NEW DELHI, Jan 5: Foreign universities will be able to set up their campuses in India for the first time with the UGC today unveiling draft norms, under which these varsities can also decide on the admission process, fee structure and repatriate its funds back home.
Noting that foreign universities with campuses in the country can only offer full-time programmes in offline mode and not online or distance learning, UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said the foreign universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) will need a nod from the UGC to set up their campuses in India.
The initial approval will be for 10 years and will be renewed in the ninth year subject to the meeting of certain conditions, he added and clarified that these institutions shall not offer any such study programme which jeopardises the national interest of India or the standards of higher education here.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) announced the draft regulations for ‘Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India’ and the final norms will be notified by the end of the month after considering feedback from all stakeholders.
While these universities will have the freedom to decide their admission criteria and fee structure, the commission has advised keeping the fees “reasonable and transparent”.
“The new National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 has envisioned that top universities in the world will be facilitated to operate in India. For this, a legislative framework facilitating such entry will be put in place, and such universities will be given special dispensation regarding regulatory, governance, and content norms on par with other autonomous institutions of India,” Kumar said.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
