New regulation widens scope for foreign university collaboration

By Alya Mishra. India’s higher education regulatory body has announced new rules that will allow only the top 500 globally ranked institutions to partner with leading Indian universities, as legislation to allow foreign institutions to set up branch campuses in India remains stalled in parliament.
According to the University Grants Commission (UGC), only institutions graded ‘A’ by the National Board of Accreditation or the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) in India can collaborate with foreign institutions which, in turn, must be in the top 500 global universities as ranked by Times Higher Education or Shanghai Jiaotong. While this has been welcomed in some quarters as a way to move away from the deadlock over the Foreign Educational (Regulation of Entry and Operations) Bill, it has also come in for criticism. The bill, originally tabled in parliament in May 2010, has stalled in its passage through the legislature, with several political parties opposed to some of the provisions under which foreign universities would be allowed to operate in India. The parliamentary standing committee concerned has made several recommendations to revise the draft bill, which is still being considered by the government. Notably, the UGC announcement on 2 June came just ahead of Education Minister Kapil Sibal's tour to Washington for the Indo-US Strategic Dialogue. Leaders of top Indian and foreign universities are expected to participate. A report last year by the Institute of International Education for the US Department of State, prepared with the US-India Educational Foundation, referred to the bill’s “uncertain future” and suggested that American institutions may want to focus on joint and dual degree programmes in partnership with Indian institutions rather than physical branch campuses that would be allowed under the bill.
Controversy over rankings
S Vaidhyasubramaniam, dean of Sastra University in Tamil Nadu, said the decision to allow only the top 500 foreign universities to collaborate with Indian universities was “a good first step”. Bringing in reputable universities would ensure the quality of course collaborations, given the lack of regulations and poor research productivity in Indian higher education, he said.
But others questioned the rankings basis for the regulation. Professor Gautam Gupta, of the department of economics at Jadavpur University in Kolkata, said global rankings were not ‘sacred’.
“There are several global rankings. Who is to say which ranking is the most authentic? The UGC seems to believe that some rankings cannot be challenged and everyone should follow them,” Gupta said.
However, he also said that limiting Indian institutions to only those graded ‘A’ was a good move. Referring to the UGC-funded NAAC, which accredits Indian higher education institutions, Gupta said:
“When NAAC ranking began, only a handful of institutions were graded ‘A’. Now there are many and thus the scope for joint degrees and collaborations increases significantly.”
Narayan Ramaswamy, head of education for the consulting firm KPMG, said the new regulation was the best way forward. He described the problems over the foreign education bill as “a joke in the education community”.
“Under such circumstances I would say the UGC regulation is a practical and prudent way to take the issue forward,” he said.
However, the UGC regulation will not replace the bill, amid accusations from opposition groups that it is a backdoor way to allow in foreign institutions without proper legislation. According to sources, the government had contemplated alternative routes for entry of foreign institutions – as ‘deemed universities' under Section 3 of the UGC Act of 1956, or as private universities under the state laws. However, these suggestions were rejected by the UGC committee, as a bill was already pending in parliament. The left-leaning CPI-M party has said it will oppose any such moves, as it would be “a clear case of bypassing parliament and is contempt of parliament”.
While the issue of contempt is debatable, Ramaswamy said: “Sibal has avoided parliament by changing a few regulations. It is a quiet change, not as visible as the passing of the bill, but still a way forward.”
Unlike the draft bill, the UGC regulation does not include financial restrictions on foreign institutions, such as maintaining a corpus fund of nearly US$10 million before being eligible to collaborate with Indian institutions.
Opening doors for course collaboration
While foreign institutions will not be able to establish campuses independently in India, they will be free to design course curricula and the fee for joint collaborations and twinning arrangements. Before the UGC regulation was approved, only technical and management courses of foreign institutions were allowed into India as they were regulated by the All India Council of Technical Education Act. The UGC regulation will open the door for universities and autonomous colleges to offer joint degree programmes in humanities and basic sciences not falling under technical education.
“Universities and institutions can now offer joint undergraduate programmes in economics, mathematics, sociology, education etc. Students can do part of their study at the Indian institution and part at the collaborating foreign institution,” said UGC Chair Professor Ved Prakash.
The UGC guideline states that existing tie-ups though Indian institutions will have six months to meet the new eligibility criteria. Institutions that fail to comply with the new regulations can lose UGC funding and-or be de-recognised, and existing agreements can be terminated.
“The idea is simply to regulate this growing area for the benefit of students so that only genuine academic collaborations are encouraged,” Prakash said.
According to a study by the Association of Indian Universities, “Foreign Educational Providers in India, 2010”, the number of foreign education institutions in the country increased from 144 in 2000 to 631 in 2010. Most (158) were from the UK, followed by Canada (80) and the US (44). Of the 60 foreign education providers with collaborative courses with local institutions, only 25 local institutions were affiliated to Indian universities or approved by regulatory bodies. Just 32 of the 49 foreign institutions operating under twinning arrangements had approval or affiliation.