Govt launches ‘Study in India’ portal to attract foreign students

Context

The Government has launched the ‘Study in India (SII)’ portal to offer a one-stop solution for student registrations and visa applications, in line with vision of establishing India as a global education hub.

About the Portal:

• Study in India Portal is a dedicated website that will provide comprehensive information about the Indian Higher Education Institutions (HEIs).
• The website will illustrate academic programs covering but not limited to undergraduate (UG), postgraduate (PG), Doctoral level programs as well as courses in Indian Knowledge System like Yoga, Ayurveda, classical arts etc.
• The website-portal will present information about the academic facilities, research support, and related information.
• The new website will now have the provision for students to apply in more than one institute/course of their choice.
• The new portal will provide an integrated one-stop solution for student registration and visa application process.
• The portal is guided by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
  • The NEP 2020 envisages global institutions to be promoted through special efforts, research collaboration and student exchanges between Indian institutions.

The UGC (Academic Collaboration between Indian and Foreign Higher Educational Institution to offer Twinning Joint Degree, and Dual Degree Programmes) Regulations, 2022 clearly brings forth various arrangements between Indian institutions and foreign institutions for academic collaboration.

 Key Features:

• Partnership with Premier Education Institutes: The Study in India programme involves partnership with educational institutes fulfilling one of the following criteria:
  • National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF)ranking (<=100)
  • National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) accreditation score (>=3.01)
  • Institutes of National Importance (INI)
• This ensures premier institutions being the partner to enrolling international students coming to study in India.
• The Study in India programme offers a streamlined and well-organized application process for international students seeking higher education opportunities in Indian Higher Education Institutes.

Significance:

• Simplifying procedure of admission: From registration to visa approval and selecting desired courses or institutions, the portal will simply the entire journey of the international students wishing to study in India.
• Exploring cultural exchanges: The presence of international students will also benefit the domestic students by connecting them more closely to globalizing world and prepare them better form the global workplace.
• Promoting Indian education system: Implementation of NEP2020 has already initiated entrance of foreign universities in India and opening of international campuses of our premier institutions.

Why such initiative?

• Not only will the presence of foreign students add to a great diverse learning environment in the Indian institution but it will also enhance the global rankings of our institutions as the number of international students is an important parameter in most rankings today.
• Moreover, the Indian higher education industry can take immense pride in contributing some valuable numbers positively to the GDP of the country.

Study in India Programme: Study in India is a flagship program of the Government of India, under the aegis of the Ministry of Education (MoE). The Study in India programme aims to increase the number of international students in India. The program also envisions promoting India as the preferred study destination, providing affordable and quality education comparable with global standards thereby contributing to improving the overall quality improvement in higher education. India being one of the largest higher education system in the world, our universities offers a diverse range of courses catering to the evolving needs of the global workforce. The Study in India programme seeks to facilitate international students’ access to these courses and showcase the country’s academic excellence.