Opportunity for degree mills to further expand into India

The following was published today in 'Insight', an online update I receive from the USA.

Higher education institutions keen on establishing a presence in India may be encouraged by the latest news from the Indian Ministry of Human Resource Development. Indian universities no longer need to seek permission from the Ministry if they wish to collaborate with their foreign counterparts. This shift in policy comes as India prepares to join the World Trade Organization next year, and comply with the General Agreement on Trade in services (GATS).

Collaboration and branch campuses have generated discussion in India, as demonstrated by the Education Minister of West Bengal, Kanti Biswas. In an article published in The Statesman, Biswas argued that there were three major reasons for preventing the establishment of foreign university branches: first, the syllabi would not be Indian, and thus threaten Indian heritage; second, the primary goal of foreign universities is to make money; and third, the social planning of the country would be disrupted by the mere “presence of private institutions like Oxbridge.”

Biswas’ opinions were dismissed by The Statesman in an editorial: the threat posed by foreign universities to Indian heritage was “laughable,” while social planning through higher education was merely a “Soviet fantasy” (West Bengal has elected a Communist government since 1954). The editorial countered Biswas’ objections by raising an important point: “supply of quality higher education in India is less than demand.”

When I read this, my heart sank . At the same time, the mills no doubt jumped for joy .

Cheers,

George