiliated college of the University of

Mumbai). It encourages students from the UK to visit India for three weeks to gain

experience of Indian culture, way of life, people, arts, politics, economy and

language which may open up opportunities for further study in India. In summer

2009, 200 participants from across the UK took part in the programme.

TNAU. Agricultural universities pay an important role in the Indian economy

Partnerships betweenIndian and UK HE institutions

Mumbai slum - poverty is endemic in India and even forthe better off travel overseas is often out of the question

i http://www.ukieri.orgii http://www.aheadonline.org/iii http://www.ugc.ac.in/new_initiatives/promothe.html

iv http://www.studyindia.org.uk/v http://www.ugc.ac.in/more/cultural_exchange.html

A small class at Fergusson College

Masters students undertaking lab projects at Fergusson College, Pune

98

Partnerships between Indian and UK HE institutions

and three in Canada. The University of Nova Scotia offers a very appealingincentive, by arranging a work permit for the Indian students.

We observed a clear trend towards in-country delivery or significantscholarship support offered by anoverseas partner. Exceptional cases thatwe encountered were two consortiumprogrammes co-delivered by theprestigious IIM, Bangalore. Theseprogrammes are charged at a premiumand have been running for a number ofyears. Students come from all over theworld and they rotate within the

consortium spending time in India, UK,Canada, France, Japan and Korea whereeach partner delivers a proportion of theprogramme. The International MastersProgramme in Practicing Management istargeted at experienced and maturemanagers and is co-delivered with aBritish partner, Lancaster UniversityManagement School. The secondprogramme, the Advanced MastersProgramme in Management of GlobalEnterprises, is co-delivered with partnersfrom Italy, USA and Hong Kong. ThisMasters programme is charged at€20,000, a very different fee model fromthose described above.

There are a number of dual degrees setup in India that have never been officiallyaccredited. However, when we asked amajor Indian employer, Infosys, if theywould consider a candidate whograduated from a dual unaccrediteddegree, they said that they would give thecandidate a chance. For employers, anyexperience abroad indicates a morerounded graduate with improvedcommunication skills.

Fergusson College, a highly regardedaffiliated college of the University of Pune,was keen to pursue a one year dualMasters degree in Economics. A favouredoption was for validation by a UK partnerwith delivery in Pune, leading to a singleaward by a UK institution. The reason forthis preference was communicated veryclearly: local fees and local living costs.Even though dual degrees are veryattractive, the cost for the students is stillvery high when they have to spend sometime at the UK partner institution.

We learned about an unusual model of a1+1 masters degree delivered fully inIndia at Amrita University. Amrita is aprivate university, run by a charitablefoundation and has very good links withthe USA. Its Department of Indo-USUniversity Initiatives provides an umbrellafor all partnerships with the USix and islead by Mr P Manoj who came to Indiafrom Singapore with an impressiveinternational background. The programmeis delivered 50-50 with the StateUniversity of New York, initially for HPemployees in India. The US academicstravel to India and deliver their lecturesthrough EduSat, an educational satellitedevice that connects Amrita’s campuses.

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU)has used its research links with Canada asa basis for the development of doubledegrees at both undergraduate andpostgraduate levels. Students benefit froma 30-50% fee discount over studying inCanada as well as a shortened periodaboard. Masters degree students spendthree semesters in Coimbatore, India andtwo semesters at Cornell University, USA.The undergraduate collaboration is withUniversity of Nova Scotia in Canada withstudents spending six semesters in India

vi http://www.monash.edu.au/news/newsline/story/786vii http://www.dst.gov.in/viii http://www.mu.ac.in/science/cs/DC.pdfix http://www.amrita.edu/indo-us/partners-more.html

Staff exchange

Indian universities clearly value academicfaculty exchange. This mostly happens onan ad hoc basis linked to specific researchareas and personal relationships of theacademic staff, however there was alsointerest in more structured and multi-tiercollaborations which encompass teachingpartnerships as well as research.

One of the key subject areas for MumbaiUniversity (MU) is foreign languages(comprising about 90 languages). As aresult of the need for native-speakinglecturers, MU has set up a ResidenceProgramme for overseas faculty withfinancial support from local embassies andthe UGC. The overseas faculty receiverent-free accommodation and teach inMumbai from three to six months. The MU faculty reciprocate with visits to thepartner institutions.

Staff exchange does not only implyacademic staff. Senior staff at IIM,Bangalore were very interested inexcellence in university administration andin staff exchange. There is scope for aninternational CPD and staff exchangeprogramme and the AUA is interested inexploring this idea further. Such exchangewould benefit both Indian and UKuniversities and could have many spin offbenefits that contribute to institutions’internationalisation strategies.

Research partnerships

Research partnerships and staff exchangearrangements remain the most popularand developed type of partnershiparrangement. However, apart from theUKIERI scheme, there has not been anystructured approach to researchpartnerships. Most of the institutions wevisited mentioned ad hoc researchpartnerships, including some verysuccessful ones. For example IIT Mumbaihas secured approximately $30 millionfrom Monash University, BHP, theAustralian Government and theGovernment Department of Science andTechnology in India. This funding will beused over a period of 5 years to carry outjoint research and to set up a joint PhDprogramme. vi

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University(TNAU) has an impressive range ofapplied research centres benefiting fromresearch funding allocated by the IndianGovernment and also from the EU. Weexperienced the climate change centre,biodiesel production, sustainable riceproduction, even wine making. The BritishMeteorological Office is involved in aclimate change research project whichmodels the impact of climate predictionson local agriculture. Most researchpartnerships are with the US and they arevery keen to explore more opportunitieswith the British HE sector.

A significant amount of the researchcarried out at TNAU is commercialisedand/or directly relevant to Indianagriculture, to the extent that academicseven interact with individual growers.

Research partnerships are a pathwaytowards academic capacity building for theIndian HE sector and a wider stimulus tojoint PhD partnerships. The IndianGovernmentvii is supporting joint researchprojects and funding is available wherethere is an enthusiastic UK research partner.

Teaching partnerships

Apart from UKIERI funded projectsteaching partnerships are quite rare due tothe complex regulatory environment inIndia. Such partnerships usually requireaccreditation from the All India Council forTechnical Education (AICTE), or fromanother regulatory body if the partnershiphas been agreed with a public institution.Where there is a strong case and cleardemand, it is possible to gain approval forjoint degree programme delivery leading toa dual award, as in the case of Universitiesof Mumbai and Westminster (Box). Privateinstitutions are more flexible and we sawsome very interesting examples of thesedouble degrees, with joint delivery and twodegree awards, at both undergraduate andpostgraduate level.

Meeting Industry Needs Through Collaboration A unique one year Masters of Science (MSc) in Digital Compositing and Visual Effectshas been developed by the University of Mumbai for joint delivery with the Universityof Westminster.viii Why unique? The programme was developed as a result of thebooming Bollywood industry in Mumbai and the need for specialists who could followa variety of careers within film, television, animation, advertising and gaming.Traditionally MSc provision in India is delivered via two year programmes, butincreasingly one year Masters degrees and collaborative programmes delivered inIndia are being developed to minimise the costs for the students. In this case sixmonths are delivered by the Indian partner and six months at the University ofWestminster’s Harrow campus.

Key considerations

Indian HE institutions are very keen to develop a wide range of partnership with

the UK HE sector but in some cases the regulatory environment does not support

such proposals – Be flexible and open-minded

The recommended strategy is to start with informal cooperation and mutual visits –

Be patient

British HE institutions are advised to have clear aims and objectives of what they

want to achieve and make this a long-term development – Be thorough

British HEIs will struggle to understand all aspects of the regulatory environment

in India and British institutions will have to rely on their partner’s advice and on

other sources e.g. the British Council - Do your research

A small class at Fergusson College

Masters students undertaking lab projects at Fergusson College, Pune

98

Partnerships between Indian and UK HE institutions

and three in Canada. The University of Nova Scotia offers a very appealingincentive, by arranging a work permit for the Indian students.

We observed a clear trend towards in-country delivery or significantscholarship support offered by anoverseas partner. Exceptional cases thatwe encountered were two consortiumprogrammes co-delivered by theprestigious IIM, Bangalore. Theseprogrammes are charged at a premiumand have been running for a number ofyears. Students come from all over theworld and they rotate within the

consortium spending time in India, UK,Canada, France, Japan and Korea whereeach partner delivers a proportion of theprogramme. The International MastersProgramme in Practicing Management istargeted at experienced and maturemanagers and is co-delivered with aBritish partner, Lancaster UniversityManagement School. The secondprogramme, the Advanced MastersProgramme in Management of GlobalEnterprises, is co-delivered with partnersfrom Italy, USA and Hong Kong. ThisMasters programme is charged at€20,000, a very different fee model fromthose described above.

There are a number of dual degrees setup in India that have never been officiallyaccredited. However, when we asked amajor Indian employer, Infosys, if theywould consider a candidate whograduated from a dual unaccrediteddegree, they said that they would give thecandidate a chance. For employers, anyexperience abroad indicates a morerounded graduate with improvedcommunication skills.

Fergusson College, a highly regardedaffiliated college of the University of Pune,was keen to pursue a one year dualMasters degree in Economics. A favouredoption was for validation by a UK partnerwith delivery in Pune, leading to a singleaward by a UK institution. The reason forthis preference was communicated veryclearly: local fees and local living costs.Even though dual degrees are veryattractive, the cost for the students is stillvery high when they have to spend sometime at the UK partner institution.

We learned about an unusual model of a1+1 masters degree delivered fully inIndia at Amrita University. Amrita is aprivate university, run by a charitablefoundation and has very good links withthe USA. Its Department of Indo-USUniversity Initiatives provides an umbrellafor all partnerships with the USix and islead by Mr P Manoj who came to Indiafrom Singapore with an impressiveinternational background. The programmeis delivered 50-50 with the StateUniversity of New York, initially for HPemployees in India. The US academicstravel to India and deliver their lecturesthrough EduSat, an educational satellitedevice that connects Amrita’s campuses.

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU)has used its research links with Canada asa basis for the development of doubledegrees at both undergraduate andpostgraduate levels. Students benefit froma 30-50% fee discount over studying inCanada as well as a shortened periodaboard. Masters degree students spendthree semesters in Coimbatore, India andtwo semesters at Cornell University, USA.The undergraduate collaboration is withUniversity of Nova Scotia in Canada withstudents spending six semesters in India

vi http://www.monash.edu.au/news/newsline/story/786vii http://www.dst.gov.in/viii http://www.mu.ac.in/science/cs/DC.pdfix http://www.amrita.edu/indo-us/partners-more.html

Staff exchange

Indian universities clearly value academicfaculty exchange. This mostly happens onan ad hoc basis linked to specific researchareas and personal relationships of theacademic staff, however there was alsointerest in more structured and multi-tiercollaborations which encompass teachingpartnerships as well as research.

One of the key subject areas for MumbaiUniversity (MU) is foreign languages(comprising about 90 languages). As aresult of the need for native-speakinglecturers, MU has set up a ResidenceProgramme for overseas faculty withfinancial support from local embassies andthe UGC. The overseas faculty receiverent-free accommodation and teach inMumbai from three to six months. The MU faculty reciprocate with visits to thepartner institutions.

Staff exchange does not only implyacademic staff. Senior staff at IIM,Bangalore were very interested inexcellence in university administration andin staff exchange. There is scope for aninternational CPD and staff exchangeprogramme and the AUA is interested inexploring this idea further. Such exchangewould benefit both Indian and UKuniversities and could have many spin offbenefits that contribute to institutions’internationalisation strategies.

Research partnerships

Research partnerships and staff exchangearrangements remain the most popularand developed type of partnershiparrangement. However, apart from theUKIERI scheme, there has not been anystructured approach to researchpartnerships. Most of the institutions wevisited mentioned ad hoc researchpartnerships, including some verysuccessful ones. For example IIT Mumbaihas secured approximately $30 millionfrom Monash University, BHP, theAustralian Government and theGovernment Department of Science andTechnology in India. This funding will beused over a period of 5 years to carry outjoint research and to set up a joint PhDprogramme. vi

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University(TNAU) has an impressive range ofapplied research centres benefiting fromresearch funding allocated by the IndianGovernment and also from the EU. Weexperienced the climate change centre,biodiesel production, sustainable riceproduction, even wine making. The BritishMeteorological Office is involved in aclimate change research project whichmodels the impact of climate predictionson local agriculture. Most researchpartnerships are with the US and they arevery keen to explore more opportunitieswith the British HE sector.

A significant amount of the researchcarried out at TNAU is commercialisedand/or directly relevant to Indianagriculture, to the extent that academicseven interact with individual growers.

Research partnerships are a pathwaytowards academic capacity building for theIndian HE sector and a wider stimulus tojoint PhD partnerships. The IndianGovernmentvii is supporting joint researchprojects and funding is available wherethere is an enthusiastic UK research partner.

Teaching partnerships

Apart from UKIERI funded projectsteaching partnerships are quite rare due tothe complex regulatory environment inIndia. Such partnerships usually requireaccreditation from the All India Council forTechnical Education (AICTE), or fromanother regulatory body if the partnershiphas been agreed with a public institution.Where there is a strong case and cleardemand, it is possible to gain approval forjoint degree programme delivery leading toa dual award, as in the case of Universitiesof Mumbai and Westminster (Box). Privateinstitutions are more flexible and we sawsome very interesting examples of thesedouble degrees, with joint delivery and twodegree awards, at both undergraduate andpostgraduate level.

Meeting Industry Needs Through Collaboration A unique one year Masters of Science (MSc) in Digital Compositing and Visual Effectshas been developed by the University of Mumbai for joint delivery with the Universityof Westminster.viii Why unique? The programme was developed as a result of thebooming Bollywood industry in Mumbai and the need for specialists who could followa variety of careers within film, television, animation, advertising and gaming.Traditionally MSc provision in India is delivered via two year programmes, butincreasingly one year Masters degrees and collaborative programmes delivered inIndia are being developed to minimise the costs for the students. In this case sixmonths are delivered by the Indian partner and six months at the University ofWestminster’s Harrow campus.

Key considerations

Indian HE institutions are very keen to develop a wide range of partnership with

the UK HE sector but in some cases the regulatory environment does not support

such proposals – Be flexible and open-minded

The recommended strategy is to start with informal cooperation and mutual visits –

Be patient

British HE institutions are advised to have clear aims and objectives of what they

want to achieve and make this a long-term development – Be thorough

British HEIs will struggle to understand all aspects of the regulatory environment

in India and British institutions will have to rely on their partner’s advice and on

other sources e.g. the British Council - Do your research

1110

Student Experience andWidening Participation

Access and outreach

Reservation quotas

India is a vast country with a rapidlygrowing economy where currently only10% of potential students enter highereducation. There is a longstandingconcern regarding access to educationfrom under-privileged groups, especiallyrural populations and people belonging tothe perceived “lower” castes. In India acertain number of places at eachuniversity are allocated to students fromspecific backgrounds. These reservations,referred to as an institution’s reservedquota ensure that places are available tostudents from the various ScheduledCastes/Tribes and Other Minorities. Whenwe visited the quota had recently beenraised by the Federal Government from24% of places to 49%. HEIs are expectedto fill nearly half of their places withstudents from these groups and are notpermitted to fill them with students fromother backgrounds, even if they struggleto recruit from these categories.

In spite of, or perhaps because of, thestrong political and financial pressure tobroaden access, we did not observe muchactivity by HEIs to encourage applicationsfrom students from under-representedbackgrounds, as we do in the UK in orderto widen participation. There isconsiderably less emphasis than in the UKon outreach programmes, schools liaisonactivities or other widening participationinitiatives. Instead many universities, andthe elite in particular, rely on the fact thatthey are heavily oversubscribed and receivea sufficient number of applications to filltheir reservation quotas. It is clear that the more prestigious institutions have alimited approach to outreach, but highdemand and the quota system still ensuresbroad access.

Outreach

Some institutions recruit from a more localcatchment and visit schools and developlinks with the community as part of theirwider mission. We visited FergussonCollege, an affiliated college of theUniversity of Pune, which was established125 years ago by the Deccan EducationalSociety with the purpose of “cheapeningand facilitating education”. It has had animportant role to play in generating theleadership capacity needed for theindustrial regeneration of the newly self-governing nation and has educated twoIndian Prime Ministers. The Society is apowerful philanthropic force in WesternMaharashtra supporting a network ofschools, colleges, technical institutes andautonomous institutes in the field ofmanagement, law, agricultural educationand vocational training, using knowledgeas a “potent instrument for nationalregeneration”.

Tuition fees

Fees at most HEIs are low compared tothe UK, and it is this low fee regime thatmakes HE accessible to many Indians. For example Mumbai University chargesjust 800 ruppes per annum for itsundergraduate programmes (about £10).This sum sounds low and representsabout one eighths of a month’s salary butmight well be a significantly higherpercentage of an Indian family’sdisposable income. The more eliteinstitutions such as the IndianInstitutes of Technology (IIT)Bombay and the Indian Institute ofManagement (IIM) Bangalore can anddo charge more. For example, theexecutive programme at IIM Bangalore isRs 525,000 for the first year (£7000) andRs 575,000 for the second year. At stateuniversities, such as the University ofMumbai, fees for reserved categorystudents are claimed from theGovernment. General category studentsfrom households with low income levelscan apply for funding from the SpecialAssistance Programme run by the UGC.

Admissions criteria and tests

India operates a system of mass testingfor university entrance, although someuniversities will admit on the basis of highschool exam grades.

Institutions such as the IITs and IIMs admitstudents through a specific admissions testwhich is taken simultaneously at variouscentres across India. The ratio ofapplications to places for elite institutions is high; for example, across the seven IITsin India 400,000 applications are receivedfor just 4,500 places. Similarly at the IIMBangalore just 1% of applicants areaccepted. The IITs use what is known asthe JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) and the IIMsthe CAT (Common Admissions Test). Theseadmissions tests are just the first step inthe process with successful students beinginvited to interview, and a final decisionmade based also on high school marks andrelevant experience. At both the IITs andIIMs the tests are set in a similar way withall institutions contributing questions to thenationwide paper.

Institutions are alert to the pressure on students to do well in these exams and the amount of ‘coaching’ that goes on,whereby students pay third parties to assistthem in preparing for the tests based onprevious question papers. As a result, theemphasis of the papers has shifted inrecent years in favour of testing a student’sreasoning and analytic skills rather thanspecifically their subject knowledge.

For reservation quota students theentrance requirements are lower than the standards expected for generalcategory students. We found thissurprising, but it is generally accepted in the Indian HE sector. Students admittedthrough the reservation system oftenstruggle with higher level study and alarge proportion of them are thereforegiven extra time in which to completetheir degree; in one example from the HRCollege of Commerce and Economics,reservation students are given up to 7years to complete what would ordinarilybe a 4 year Bachelor degree.

Striking architecture at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore

Library catalogue University of Mumbai

1110

Student Experience andWidening Participation

Access and outreach

Reservation quotas

India is a vast country with a rapidlygrowing economy where currently only10% of potential students enter highereducation. There is a longstandingconcern regarding access to educationfrom under-privileged groups, especiallyrural populations and people belonging tothe perceived “lower” castes. In India acertain number of places at eachuniversity are allocated to students fromspecific backgrounds. These reservations,referred to as an institution’s reservedquota ensure that places are available tostudents from the various ScheduledCastes/Tribes and Other Minorities. Whenwe visited the quota had recently beenraised by the Federal Government from24% of places to 49%. HEIs are expectedto fill nearly half of their places withstudents from these groups and are notpermitted to fill them with students fromother backgrounds, even if they struggleto recruit from these categories.

In spite of, or perhaps because of, thestrong political and financial pressure tobroaden access, we did not observe muchactivity by HEIs to encourage applicationsfrom students from under-representedbackgrounds, as we do in the UK in orderto widen participation. There isconsiderably less emphasis than in the UKon outreach programmes, schools liaisonactivities or other widening participationinitiatives. Instead many universities, andthe elite in particular, rely on the fact thatthey are heavily oversubscribed and receivea sufficient number of applications to filltheir reservation quotas. It is clear that the more prestigious institutions have alimited approach to outreach, but highdemand and the quota system still ensuresbroad access.

Outreach

Some institutions recruit from a more localcatchment and visit schools and developlinks with the community as part of theirwider mission. We visited FergussonCollege, an affiliated college of theUniversity of Pune, which was established125 years ago by the Deccan EducationalSociety with the purpose of “cheapeningand facilitating education”. It has had animportant role to play in generating theleadership capacity needed for theindustrial regeneration of the newly self-governing nation and has educated twoIndian Prime Ministers. The Society is apowerful philanthropic force in WesternMaharashtra supporting a network ofschools, colleges, technical institutes andautonomous institutes in the field ofmanagement, law, agricultural educationand vocational training, using knowledgeas a “potent instrument for nationalregeneration”.

Tuition fees

Fees at most HEIs are low compared tothe UK, and it is this low fee regime thatmakes HE accessible to many Indians. For example Mumbai University chargesjust 800 ruppes per annum for itsundergraduate programmes (about £10).This sum sounds low and representsabout one eighths of a month’s salary butmight well be a significantly higherpercentage of an Indian family’sdisposable income. The more eliteinstitutions such as the IndianInstitutes of Technology (IIT)Bombay and the Indian Institute ofManagement (IIM) Bangalore can anddo charge more. For example, theexecutive programme at IIM Bangalore isRs 525,000 for the first year (£7000) andRs 575,000 for the second year. At stateuniversities, such as the University ofMumbai, fees for reserved categorystudents are claimed from theGovernment. General category studentsfrom households with low income levelscan apply for funding from the SpecialAssistance Programme run by the UGC.

Admissions criteria and tests

India operates a system of mass testingfor university entrance, although someuniversities will admit on the basis of highschool exam grades.

Institutions such as the IITs and IIMs admitstudents through a specific admissions testwhich is taken simultaneously at variouscentres across India. The ratio ofapplications to places for elite institutions is high; for example, across the seven IITsin India 400,000 applications are receivedfor just 4,500 places. Similarly at the IIMBangalore just 1% of applicants areaccepted. The IITs use what is known asthe JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) and the IIMsthe CAT (Common Admissions Test). Theseadmissions tests are just the first step inthe process with successful students beinginvited to interview, and a final decisionmade based also on high school marks andrelevant experience. At both the IITs andIIMs the tests are set in a similar way withall institutions contributing questions to thenationwide paper.

Institutions are alert to the pressure on students to do well in these exams and the amount of ‘coaching’ that goes on,whereby students pay third parties to assistthem in preparing for the tests based onprevious question papers. As a result, theemphasis of the papers has shifted inrecent years in favour of testing a student’sreasoning and analytic skills rather thanspecifically their subject knowledge.

For reservation quota students theentrance requirements are lower than the standards expected for generalcategory students. We found thissurprising, but it is generally accepted in the Indian HE sector. Students admittedthrough the reservation system oftenstruggle with higher level study and alarge proportion of them are thereforegiven extra time in which to completetheir degree; in one example from the HRCollege of Commerce and Economics,reservation students are given up to 7years to complete what would ordinarilybe a 4 year Bachelor degree.

Striking architecture at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore

Library catalogue University of Mumbai

12

Contact hours

The amount of contact time can beintense. For example at the IIM Bangalorestudents have classes Monday to Saturdayfor at least 6 hours a day. Attendance ismonitored closely, with students beingallocated a specific seat in each class andno students being admitted to the classonce the session has begun. We observedthe familiar mixture of large lecture classesand smaller practical and seminar sessions.

Government-funded universities andcolleges have to operate with compulsoryquotas which determine class sizes – for HR College, which is a teachinginstitution affiliated to the University ofPune, this means classes of 125. A typicalteaching load in a teaching-only college is17 hours per week.

Open and Distanceeducation

We saw an impressive example of openand distance learning at MumbaiUniversity where they recruit a large andgrowing number of students, with 75,000students registered in 2009, up from69,000 in 2008, studying at 60 centresacross the state of Maharashtra. Theprogrammes are seen as a way ofreaching rural areas. The curricula forthese programmes are exactly the samefor students in attendance at theUniversity; however, the amount ofcontact time required is higher thanexpected from a UK perspective especiallyat the beginning of the programme when,for the first three months, students attendlectures as part of what is called thePersonal Contact Programme. After thistime students have access to an academiccounselling service if they require any

further assistance. There is no admissiontest for the Mumbai distance learningprogrammes, just a minimum high schoolmark and only nominal fees are chargedto students.

Further examples of open and distancelearning include the Centre for DistanceEngineering Programme (C-DEEP) at theIIT Bombay and the Directorate of Openand Distance Learning at the Tamil NaduAgricultural University (TNAU). Someinstitutions have also developed blendedlearning, for example at TNAU where inaddition to lectures and hard copymaterials all students are expected tohave a laptop so that they can access anopen source website with over 800 hoursof streamed lectures. Amrita Universitydelivers a distance learning programmeonline across its campuses using itsEduSat system.

Student Experience and Widening Participation

Students Fergusson College, Pune where there was considerable interest in student and faculty exchange 13

Curriculum development

The curricula for affiliated colleges such as the HR College of Commerce andEconomics and Ferguson College are setby the main university (in these cases theUniversities of Mumbai and Punerespectively). However, both colleges wereseeking autonomy at the time of our visit,to enable them to propose and developtheir own degree programmes.

At the University of Mumbai each Facultyhas a Board of Studies which overseescurriculum development. As well asacademic staff this Board has at least twomembers from industry to ensure thecurriculum is relevant. At the Tamil NaduAgricultural University the syllabus isrevised every 4 years to ensure it keepsup with developments in industry.

Assessment and QualityAssurance

At the sector level oversight of quality of provision and of quality assuranceprocedures is maintained by the NationalAssessment and Accreditation Council(NAAC). Affiliate Colleges such as the HR College of Commerce and Economicsare inspected every five years. Theseinspections involve member of the NAACspending 3-4 days at the college, meeting staff, students, visiting any classthey choose and conducting a generalaudit of record keeping to verify studentnumbers etc.

At the HR College of Commerce andEconomics examples of assessmentinclude group presentations as well asessays, written exams and a researchelement in the final year, thus followingthe UK trend for a range of assessment.The external examiner system is modelledon the UK and work is assessed byinternal markers with an externalexaminer appointed to review a selectionof work. Assessment at federal universitiesis managed centrally and marking andhandling the volume of scripts presents a huge logistical task.

At all the institutions we visitedexpectations with regards to referencingare similar to the UK. Additionally, incommon with the UK plagiarism isconsidered an assessment offence andinstitutions use plagiarism detectionsoftware such as Turnitin or an equivalent.

Learning resources

The institutions we visited all have libraryfacilities and provide access to some formof electronic resources. The best exampleof online access we saw was the IndianNational Digital Library for EngineeringSciences and Technology, whereby accessto a range of electronic journals for anumber of institutions such as the IITsand IIMs is paid for centrally by theMinistry for Human Resources.

Student representation

Each of the institutions collects students’feedback in one form or another and hasstudent representative bodies, such as astudent council and student elections. IIMBangalore has a student website to whichissues or problems of any kind can beposted, then fed into the main institutionwebsite making senior managementaware of any problems. At the Universityof Mumbai a Student Council, chaired bythe Chancellor and organised by theDepartment of Student Welfare, hasaround 15 members from different castes,tribes and groups plus class and collegerepresentatives. The Student Council hasa General Secretary who sits on severalboards and committees, including Senate,to represent the views of students. Care isneeded to avoid academic issues beinginfluenced by political affiliations – this isparticularly important in State Universitieswhere the boundary with state politics canbe rather slim.

Teaching staff are required to take arefresher course every 10-15 years inorder to maintain their skills as a lecturerand to qualify for pay increments. Thecourse is completed in the lecturers’ owntime and lasts about 15-20 days, at theend of which they are assessed primarilythrough a 100 page research project andnot peer observation.

Mumbai University (MU) has two

campuses in Mumbai, a sub-centre at

Ratnagiri (325km to the south) and 637

affiliated colleges, and through this network is

able to reach out to most parts of the state.

As a State University it has an obligation to

provide high volume, low cost and consistent

quality over a wide geographical area,

reaching all parts of society. It has an

astonishing 650,000 students, with a further

75,000 studying via distance learning. The

central hub in Mumbai oversees entrance

criteria and prescribes all curricula to ensure

consistency.

The University has a special assistance

scheme for Chemistry students to help with

the purchase of equipment.Juhu beach, Mumbai

12

Contact hours

The amount of contact time can beintense. For example at the IIM Bangalorestudents have classes Monday to Saturdayfor at least 6 hours a day. Attendance ismonitored closely, with students beingallocated a specific seat in each class andno students being admitted to the classonce the session has begun. We observedthe familiar mixture of large lecture classesand smaller practical and seminar sessions.

Government-funded universities andcolleges have to operate with compulsoryquotas which determine class sizes – for HR College, which is a teachinginstitution affiliated to the University ofPune, this means classes of 125. A typicalteaching load in a teaching-only college is17 hours per week.

Open and Distanceeducation

We saw an impressive example of openand distance learning at MumbaiUniversity where they recruit a large andgrowing number of students, with 75,000students registered in 2009, up from69,000 in 2008, studying at 60 centresacross the state of Maharashtra. Theprogrammes are seen as a way ofreaching rural areas. The curricula forthese programmes are exactly the samefor students in attendance at theUniversity; however, the amount ofcontact time required is higher thanexpected from a UK perspective especiallyat the beginning of the programme when,for the first three months, students attendlectures as part of what is called thePersonal Contact Programme. After thistime students have access to an academiccounselling service if they require any

further assistance. There is no admissiontest for the Mumbai distance learningprogrammes, just a minimum high schoolmark and only nominal fees are chargedto students.

Further examples of open and distancelearning include the Centre for DistanceEngineering Programme (C-DEEP) at theIIT Bombay and the Directorate of Openand Distance Learning at the Tamil NaduAgricultural University (TNAU). Someinstitutions have also developed blendedlearning, for example at TNAU where inaddition to lectures and hard copymaterials all students are expected tohave a laptop so that they can access anopen source website with over 800 hoursof streamed lectures. Amrita Universitydelivers a distance learning programmeonline across its campuses using itsEduSat system.

Student Experience and Widening Participation

Students Fergusson College, Pune where there was considerable interest in student and faculty exchange 13

Curriculum development

The curricula for affiliated colleges such as the HR College of Commerce andEconomics and Ferguson College are setby the main university (in these cases theUniversities of Mumbai and Punerespectively). However, both colleges wereseeking autonomy at the time of our visit,to enable them to propose and developtheir own degree programmes.

At the University of Mumbai each Facultyhas a Board of Studies which overseescurriculum development. As well asacademic staff this Board has at least twomembers from industry to ensure thecurriculum is relevant. At the Tamil NaduAgricultural University the syllabus isrevised every 4 years to ensure it keepsup with developments in industry.

Assessment and QualityAssurance

At the sector level oversight of quality of provision and of quality assuranceprocedures is maintained by the NationalAssessment and Accreditation Council(NAAC). Affiliate Colleges such as the HR College of Commerce and Economicsare inspected every five years. Theseinspections involve member of the NAACspending 3-4 days at the college, meeting staff, students, visiting any classthey choose and conducting a generalaudit of record keeping to verify studentnumbers etc.

At the HR College of Commerce andEconomics examples of assessmentinclude group presentations as well asessays, written exams and a researchelement in the final year, thus followingthe UK trend for a range of assessment.The external examiner system is modelledon the UK and work is assessed byinternal markers with an externalexaminer appointed to review a selectionof work. Assessment at federal universitiesis managed centrally and marking andhandling the volume of scripts presents a huge logistical task.

At all the institutions we visitedexpectations with regards to referencingare similar to the UK. Additionally, incommon with the UK plagiarism isconsidered an assessment offence andinstitutions use plagiarism detectionsoftware such as Turnitin or an equivalent.

Learning resources

The institutions we visited all have libraryfacilities and provide access to some formof electronic resources. The best exampleof online access we saw was the IndianNational Digital Library for EngineeringSciences and Technology, whereby accessto a range of electronic journals for anumber of institutions such as the IITsand IIMs is paid for centrally by theMinistry for Human Resources.

Student representation

Each of the institutions collects students’feedback in one form or another and hasstudent representative bodies, such as astudent council and student elections. IIMBangalore has a student website to whichissues or problems of any kind can beposted, then fed into the main institutionwebsite making senior managementaware of any problems. At the Universityof Mumbai a Student Council, chaired bythe Chancellor and organised by theDepartment of Student Welfare, hasaround 15 members from different castes,tribes and groups plus class and collegerepresentatives. The Student Council hasa General Secretary who sits on severalboards and committees, including Senate,to represent the views of students. Care isneeded to avoid academic issues beinginfluenced by political affiliations – this isparticularly important in State Universitieswhere the boundary with state politics canbe rather slim.

Teaching staff are required to take arefresher course every 10-15 years inorder to maintain their skills as a lecturerand to qualify for pay increments. Thecourse is completed in the lecturers’ owntime and lasts about 15-20 days, at theend of which they are assessed primarilythrough a 100 page research project andnot peer observation.

Mumbai University (MU) has two

campuses in Mumbai, a sub-centre at

Ratnagiri (325km to the south) and 637

affiliated colleges, and through this network is

able to reach out to most parts of the state.

As a State University it has an obligation to

provide high volume, low cost and consistent

quality over a wide geographical area,

reaching all parts of society. It has an

astonishing 650,000 students, with a further

75,000 studying via distance learning. The

central hub in Mumbai oversees entrance

criteria and prescribes all curricula to ensure

consistency.

The University has a special assistance

scheme for Chemistry students to help with

the purchase of equipment.Juhu beach, Mumbai

1514

Accommodation

At most of the institutions we visited a large proportion of students wereaccommodated on site. For example atAmrita University up to 80% of studentsstay on campus whilst at IIT Bombaynearly all students live on campus. Onestriking aspect of the Indian system is thata high proportion of teaching staff alsohave accommodation on site and it is notsomething just for the Vice-Chancellor.The student accommodation is ordinarilyreferred to as hostels and each of these hostels tendsto have a students’ representative of somedescription to ensure the any issues arereported. The standard of on campusaccommodation we saw was basic incomparison to what you might find at a western university.

Student activities

With so many students staying oncampus, hostel based extra-curricularactivities are seen as important. The rangeof facilities and the extent to which theactivities were organised by the institutionvaried, but students at each of theuniversities had the opportunity to takepart in sporting and social activities. Thereare also several examples of subjectspecific events such as the Tech Fest atthe IIT Bombay where students manageand contribute to an exhibition-cum-competition exploring the impact oftechnology on society.

We did not see a single student bar duringour tour and it was very striking that on-campus social life does not involve thesort of late night party culture we areused to and, in some cases, activelypromote, in the UK.

Student placements

As you might expect, an institution such asthe IIM Bangalore has a employmentplacement rate of 100%, with studentsplaced with a company before they evengraduate in a week-long event held at theinstitution. However, it is striking that aprivate ‘deemed university’ such as Amritaalso takes the placement of its studentsvery seriously. Preparing students for thework place is integrated into the degreeprogrammes with students taking around250 hours of soft skills training during their2nd, 3rd and 4th years of study. The trainingprogramme covers topics such as groupwork, interview skills, corporate etiquetteand verbal and written communicationskills. Amrita has a Centre for CorporateRelations, a team of people with thespecific remit of maintaining links with over200 companies to ensure that graduatesare able to find work more easily.

Work experience

Institutions have built work experienceschemes into the curriculum to aidemployability. A good example was theRural Agricultural Work ExperienceProgramme (RAWEP) at the Tamil NaduAgricultural University. This programmeforms part of a BTech degree and involvesa full semester of work experiencewhereby students as part of a group aredirectly involved in practical projects inrural areas.

Well tended outdoor spaces at IIMB

Student Experience and Widening Participation

The impressive Infosys "campus" at Electronic City, Bangalore

Inside Infy We were fortunate to visit Infosys, the only Indian companylisted on the US stock exchange and a beacon for India’srapid economic rise. Infosys has an impressive universityliaison programme called Campus Connect, which providescourseware, problem-solving, exposure to software testingand webinars, reaching 40,000 students and staff. Thecompany has representation on educational bodies, workswith technical universities and funds research at IITs. It hires20,000 students per year, mostly straight from placement.

Infy staff voluntarily give up their Saturdays to run Spark, anaspiration-raising programme which gives school childrenexperience of a day at Infosys and helps to set their sights oneducation as a route to a role in a world-class company.

At the end of the programme, the group(6-8 students per placement) must presenttheir findings and include practical solutionsto the problems that they encountered. MUhas a placement centre in each faculty,with close involvement of employers.

Graduate employability

All the institutions we visited take theemployability of their students seriously,and in general universities seem to takegreater responsibility for the placement of students after they graduate than isusual in the UK.

The issue of the standard of graduates,particularly in subjects such asengineering, was raised in the media whenwe visited. Newspapers were reporting astudy by the trade body of India’s ITindustry (NASSCOM) which observed thatengineering graduates were unfit for jobs.We visited one of India’s most successfulcompanies, Infosys, where it was remarkedthat whilst Indian software engineeringgraduates have a general perspective onthe subject, a graduate from say the USwill tend to have more in-depthknowledge. Infosys develops the skills ofits recruits through its own trainingprogramme and has a FoundationProgramme for soft skills and intensesubject-specific training in order to bringgraduates up to the standard needed forthe workplace. Overall, both India and theUK are aware that far more needs to bedone to develop communication skills ingraduates and that, for certain professions,universities are not equipping studentswith sufficient practical knowledge.

Further study

Many students from India find studying inthe UK too expensive, both the tuition feesand the living costs. From our visit, itappeared that for postgraduate studystudents often preferred to go to the US,even though this can be more expensivethan the UK, especially when the longercourse duration is taken into account. The availability of scholarships and tutorrecommendation play a key role. MBAprogrammes are very popular as a route towell-paid employment, with most studentsworking for a few years after graduationbefore further study.

Typical student residences

1514

Accommodation

At most of the institutions we visited a large proportion of students wereaccommodated on site. For example atAmrita University up to 80% of studentsstay on campus whilst at IIT Bombaynearly all students live on campus. Onestriking aspect of the Indian system is thata high proportion of teaching staff alsohave accommodation on site and it is notsomething just for the Vice-Chancellor.The student accommodation is ordinarilyreferred to as hostels and each of these hostels tendsto have a students’ representative of somedescription to ensure the any issues arereported. The standard of on campusaccommodation we saw was basic incomparison to what you might find at a western university.

Student activities

With so many students staying oncampus, hostel based extra-curricularactivities are seen as important. The rangeof facilities and the extent to which theactivities were organised by the institutionvaried, but students at each of theuniversities had the opportunity to takepart in sporting and social activities. Thereare also several examples of subjectspecific events such as the Tech Fest atthe IIT Bombay where students manageand contribute to an exhibition-cum-competition exploring the impact oftechnology on society.

We did not see a single student bar duringour tour and it was very striking that on-campus social life does not involve thesort of late night party culture we areused to and, in some cases, activelypromote, in the UK.

Student placements

As you might expect, an institution such asthe IIM Bangalore has a employmentplacement rate of 100%, with studentsplaced with a company before they evengraduate in a week-long event held at theinstitution. However, it is striking that aprivate ‘deemed university’ such as Amritaalso takes the placement of its studentsvery seriously. Preparing students for thework place is integrated into the degreeprogrammes with students taking around250 hours of soft skills training during their2nd, 3rd and 4th years of study. The trainingprogramme covers topics such as groupwork, interview skills, corporate etiquetteand verbal and written communicationskills. Amrita has a Centre for CorporateRelations, a team of people with thespecific remit of maintaining links with over200 companies to ensure that graduatesare able to find work more easily.

Work experience

Institutions have built work experienceschemes into the curriculum to aidemployability. A good example was theRural Agricultural Work ExperienceProgramme (RAWEP) at the Tamil NaduAgricultural University. This programmeforms part of a BTech degree and involvesa full semester of work experiencewhereby students as part of a group aredirectly involved in practical projects inrural areas.

Well tended outdoor spaces at IIMB

Student Experience and Widening Participation

The impressive Infosys "campus" at Electronic City, Bangalore

Inside Infy We were fortunate to visit Infosys, the only Indian companylisted on the US stock exchange and a beacon for India’srapid economic rise. Infosys has an impressive universityliaison programme called Campus Connect, which providescourseware, problem-solving, exposure to software testingand webinars, reaching 40,000 students and staff. Thecompany has representation on educational bodies, workswith technical universities and funds research at IITs. It hires20,000 students per year, mostly straight from placement.

Infy staff voluntarily give up their Saturdays to run Spark, anaspiration-raising programme which gives school childrenexperience of a day at Infosys and helps to set their sights oneducation as a route to a role in a world-class company.

At the end of the programme, the group(6-8 students per placement) must presenttheir findings and include practical solutionsto the problems that they encountered. MUhas a placement centre in each faculty,with close involvement of employers.

Graduate employability

All the institutions we visited take theemployability of their students seriously,and in general universities seem to takegreater responsibility for the placement of students after they graduate than isusual in the UK.

The issue of the standard of graduates,particularly in subjects such asengineering, was raised in the media whenwe visited. Newspapers were reporting astudy by the trade body of India’s ITindustry (NASSCOM) which observed thatengineering graduates were unfit for jobs.We visited one of India’s most successfulcompanies, Infosys, where it was remarkedthat whilst Indian software engineeringgraduates have a general perspective onthe subject, a graduate from say the USwill tend to have more in-depthknowledge. Infosys develops the skills ofits recruits through its own trainingprogramme and has a FoundationProgramme for soft skills and intensesubject-specific training in order to bringgraduates up to the standard needed forthe workplace. Overall, both India and theUK are aware that far more needs to bedone to develop communication skills ingraduates and that, for certain professions,universities are not equipping studentswith sufficient practical knowledge.

Further study

Many students from India find studying inthe UK too expensive, both the tuition feesand the living costs. From our visit, itappeared that for postgraduate studystudents often preferred to go to the US,even though this can be more expensivethan the UK, especially when the longercourse duration is taken into account. The availability of scholarships and tutorrecommendation play a key role. MBAprogrammes are very popular as a route towell-paid employment, with most studentsworking for a few years after graduationbefore further study.

Typical student residences

1716

Influences and Drivers

The Changing Policy EnvironmentIndia operates a planned economy whichis now in its 11th Plan (each has a fiveyear duration). The Government outlinesits priorities for HE to 2012 within thisoverarching framework, including skillsdevelopment and training, innovation andtechnology, environment and climatechange. It has a national target toincrease the percentage of the populationgoing into HE from 10% to 30% andidentifies Rs 4,800 crore ($1.2bn) for 30new HEIs (1 crore = 10 million). Thistarget underpins the Government’s newdrive to encourage more foreign providersto India. A new education bill is inpassage which seeks to relax theregulatory constraints on Indianuniversities, open up the sector tooverseas providers and establish 14 newworld-class universitiesi. This may includethe granting of deemed university status

for campuses established by overseasproviders.

Observing that higher educationworldwide was in a state of flux, theIndian Minister for Human ResourcesDevelopment, Kapil Sibal, has said “mostof our (Indian) universities need vitalchanges in teaching and in contributing to local, regional and global economies….We must ensure that the universities havethe independence to teach what they wishto and not be controlled by government.”He added that 1 lakh (100,000) studentsfrom India go to the USA every year forfurther studies and such a bill would be a “win-win situation for us”.

The Indian HE sector is huge and diverse,consisting of different types of HEI,including state-run, private and thoseestablished through public-privatepartnerships. It has been argued thatwhat is needed to make all of them work

efficiently and serve national goals is onetransparent and rational regulatorysystem. The need to relax India’sregulatory environment and to giveuniversities more freedom from centraland state government was strongly feltamong the institutions we visited.

At present, there are numerous regulatoryagencies and professional councilsoverseeing HE, including the UniversityGrants Commission (UGC) and the All-India Council for Technical Education(AICTE). The recent Yashpal reportii

recommended one overarching regulatory body subsuming all other bodies: a National Commission for HE andResearch as an advisory body responsiblefor continuous reforms in HE. The newadvisory body would be ‘insulated frompolitical and other external interferences[by] the government of the day’ andwould report to the Indian Parliament.

Centralised exam setting and marking creates a huge administrative load

Gothic architecture at Mumbai University. MU is one of India's oldest

and has well developed research and teaching partnerships

Governance and Managementof Indian HEIs

Mountain scenery, Tamil Nadu

1716

Influences and Drivers

The Changing Policy EnvironmentIndia operates a planned economy whichis now in its 11th Plan (each has a fiveyear duration). The Government outlinesits priorities for HE to 2012 within thisoverarching framework, including skillsdevelopment and training, innovation andtechnology, environment and climatechange. It has a national target toincrease the percentage of the populationgoing into HE from 10% to 30% andidentifies Rs 4,800 crore ($1.2bn) for 30new HEIs (1 crore = 10 million). Thistarget underpins the Government’s newdrive to encourage more foreign providersto India. A new education bill is inpassage which seeks to relax theregulatory constraints on Indianuniversities, open up the sector tooverseas providers and establish 14 newworld-class universitiesi. This may includethe granting of deemed university status

for campuses established by overseasproviders.

Observing that higher educationworldwide was in a state of flux, theIndian Minister for Human ResourcesDevelopment, Kapil Sibal, has said “mostof our (Indian) universities need vitalchanges in teaching and in contributing to local, regional and global economies….We must ensure that the universities havethe independence to teach what they wishto and not be controlled by government.”He added that 1 lakh (100,000) studentsfrom India go to the USA every year forfurther studies and such a bill would be a “win-win situation for us”.

The Indian HE sector is huge and diverse,consisting of different types of HEI,including state-run, private and thoseestablished through public-privatepartnerships. It has been argued thatwhat is needed to make all of them work

efficiently and serve national goals is onetransparent and rational regulatorysystem. The need to relax India’sregulatory environment and to giveuniversities more freedom from centraland state government was strongly feltamong the institutions we visited.

At present, there are numerous regulatoryagencies and professional councilsoverseeing HE, including the UniversityGrants Commission (UGC) and the All-India Council for Technical Education(AICTE). The recent Yashpal reportii

recommended one overarching regulatory body subsuming all other bodies: a National Commission for HE andResearch as an advisory body responsiblefor continuous reforms in HE. The newadvisory body would be ‘insulated frompolitical and other external interferences[by] the government of the day’ andwould report to the Indian Parliament.

Centralised exam setting and marking creates a huge administrative load

Gothic architecture at Mumbai University. MU is one of India's oldest

and has well developed research and teaching partnerships

Governance and Managementof Indian HEIs

Mountain scenery, Tamil Nadu

1918

Governance and Management of Indian HEIs

Autonomy and Funding

At one end of the scale the Indian HE sector includes HEIs such as theUniversity of Mumbai (MU) that arehighly influenced by state and/or centralgovernment and are almost entirelysupported by public funding. MU’s primarysource of funding is the Department ofScience and Technology (DST) whichfunds the University Grants Commission(UGC). As a State University MU is boundby the 1994 State of MaharashtraUniversities Act which prescribes certainthings which all state universities inMaharashtra must do, and lists the‘powers of the university’. In practice thisdegree of oversight limits flexibility andautonomy, for example in theestablishment of new staff posts, whichcan be a very protracted process.

MU is structured as a federal body anddelivers most of its teaching through anetwork of over 600 associated collegesserving the state of Maharashtra. Thesecolleges teach only curricula prescribed bythe accrediting university. The MU Senate,with over 100 members, manages thefinances of the University and is nominallychaired by the Governor of the State of

Maharashtra (although, in practice, the VC chairs this body). The University has a very good reputation, with researchexcellence in science and economics; it is one of 13 universities receiving anadditional science grant based on researchoutput and citations and a special grant of Rs 100 crore ($21.5m) for a new world-class centre in Nanoscience.

Other HEIs are more autonomous both in their decision-making processes andfunding arrangements. The IndianInstitute of Technology, Bombay(IITB), for example, is interesting inparticular for the contrast it brings to MU.It is a smaller, leaner organisation whichconcentrates on a narrower suite ofsubjects, primarily technology but alsosome humanities, with aspirations to be a world-leading institute. This mission ishelped by significantly more funding perstudent coming directly from the centralGovernment and distributed by the IITCouncil, a national council for all of theIITs. The IITB has another significantfunding source, its alumni. In an averageyear, funding from alumni can reach 15%of total income and in the current climateof austerity the University has been ableto mobilise more of that support for

projects on campus and the proportion is nearer 20%. IITB has its own Board of Governors, chaired by the Chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Authority andthere is a strong industrial influence onthe governance of the Institute.

IITs were established in 1958 by centralGovernment as elite science andengineering providers, serving the needsof the Indian economy. Eight new IITs arebeing created, mentored by existing ones,bringing the total to 15. Competition forplaces at the IITs is very high and only1% of applicants are successful.Graduates of the IITs can be found in topjobs in large companies all over the world.

The Indian IIT Council is made up ofrepresentatives of the Ministry of HumanResource Development (MHRD) and ofindustry, and all Directors of IITs.Directors of IITs are appointed by theMHRD. This contrasts sharply with thedegree of autonomy that UK institutionsenjoy in selecting their leaders, in whichthe Government’s relationship withgoverning bodies is mediated through the funding councils and, whilst there arenational initiatives and directives,institutions are able to set their own pathswithin that context.

At the far end of the funding scale is theIndian Institute of ManagementBangalore (IIMB), which is now entirelyself-funded through fee income. It has anacademic faculty that is integrally involvedin institutional governance and academicdecisions are freer from internal andexternal bureaucratic controls. However,IIMs are still bound by the national payscales, the existence of which means thatattracting staff must involve other factors,such as facilities, environment, andopportunities for research andconsultancy.

The Institute is governed by the IIMBSociety, a charitable trust, and has a 28-member Board of Governors,which includes eminent academics andfaculty members and is chaired by theChief Secretary of the State of Karnataka.The Board decides the long term strategyof the institution, monitors financialperformance and defines the HEI’srelationship with Government. Alloperational issues are dealt with by theDirector and a number of committees.

There is a range of funding andgovernance systems which havedeveloped differently in India, dependingon the history and mission of each HEI. In general the governance structures ofthe centrally funded HEIs, such as theCentral Universities and the IITs, arerelatively more autonomous than theState-funded universities. In turn,governance of the IIMs is generally moreautonomous than that of the IITs. Theinfluences from both external bodies and

faculty are evident in the Indianinstitutions’ structures. The degree ofinfluence from Government appears to beon the whole greater than that in the UK.

Over 17,000 of India’s 18,000 HEIs are privately sponsored and this sector is growing. One of these is AmritaUniversity established by the world-renowned humanitarian leader, Sri MataAmritanandamayi Devi, ‘Amma’. AsChancellor of the University, Amma guidesits mission and growth and has theauthority to influence all aspects of itsoperation. The emphasis on holisticdevelopment of the individual and ‘value-based education’ pervades all aspects of life at the University, where the endeavourto achieve progress and prosperity ismatched by ‘a desire to extend selflessservice to society’. Yoga is a compulsorypart of the curriculum and the campusoperates a curfew and “no intoxicants” rule.

One of the largest sources of financialsupport for the University is a holdingtrust – the Mata Amritanandamayi Math(‘MA Math’), with income largelygenerated through private and corporatedonations. 20-30% of the direct incomeof the University comes from sponsors and the Trust also runs a private hospitalwhich generates up to 40% of Universityincome. Student fees are around Rs 50kpa (around £700), which is moderatelyhigh by Indian standards.

Research at Indian universities is oftenclosely integrated to industry’s needs andnational and state policy. At Tamil NaduAgricultural University (TNAU) theclose relationship between universityadministrators and state officials supportsthis integration and the degree ofinfluence that some Indian HEIs have onshaping government policy is strikingcompared to their counterparts in the UK.This is also seen in the IITs which,through their Council, carry significantinfluence nationally. As the Indian HEsector streamlines its regulatory systemand increases its level of autonomy fromGovernment there may be a trade-off inthe loss of influence that HE has onGovernment policy.

Amrita University Mission for value based education,promoted and funded by a private foundation

Tour participants Hetal and Nikki being shown state of the art nanotechnology equipment at Amrita University, Coimbatore

Deemed Universities

Amrita University is a private institutionthat is allowed to call itself a universitybecause it qualifies for “DeemedUniversity” status under the UniversitiesAct. This “Section 3” provision hasbrought much wider availability of highquality higher education to India.However, the rapid mushrooming ofDeemed Universities has caused someconcern in the academic and policy worldas some private HEIs took the deemedroute simply to get degree-grantingpowers and many lack academiccredentials. There is currently amoratorium on awarding these powersand in January 2010 the IndianGovernment announced that the statuswas to be withdrawn from 44 institutions,causing an outcry from students.

The stunning campus at Amrita University

1918

Governance and Management of Indian HEIs

Autonomy and Funding

At one end of the scale the Indian HE sector includes HEIs such as theUniversity of Mumbai (MU) that arehighly influenced by state and/or centralgovernment and are almost entirelysupported by public funding. MU’s primarysource of funding is the Department ofScience and Technology (DST) whichfunds the University Grants Commission(UGC). As a State University MU is boundby the 1994 State of MaharashtraUniversities Act which prescribes certainthings which all state universities inMaharashtra must do, and lists the‘powers of the university’. In practice thisdegree of oversight limits flexibility andautonomy, for example in theestablishment of new staff posts, whichcan be a very protracted process.

MU is structured as a federal body anddelivers most of its teaching through anetwork of over 600 associated collegesserving the state of Maharashtra. Thesecolleges teach only curricula prescribed bythe accrediting university. The MU Senate,with over 100 members, manages thefinances of the University and is nominallychaired by the Governor of the State of

Maharashtra (although, in practice, the VC chairs this body). The University has a very good reputation, with researchexcellence in science and economics; it is one of 13 universities receiving anadditional science grant based on researchoutput and citations and a special grant of Rs 100 crore ($21.5m) for a new world-class centre in Nanoscience.

Other HEIs are more autonomous both in their decision-making processes andfunding arrangements. The IndianInstitute of Technology, Bombay(IITB), for example, is interesting inparticular for the contrast it brings to MU.It is a smaller, leaner organisation whichconcentrates on a narrower suite ofsubjects, primarily technology but alsosome humanities, with aspirations to be a world-leading institute. This mission ishelped by significantly more funding perstudent coming directly from the centralGovernment and distributed by the IITCouncil, a national council for all of theIITs. The IITB has another significantfunding source, its alumni. In an averageyear, funding from alumni can reach 15%of total income and in the current climateof austerity the University has been ableto mobilise more of that support for

projects on campus and the proportion is nearer 20%. IITB has its own Board of Governors, chaired by the Chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Authority andthere is a strong industrial influence onthe governance of the Institute.

IITs were established in 1958 by centralGovernment as elite science andengineering providers, serving the needsof the Indian economy. Eight new IITs arebeing created, mentored by existing ones,bringing the total to 15. Competition forplaces at the IITs is very high and only1% of applicants are successful.Graduates of the IITs can be found in topjobs in large companies all over the world.

The Indian IIT Council is made up ofrepresentatives of the Ministry of HumanResource Development (MHRD) and ofindustry, and all Directors of IITs.Directors of IITs are appointed by theMHRD. This contrasts sharply with thedegree of autonomy that UK institutionsenjoy in selecting their leaders, in whichthe Government’s relationship withgoverning bodies is mediated through the funding councils and, whilst there arenational initiatives and directives,institutions are able to set their own pathswithin that context.

At the far end of the funding scale is theIndian Institute of ManagementBangalore (IIMB), which is now entirelyself-funded through fee income. It has anacademic faculty that is integrally involvedin institutional governance and academicdecisions are freer from internal andexternal bureaucratic controls. However,IIMs are still bound by the national payscales, the existence of which means thatattracting staff must involve other factors,such as facilities, environment, andopportunities for research andconsultancy.

The Institute is governed by the IIMBSociety, a charitable trust, and has a 28-member Board of Governors,which includes eminent academics andfaculty members and is chaired by theChief Secretary of the State of Karnataka.The Board decides the long term strategyof the institution, monitors financialperformance and defines the HEI’srelationship with Government. Alloperational issues are dealt with by theDirector and a number of committees.

There is a range of funding andgovernance systems which havedeveloped differently in India, dependingon the history and mission of each HEI. In general the governance structures ofthe centrally funded HEIs, such as theCentral Universities and the IITs, arerelatively more autonomous than theState-funded universities. In turn,governance of the IIMs is generally moreautonomous than that of the IITs. Theinfluences from both external bodies and

faculty are evident in the Indianinstitutions’ structures. The degree ofinfluence from Government appears to beon the whole greater than that in the UK.

Over 17,000 of India’s 18,000 HEIs are privately sponsored and this sector is growing. One of these is AmritaUniversity established by the world-renowned humanitarian leader, Sri MataAmritanandamayi Devi, ‘Amma’. AsChancellor of the University, Amma guidesits mission and growth and has theauthority to influence all aspects of itsoperation. The emphasis on holisticdevelopment of the individual and ‘value-based education’ pervades all aspects of life at the University, where the endeavourto achieve progress and prosperity ismatched by ‘a desire to extend selflessservice to society’. Yoga is a compulsorypart of the curriculum and the campusoperates a curfew and “no intoxicants” rule.

One of the largest sources of financialsupport for the University is a holdingtrust – the Mata Amritanandamayi Math(‘MA Math’), with income largelygenerated through private and corporatedonations. 20-30% of the direct incomeof the University comes from sponsors and the Trust also runs a private hospitalwhich generates up to 40% of Universityincome. Student fees are around Rs 50kpa (around £700), which is moderatelyhigh by Indian standards.

Research at Indian universities is oftenclosely integrated to industry’s needs andnational and state policy. At Tamil NaduAgricultural University (TNAU) theclose relationship between universityadministrators and state officials supportsthis integration and the degree ofinfluence that some Indian HEIs have onshaping government policy is strikingcompared to their counterparts in the UK.This is also seen in the IITs which,through their Council, carry significantinfluence nationally. As the Indian HEsector streamlines its regulatory systemand increases its level of autonomy fromGovernment there may be a trade-off inthe loss of influence that HE has onGovernment policy.

Amrita University Mission for value based education,promoted and funded by a private foundation

Tour participants Hetal and Nikki being shown state of the art nanotechnology equipment at Amrita University, Coimbatore

Deemed Universities

Amrita University is a private institutionthat is allowed to call itself a universitybecause it qualifies for “DeemedUniversity” status under the UniversitiesAct. This “Section 3” provision hasbrought much wider availability of highquality higher education to India.However, the rapid mushrooming ofDeemed Universities has caused someconcern in the academic and policy worldas some private HEIs took the deemedroute simply to get degree-grantingpowers and many lack academiccredentials. There is currently amoratorium on awarding these powersand in January 2010 the IndianGovernment announced that the statuswas to be withdrawn from 44 institutions,causing an outcry from students.

The stunning campus at Amrita University

2120

Strategic Direction andPlanning

The different regulatory and fundingenvironments for Indian HEIs demand a range of approaches to planning.Centrally controlled HEIs have a five yearplan, which is agreed with relevantauthorities. This is akin to currentpractices in England and Wales ofsubmitting a five year forecast to theappropriate funding council, where theplan is continually rolling forward andindicates the financial sustainability of theindividual HEI. In the Indian model, whilstthere may be some flexibility on the latteryears, the expectation is that they willdeliver against the plan.

Institutional plans drive funding for IndianHEIs at a much more detailed level than in the UK; pay scales are set nationallyand increases are based on time in post.As any new posts need to be in the planand approved, dynamic recruitmentaccording to need or opportunity is notpossible. The lack of flexibility may tend to stifle innovation but the degree towhich many parameters are defined(student numbers, staff numbers andsalaries) provides stability and a low riskplanning environment.

Strategic planning cycles in India can belong by UK standards. IIMB has a strategyfor growth to 2020 and institutionalplanning at IITB is over a 10 and 50 yeartimescale! At some of the stateuniversities the planning process can beonerous, for example, at MU departmentalplans must be accepted by both theUniversity (100 member strong Senate)and the UGC.

For some institutions, such as the IITs and IIMs, the strategic direction is clearalthough changes may be afoot to widentheir remit if the Yashpal report isimplemented. IIMB’s aim ‘to be a worldclass centre of excellence for searching,nurturing and promoting entrepreneurshipwith emphasis on start-ups and existingorganisations with high growth potential’is expounded in its plan to 2020, whichderived from wide consultation andincludes time-bound targets. They areplanning to increase student numbers(there is demand and presumablygovernment pressure to do so) but theyneed to increase faculty numbers first.

The Role of theAdministrator

Traditions of administrative support vary in Indian HEIs, with many stategovernments appointing civil servants as university administrators. At IITB thereis a highly professional, modernadministrative support system includingwell developed online services. At otherHEIs academics take on administrationand management roles, supported byclerical staff. IIMB sees itself at theforefront of university management and is looking at ways in which they cantransfer administrative work fromacademics to administrators and developexpertise in ‘educational management’.There was interest here in administrativestaff exchange with UK institutions.

TNAU was typical in having senior officerposts filled by academics, in this caseserving concurrent three year terms,coming up for renewal at the same time.There is an open competition for thesepositions, which are seen as prestigious andoffer additional staff support for research.

Meeting research staff at TNAU- the University has research collaborations with the UK and the US

Governance and Management of Indian HEIs

Staffing

One of the biggest challenges currentlyfacing the Indian HE sector is theGovernment cap on staff salaries, whichaffects public sector HEIs whose staff areno longer on the Government payroll andeven the private sector. For example, IIMBreceives no income from the Governmentfor salaries, yet is still bound by thenationally agreed salary levels. Although it is free to appoint academic staff, it isrestricted in what it can pay them. Despitebeing a private university and not boundby the national salary structure, Amritaalso largely follows this structure as it is in keeping with their benevolent ethos, and several staff (including the Vice-Chancellor) receive no salary at all.

Despite recent substantial public sectorpay rises, there are reports of staffshortages and questions about how tostaff the Government’s ‘new universities’. A greater emphasis on professionaladministration could help to free upacademic staff. The Yashpal reportrecognises in particular the important rolethat university administrators have inidentifying ‘the best or next practices inacademia globally’, but also notes thatIndian universities have not been able toattract talented administrators for a varietyof reasons. Changing to an open marketsystem would have a major financialimpact, although it would also enhanceinward staff mobility, and increase theglobal competition for staff (potentially to the detriment of HE sectors elsewhere).

i http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_govt-hopes-to-introduce-foreign-education-provider-bill-sibal_1318548ii http://www.academics-india.com/yashpal_report.htm

Key considerationsGovernance structures vary in their

degree of autonomy and depend on

the history and mission of each HEI.

The degree of influence of

government appears to be on the

whole greater than that in the UK.

Strategic planning cycles vary

considerably in duration, and can be

between 5 and 50 years. Planning is

more exacting and generally less

flexible and more stable than for UK

counterparts.

Traditions of administrative support

vary, with many state governments

appointing civil servants as HEI

administrators. There are also

instances of highly professional

modern administrative support

systems. However, there seems to be

scope to develop further the

professionalisation of administration,

and potentially an exchange scheme

for administrators led by the AUA.

One of the biggest challenges

currently facing the Indian HE sector

is the Government cap on staff

salaries.

TNAU, where research has a strong applied focus. Here trials are underway to support farm diversification

2120

Strategic Direction andPlanning

The different regulatory and fundingenvironments for Indian HEIs demand a range of approaches to planning.Centrally controlled HEIs have a five yearplan, which is agreed with relevantauthorities. This is akin to currentpractices in England and Wales ofsubmitting a five year forecast to theappropriate funding council, where theplan is continually rolling forward andindicates the financial sustainability of theindividual HEI. In the Indian model, whilstthere may be some flexibility on the latteryears, the expectation is that they willdeliver against the plan.

Institutional plans drive funding for IndianHEIs at a much more detailed level than in the UK; pay scales are set nationallyand increases are based on time in post.As any new posts need to be in the planand approved, dynamic recruitmentaccording to need or opportunity is notpossible. The lack of flexibility may tend to stifle innovation but the degree towhich many parameters are defined(student numbers, staff numbers andsalaries) provides stability and a low riskplanning environment.

Strategic planning cycles in India can belong by UK standards. IIMB has a strategyfor growth to 2020 and institutionalplanning at IITB is over a 10 and 50 yeartimescale! At some of the stateuniversities the planning process can beonerous, for example, at MU departmentalplans must be accepted by both theUniversity (100 member strong Senate)and the UGC.

For some institutions, such as the IITs and IIMs, the strategic direction is clearalthough changes may be afoot to widentheir remit if the Yashpal report isimplemented. IIMB’s aim ‘to be a worldclass centre of excellence for searching,nurturing and promoting entrepreneurshipwith emphasis on start-ups and existingorganisations with high growth potential’is expounded in its plan to 2020, whichderived from wide consultation andincludes time-bound targets. They areplanning to increase student numbers(there is demand and presumablygovernment pressure to do so) but theyneed to increase faculty numbers first.

The Role of theAdministrator

Traditions of administrative support vary in Indian HEIs, with many stategovernments appointing civil servants as university administrators. At IITB thereis a highly professional, modernadministrative support system includingwell developed online services. At otherHEIs academics take on administrationand management roles, supported byclerical staff. IIMB sees itself at theforefront of university management and is looking at ways in which they cantransfer administrative work fromacademics to administrators and developexpertise in ‘educational management’.There was interest here in administrativestaff exchange with UK institutions.

TNAU was typical in having senior officerposts filled by academics, in this caseserving concurrent three year terms,coming up for renewal at the same time.There is an open competition for thesepositions, which are seen as prestigious andoffer additional staff support for research.

Meeting research staff at TNAU- the University has research collaborations with the UK and the US

Governance and Management of Indian HEIs

Staffing

One of the biggest challenges currentlyfacing the Indian HE sector is theGovernment cap on staff salaries, whichaffects public sector HEIs whose staff areno longer on the Government payroll andeven the private sector. For example, IIMBreceives no income from the Governmentfor salaries, yet is still bound by thenationally agreed salary levels. Although it is free to appoint academic staff, it isrestricted in what it can pay them. Despitebeing a private university and not boundby the national salary structure, Amritaalso largely follows this structure as it is in keeping with their benevolent ethos, and several staff (including the Vice-Chancellor) receive no salary at all.

Despite recent substantial public sectorpay rises, there are reports of staffshortages and questions about how tostaff the Government’s ‘new universities’. A greater emphasis on professionaladministration could help to free upacademic staff. The Yashpal reportrecognises in particular the important rolethat university administrators have inidentifying ‘the best or next practices inacademia globally’, but also notes thatIndian universities have not been able toattract talented administrators for a varietyof reasons. Changing to an open marketsystem would have a major financialimpact, although it would also enhanceinward staff mobility, and increase theglobal competition for staff (potentially to the detriment of HE sectors elsewhere).

i http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_govt-hopes-to-introduce-foreign-education-provider-bill-sibal_1318548ii http://www.academics-india.com/yashpal_report.htm

Key considerationsGovernance structures vary in their

degree of autonomy and depend on

the history and mission of each HEI.

The degree of influence of

government appears to be on the

whole greater than that in the UK.

Strategic planning cycles vary

considerably in duration, and can be

between 5 and 50 years. Planning is

more exacting and generally less

flexible and more stable than for UK

counterparts.

Traditions of administrative support

vary, with many state governments

appointing civil servants as HEI

administrators. There are also

instances of highly professional

modern administrative support

systems. However, there seems to be

scope to develop further the

professionalisation of administration,

and potentially an exchange scheme

for administrators led by the AUA.

One of the biggest challenges

currently facing the Indian HE sector

is the Government cap on staff

salaries.

TNAU, where research has a strong applied focus. Here trials are underway to support farm diversification

23

Appendices

1. Indian Universities’ Perspectiveson Collaboration with the UKWe were keen to gain an insight intoIndo-UK collaboration from the Indianperspective. Our main aim was tograsp the different types of partnershipand the value placed on them byIndian HEIs, with a view to facilitatebetter understanding and moresuccessful collaborations betweenIndia and the UK. Led by RadkaNewton, University of LancasterManagement School

2. Student Experience and WideningParticipationWe were interested in investigatingwhat widening participation means inthe Indian context, given the diversityof Indian society and the barrierspresented by caste and rural isolation.We explored a broad range of learningand teaching issues and found somecommonalities but also some contrastswith the UK. We asked about studentemployability and how independentlearning is encouraged. Led by SimonEades, Birkbeck, University of London

3. Governance and Management The Tour was a great opportunity forcomparing the roles of theadministrator in Indian and UK HE. Welooked at governance and Governmentand the degree of centralised controlversus autonomy in decision making.Recognising that Indian HEIs are oftenan order of magnitude larger than inUK, we were interested in the effectsof scale on provision andadministration. Led by Tove Oliver,HEFCW

Dr Sonia VirdeeDirector of Strategic PlanningUniversity of EssexTour Leader

Simon EadesProgramme Manager, Faculty of LifelongLearning, Birkbeck, University of LondonStudent Experience (L)

Hetal ManiarStudent Records AdvisorUniversity of PortsmouthStudent Experience

Sue BeckinghamLearning, Teaching and AssessmentSupport Co-ordinatorStudent Experience

Dr Radka NewtonInternational Programmes DirectorLancaster University Management SchoolPerspectives on Collaboration (L)

Catherine KirkPA to Director of Corporate ServicesUniversity of EdinburghPerspectives on Collaboration

Ian JonesInternational Officer (Partnership Development)University of Nottingham Perspectives on Collaboration

Dr Tove OliverEuropean and International ManagerHigher Education Funding Council for WalesGovernance and Management (L)

Dr Nicola HorsemanAssistant Director, Planning ServicesUniversity of ExeterGovernance and Management

Dr Andrew Young Head of Administration, ScienceAgriculture and EngineeringUniversity of NewcastleGovernance and Management

L = Theme Leader

Tour Members

The Tour team was led by Sonia Virdee, University of Essex and comprised participants working in abroad range of HE administration roles from across the country. Selection of the Tour Leader andparticipants was by a competitive process with applications assessed by an AUA panel; participants hadto demonstrate how they would benefit professionally from the Tour, what they could contribute to it andhave ideas for dissemination.

Tour Objectives

1. To provide AUA and AHUA members and associate members working in a wide range of roles with an opportunity to investigate contemporary trends, pressures and future directions in higher education in India.

2. To develop a relationship between the AUA/AHUA and Indian higher education institutions.

3. To share with colleagues in India views on major trends in contemporary UK higher education.

Tour Themes

Tour participants were grouped around three themes, each group with a theme leader: The Study Tour team at IIMB

Coimbatore where we visited two universities and spent the weekend22

23

Appendices

1. Indian Universities’ Perspectiveson Collaboration with the UKWe were keen to gain an insight intoIndo-UK collaboration from the Indianperspective. Our main aim was tograsp the different types of partnershipand the value placed on them byIndian HEIs, with a view to facilitatebetter understanding and moresuccessful collaborations betweenIndia and the UK. Led by RadkaNewton, University of LancasterManagement School

2. Student Experience and WideningParticipationWe were interested in investigatingwhat widening participation means inthe Indian context, given the diversityof Indian society and the barrierspresented by caste and rural isolation.We explored a broad range of learningand teaching issues and found somecommonalities but also some contrastswith the UK. We asked about studentemployability and how independentlearning is encouraged. Led by SimonEades, Birkbeck, University of London

3. Governance and Management The Tour was a great opportunity forcomparing the roles of theadministrator in Indian and UK HE. Welooked at governance and Governmentand the degree of centralised controlversus autonomy in decision making.Recognising that Indian HEIs are oftenan order of magnitude larger than inUK, we were interested in the effectsof scale on provision andadministration. Led by Tove Oliver,HEFCW

Dr Sonia VirdeeDirector of Strategic PlanningUniversity of EssexTour Leader

Simon EadesProgramme Manager, Faculty of LifelongLearning, Birkbeck, University of LondonStudent Experience (L)

Hetal ManiarStudent Records AdvisorUniversity of PortsmouthStudent Experience

Sue BeckinghamLearning, Teaching and AssessmentSupport Co-ordinatorStudent Experience

Dr Radka NewtonInternational Programmes DirectorLancaster University Management SchoolPerspectives on Collaboration (L)

Catherine KirkPA to Director of Corporate ServicesUniversity of EdinburghPerspectives on Collaboration

Ian JonesInternational Officer (Partnership Development)University of Nottingham Perspectives on Collaboration

Dr Tove OliverEuropean and International ManagerHigher Education Funding Council for WalesGovernance and Management (L)

Dr Nicola HorsemanAssistant Director, Planning ServicesUniversity of ExeterGovernance and Management

Dr Andrew Young Head of Administration, ScienceAgriculture and EngineeringUniversity of NewcastleGovernance and Management

L = Theme Leader

Tour Members

The Tour team was led by Sonia Virdee, University of Essex and comprised participants working in abroad range of HE administration roles from across the country. Selection of the Tour Leader andparticipants was by a competitive process with applications assessed by an AUA panel; participants hadto demonstrate how they would benefit professionally from the Tour, what they could contribute to it andhave ideas for dissemination.

Tour Objectives

1. To provide AUA and AHUA members and associate members working in a wide range of roles with an opportunity to investigate contemporary trends, pressures and future directions in higher education in India.

2. To develop a relationship between the AUA/AHUA and Indian higher education institutions.

3. To share with colleagues in India views on major trends in contemporary UK higher education.

Tour Themes

Tour participants were grouped around three themes, each group with a theme leader: The Study Tour team at IIMB

Coimbatore where we visited two universities and spent the weekend22

25

Appendices

Sunday 8th Nov:

Arrive Mumbai, Orientation Meeting

Monday 9th Nov:

Mumbai, University of Mumbai

British Council

Tuesday 10th Nov:

Mumbai and travel by coach to Pune,

Indian Institute of Technology Bombay IITB

Wed 11th Nov:

Pune, Fergusson College

Thurs 12th Nov:

Fly to Bangalore, Infosys

Fri 13th Nov:

Bangalore, Indian Institute of Management

Bangalore IIMB

Sat 14th Nov:

Fly to Coimbatore

Sun 15th Nov:

Free time in Coimbatore

and visit to Isha Ashram

Mon 16th Nov:

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University TNAU

Tues 17th Nov:

Coimbatore, Amrita University

Wed 18th Nov:

Leave Coimbatore, Return to UK

See our blog at

http://auaindia2009.blogspot.com/

The impressive cathedral window in MU Library

Students at TNAU. Most students have laptops and access to online services is good

24

Itinerary

We visited eight organisations and four cities in ten days. The tour started in Mumbai with the University of Mumbai and theIndian Institute of Technology Bombay and then moved East, via Pune and Fergusson College, to Bangalore and the IndianInstitute of Management Bangalore and the software systems company Infosys. We headed South to visit a specialist agriculturalcollege in Tamil Nadu Agricultural University and also a private university, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University.

25

Appendices

Sunday 8th Nov:

Arrive Mumbai, Orientation Meeting

Monday 9th Nov:

Mumbai, University of Mumbai

British Council

Tuesday 10th Nov:

Mumbai and travel by coach to Pune,

Indian Institute of Technology Bombay IITB

Wed 11th Nov:

Pune, Fergusson College

Thurs 12th Nov:

Fly to Bangalore, Infosys

Fri 13th Nov:

Bangalore, Indian Institute of Management

Bangalore IIMB

Sat 14th Nov:

Fly to Coimbatore

Sun 15th Nov:

Free time in Coimbatore

and visit to Isha Ashram

Mon 16th Nov:

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University TNAU

Tues 17th Nov:

Coimbatore, Amrita University

Wed 18th Nov:

Leave Coimbatore, Return to UK

See our blog at

http://auaindia2009.blogspot.com/

The impressive cathedral window in MU Library

Students at TNAU. Most students have laptops and access to online services is good

24

Itinerary

We visited eight organisations and four cities in ten days. The tour started in Mumbai with the University of Mumbai and theIndian Institute of Technology Bombay and then moved East, via Pune and Fergusson College, to Bangalore and the IndianInstitute of Management Bangalore and the software systems company Infosys. We headed South to visit a specialist agriculturalcollege in Tamil Nadu Agricultural University and also a private university, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University.

promoting excellence in HE management

November 2009

Study Tour IndiaDesign

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Contact

The AUA National Office, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PLTel: +44(0)161 275 2063 Fax: +44(0)161 275 2036 Email: aua@manchester.ac.uk

promoting excellence in HE management

Cert no. SGS-COC-003591

AUA National Office The University of Manchester Oxford Road Manchester M13 9PLTel: +44(0)161 275 2063 Fax: +44(0)161 275 2036 Email: aua@manchester.ac.uk Web: www.aua.ac.uk