Dose moderate India provide international leadership in higher education?
Answers
India’s education system, as one of the world’s largest, has been studied and reflected on through
academic papers, used as a case study and been the subject of many renowned books. This report
does not set out to significantly change the way the Indian system is seen. It is about change
and the future models of international collaboration. The report is based on over fifty in-depth
interviews with the key people at the forefront of what will come next.
Its timing is critical, given that traditional Indian student mobility patterns have changed, that the
UK faces new competition in research cooperation and as gaps are widening between industry
demands and higher education provision. In addition, the national elections in India this year, and in
the UK in 2015, are likely to provide many policy changes to navigate through.
India’s demographic trend means it will soon overtake China as the world’s largest population, and
with an average GDP annual growth of 8% over the last decade, its middle classes that demand
higher education will swell to over 500 million people in the next ten years. India’s higher education
system, originally designed to serve the elite, will now have to serve the people. Innovation
and change are required and understanding that change will be essential. This report not only
takes a look at what is coming next in India but makes informed recommendations in areas for collaboration.