In what is being seen as a positive step towards the internalisation of education in line with NEP 2020, the UGC has given the approval for regulations that will now entitle Indian higher educational institutions to offer joint, dual or twinning programmes in collaboration with foreign educational institutions. Speaking to the media at a virtual conference, M Jagadesh Kumar, UGC chairman, revealed that the Indian HEIs can collaborate with their foreign counterparts for credit recognition and transfer, twinning programmes and also dual degree programmes.

“This system of Indian students being permitted to obtain credits from foreign higher educational institutions for the award of degrees in India was also discussed in NEP 2020. In case of twinning programmes, an Indian HEI can collaborate with a foreign HEI, following which a student can physically go to a foreign HEI, stay there for a semester or two and earn credits up to a limit of 30% of the credits required for the programme. As part of the same initiative, foreign students can come and stay in India, and obtain similar credits of up to 30% as per the requirement of the degree programme. This will help Indian students to study in a foreign country while they get the degree from the Indian institution. The foreign HEI will give a certificate of recognition to certify the credits earned for the component for which the student has earned credits abroad,” Kumar explained.

In case of the joint degree programmes, the Indian and foreign HEIs will have to sign an MoU to establish the collaborations. The Indian and foreign students have to earn more than 30% credits each, and in this case, the degree for Indian students will be provided by the Indian institute, while the foreign educational institute will give a certificate for the credits obtained,” Kumar said.
The third is the dual degree programme, where apart from the MoU signed between two partner institutions, Indian students will have to do more than 30% of the credits and vice versa in case of foreign students. The Indian student will earn one degree from the Indian institution and another from a foreign higher education institution though the degree is the same unlike a double degree programme, Kumar said.

Highlighting the fact that India has 4 crore students in Indian HEIs and their numbers are likely to increase over the years, Kumar said it is important to widen access to higher quality education and give Indian students the opportunity to acquire multidisciplinary education and skills both in India and oversees. The regulation will also attract foreign students to India as a study destination, and in due course improve the standing of Indian HEIs in global rankings. The regulation will further enhance foreign exposure and world view of Indian students, in addition to promoting faculty exchange and sharing of global best practices, he added.

“Lakhs of students go abroad for higher education, but this regulation can help students stay in India and acquire foreign degrees while also putting a check on the outward foreign exchange,” Kumar added.

To maintain quality of higher education, only those Indian HEIs that have a NAAC grading of 3.01 and above or in the top 1000 QS Rankings or THE rankings will be eligible for such collaborations. The University listed in the top 100 under National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) can also qualify for the collaborations. “In such cases, the ‘entitled institutions’ can offer the programmes approved by their statutory bodies and councils without approval from the UGC though they have to notify the UGC about the MoU and the type of programmes they are offering as part of the collaborative programmes,” Kumar said.

These twining and dual degree programmes will have to be offered in the conventional physical modes, no online and ODL mode will be allowed. “This means Indian students will have to physically go to campuses abroad for higher education and vice versa in case of foreign students. In terms of the fee structure, both Indian and foreign entities will have to create a mechanism to fix the fees at the time of admission and make it known in the public domain. The fees have to be affordable and accessible to all sections of the society, Kumar emphasised. The institutes will have to work out suitable exit modes for the students if the need arises so that they do not suffer in the long run, he added. The overall aim is to increase diversity and richness in the Indian HEIs, Kumar concluded.