Foreign universities can now set up campuses in India as UGC announces draft norms

Foreign universities will be able to set up campuses for the first time in India with the University Grants Commission on Thursday unveiling draft norms for their establishment and operations in the country. As per the rules, these varsities can decide the admission process, fee structure and repatriate its funds back home, but will be allowed to conduct only offline classes.

The UGC has written to foreign ambassadors of about 55 countries, including US, UK, Australia, and major countries of Europe, where top universities are located. “We have also written to the Indian ambassadors in these countries to get feedback on these regulations. There are few countries from Europe which have shown keen interest. Once these final regulations are published by the end of this month, in the next few months, we will talk to many foreign universities,” UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar told DH.

Kumar said that the permissions to set up campuses in India will be initially granted for a period of 10 years, and that the finances will be governed by the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.

Institutes will have an option of renewing their permissions in the ninth year after they meet certain conditions, including maintaining the same standards of education in the India campus as in their main campus and not teaching anything that goes against India’s national interest, said Kumar.

The UGC’s draft University Grants Commission (Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India) Regulations 2023 will be up for review by stakeholders, and is likely to come into effect in a month or two. The Commission will also constitute a panel of experts for the operations of foreign institutes which will look at each varsity’s application on the basis of merit. “

The panel will look at the credibility of the educational institutions, the programmes to be offered, their potential to strengthen educational opportunities in India, and the proposed academic infrastructure, and make recommendations thereof,” Kumar said.

Institutes will also need to have “need-based” scholarships from students from disadvantageous grounds. Additionally, universities that apply will need to be among the top 500 institutes in international rankings, or will need to have a remarkable record in a particular field.

“As many as 4.5 lakh Indian students went abroad for studies last year; this means a huge outflow of capital from India. This also points at a huge interest among Indian students to study in foreign universities. This is why we wanted to bring the institutes to India,” Kumar said.