Foreign varsities in Karnataka: Govt to propose quota for state students

Bengaluru: Following a number of foreign universities and higher education institutions showing interest to open their campuses in Karnataka, the Congress government is planning to propose a reservation for poor-meritorious students from the state in these institutions.

To begin with, the state government has proposed this to Lancaster University which announced to set up its campus in Bengaluru and is likely to start operations from February, 2026. The admissions will begin from August/September 2026.

As shared by Higher Education Minister Dr M C Sudhakar, along with reservation, the state government is also contemplating offering scholarships to the selected students.

“If our students wants to go all the way to a particular country and pursue higher education it would not be financially affordable for all. Considering that we are also exploring opportunities to offer scholarships from the government side by requesting even the universities to have their contribution in it. This will also show their social commitment,”
Sudhakar said.

Lancaster is the second foreign university to set up its campus in Karnataka. The University of Liverpool from UK has already signed an agreement with the Karnataka government to set up its campus at KWIN city. Even Imperial College of Landon has opened its research wing at the Bengaluru City University.

As per the information, the Lancaster University is planning to operate from a temporary campus located at Electronic City in around 50,000 sq ft area. It will shift to its own campus in next four years. The University has also requested for a land and other basic facilities at marginal price. The University will offer courses in Cyber Security, Business, Finance and
Accounting.