UGC frames revised rules for tie-ups between Indian and foreign universities

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has simplified the procedure for an Indian higher educational institution to offer programmes in collaboration with foreign universities by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with each other directly if they meet certain eligibility criteria .

It has been decided that an Indian higher education institution that has a National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) grading of 3.01 or above, or is among the top 1,000 QS World University or Times Higher Education rankings, or is among the top 100 universities under National Institution Ranking Framework, will be able to tie-up with a foreign education institution which too features among the top 1,000 QS or Times Higher Education rankings.  It is clarified that under the new regulations, universities and colleges will no longer be required to seek its permission to do so, if they met the ranking criteria.

Under the earlier regulations, a foreign and Indian college or university could partner with each other to offer only “twinning” and “joint degree” programmes where Indian students received a degree only from an Indian institute along with a certificate from the foreign institute. But now, they can offer a third type of programme, that is, a “dual degree” programme, where both the institutes will issue a degree.

Under a twinning programme, a student can get up to 30% credit utilisation of the total course from a foreign university, whereas under a joint and dual degree programme, he or she can get more than than 30% of the total credits.

UGC has clarified that the collaborations will be permitted only for the conventional mode of learning and not for distance or online learning

The move is aimed at increasing HEI students’ strength  from 40 to 100 million which can be achieved by building new institutes and through collaborations with foreign institutes. This is also expected to enhance the employability of the students.

This has also clarified to  help attract foreign students to India, which will lead to internationalization, which is an important parameter for improving global rankings of higher education institutions.

Captum welcomes this much awaited liberalized rule. It feels that  speedy  approvals/clearances under the new rule will lead to rapid internationalization  of leading  Indian HEIs.