Top global universities rule out setting up India campuses for now

MUMBAI: Barely days after the government opened doors for foreign universities to set up campuses here, half-a-dozen top universities said they have no interest in the invitation from India.
ET spoke to top officials from Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Sloan School of Management, Cambridge University and Duke University and all of them ruled out the possibility of opening campuses here. They are, however, keen to continue engaging with students, academia and industry through research, faculty exchange and executive education programmes.

“In light of the tremendous demand for educated talent in India, this policy move is a step in the right direction. That said, the Stanford Graduate School of Business does not have plans to build bricks-and-mortar facilities in India,” says Garth Saloner, Philip H Knight Professor and Dean, Stanford Graduate School of Business. “That’s not where we see the best use of our investment.” Adds Claude Canizares, vice president, MIT: “…this policy does not change how we work…we prefer the partnership model, we do not establish branch campuses that would operate independently.”

On Tuesday, the government allowed top foreign universities to set up campuses in India and award degrees, giving Indian students the opportunity to study in global institutions without leaving home. The proposed UGC (Establishment & Operation of Campuses of Foreign Educational Institutions) Rules require foreign education providers to set up the India campuses as not-for-profit companies. The move has been welcomed by Indian institutes, academicians and industry leaders.

But, for the time being at least, the Ivy League institutes seem to have no plans to build campuses in India. “It is hard to get the top tier institutes to come out,” says Pramath Sinha, former dean of the Indian School of Business. “Their prime focus is on driving premium in their own campus and not diluting it.”

“We don’t believe you can replicate the quality, structure and faculty of Cambridge anywhere else overseas,” says a spokesman for the vicechancellor of the University of Cambridge. The university, though, has research and development collaborations with Indian universities like IIT Bombay, Delhi University, IISC Bangalore, among others.

Duke University, which has a growing number of educational activities and partnerships in India, also has no plans to establish a campus or university in the country. “MIT Sloan, at the moment, does not have any plans to open a campus in India. We collaborate and engage in institution building in India,” says SP Kothari, deputy dean, MIT Sloan School of Management. But that is not to say that this move by the government is a non-starter. Some tier 2 institutes from the US, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Hong Kong, which figure among the top 400 universities globally, are likely to explore setting up a campus here.

Though Cardiff University has no plans to open a campus in India at present, Professor Colin Riordan, the university’s president and vice chancellor, says it is actively considering options. Cardiff has links with many Indian institutions that establish a framework for potential collaboration in research, staff exchange and training and exchange of academic materials. Sources say Georgia Institute of Technology and Virginia Institute of Technology have some interest in an India campus.

Setting up a Greenfield campus is never easy. No one will do it without a very sound economic proposition of earning good revenue and sustaining cost without diluting brand value. “Finding land near metro areas in India is not easy. Also, it will require huge upfront investment in creating infrastructure,” says Sinha.

Last month, Stanford launched their first off campus 9-week certificate programme Stanford Ignite in Bangalore, where IT major Infosys is providing classroom facilities and Stanford is bringing in its senior faculty to teach through live video and audio streaming. That may be a more popular way forward.