According to a formal announcement, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has announced the draught rules for establishing foreign higher education campuses in the nation and has requested comments and ideas from the general public. The recommendations are in line with NEP 2020, the National Education Policy.
The commission announced in an official statement that the guidelines for the internationalisation of higher education in 2021, which contained clauses like creating an office for international affairs and alumni connect cell in universities, have been informed. Universities must only conduct the courses in offline mode, it stated, and online delivery of the programmes covered by these restrictions is not permitted.
Top universities from around the world would be allowed to operate in India, according to NEP 2020. According to the statement, a legal framework supporting such admission would be put in place, and such universities will be accorded special dispensation respecting regulatory, governance, and content criteria on par with other autonomous institutions of India.
According to the UGC, a legislative framework allowing the admittance of higher-ranked foreign universities will provide higher education with an international component, allow Indian students to get foreign degrees at reasonable prices, and promote India as a desirable study destination worldwide.The regulations, which are referred to as the University Grants Commission (Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India) Regulations, 2023, are intended to make it easier for foreign higher education institutions to enrol students in India, according to the statement.
The admittance and operation of foreign universities and institutions in India to conduct undergraduate, postgraduate, doctorate, and other programmes and grant degrees, diplomas, and certificates in all subjects are governed by these norms, according to the UGC.
Without the UGC permission, no Foreign Higher Educational Institutions (FHEIs) will be able to establish campuses in the nation, it stated.
It said that the foreign educational institution must rank in the top 500 worldwide for its field in its home jurisdiction, as determined from time to time by the Commission. According to the press release, the foreign institution must make sure that the educational standards it upholds at its campus in India are on par with those at its main campus in the nation of origin.
The UGC stated that the degrees given to students at the Indian campus must be acknowledged and recognised as being equivalent to the degrees given by the FHEIs at the main campus in the student country of origin.
It stated that up until January 18, 2023, comments, recommendations, and input on the draught regulations from all parties involved may be emailed to ugcforeigncollaboration@gmail.com.
