Foreign varsities need UGC nod to set up campuses in India

New Delhi: Foreign universities will need the University Grants Commission's nod to set up campuses in India and the initial approval will be for 10 years, the panel's chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said on Thursday. The UGC released draft regulations that will allow foreign universities to set up campuses in India with autonomy in deciding their admission processes and fee structure. These foreign universities will only be able to offer full-time courses in physical mode. The higher education regulator released the draft UGC (Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India) Regulations, 2023, and sought suggestions from the stakeholders till January 18. The regulations are likely to be notified by January end.

The guidelines have been prepared in line with the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, which said top global universities will be facilitated to operate in India.

The policy said a legislative framework facilitating such entry will be put in place and that such universities will be given special dispensation regarding regulatory, governance, and content norms on par with India's autonomous institutions. The UGC chairperson said the regulations will provide Indian students access to high-quality international education. The draft regulations said that foreign universities shall not set up campuses without UGC's approval. They define the eligibility criteria and said foreign higher educational institutions (FHEIs) should either have secured a position within the top 500 of overall /subject-wise global rankings as decided by the UGC or should be reputed institutions in their countries. The institutions will have the autonomy to evolve their admission processes and criteria to admit domestic and foreign students and decide the fee structure, which should be transparent and reasonable. "Based on an evaluation process, full or partial need-based scholarships may be provided by the FHEI from funds such as endowment funds, alumni donations, tuition revenues, and other sources." The application process for these universities will be online, and they will submit the required information on the UGC portal with their applications. The universities willing to apply will also submit an undertaking saying the quality of education imparted on Indian campuses will be at par with that of their countries of origin.