Emphasising the need to have patience while building partnerships between Indian and international universities, Meena Saxena, director, International Linkages, NMIMS, highlighted that the relationship would “never be equal from the very start” at The PIE in Mumbai conference on July 26.

“Building relationships between Indian and international HEIs is a marathon, not a sprint. Institutions need to have a value proposition to be extremely clear about what they are offering. There might be more give and take between the institutions but the relationship can’t be considered equal from day one,” said Saxena, while addressing the audience at The PIE’s first-ever international event in India. 

According to Saxena, Indian and international partners need to start with small yet ambitious goals. 

“There will be times when there are a lot of activities and sometimes things just go down, institutions just need to be patient. I would suggest up-and-coming institutions to initiate guest lectures, dual degree programmes, and maintain communication with their partners as they build the relationship,” stated Saxena, who added that faculty also plays an important role in building partnerships.  

The panel – moderated by Vinita Desai, Acumen’s senior advisor, recruiting strategies and partnerships, supporting Lehigh University USA, India – saw stakeholders discussing the positives and challenges in nurturing international partnerships. 

“Undoubtedly India has become the epicentre, especially due to the sheer volume of youth population in the country. Our university partners have also showcased India as a top priority market,” said Sagar Bahadur, Acumen‘s executive director, India and South Asia. 

There is a change of vision in partnerships between Indian and international institutions, especially since the advent of the National Education Policy, according to Bahadur. 

“Historically, Indian and international institutions have always worked together, more so in student transfers or student recruitments and mobility. The NEP has brought a clearer framework on how an international university can work in India and that has led to a change in discussions with our partners,” stated Bahadur. 

“We are now discussing pursuing joint degrees and campuses in India through the UGC or the GIFT city model.” 

Brunel University, a prominent public research university, is one of many UK institutions with a successful internationalisation story in India. 

“Indian students make up the largest proportion of all students at Brunel ,with a year-on-year growth rate of 25%. India is very central to our internationalisation platform,” said Jonathan Wastling, deputy vice chancellor, Brunel University. 

While answering a question on the role India plays in Brunel’s global strategy, Wastling stated that the challenge now is to translate the interest in India into something more tangible. 

“Our challenge as an institution is to translate the interest from a very large number of students, pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate courses and even research, into the next steps. Opportunity here is massive, and the landscape has transformed tremendously. That’s incredibly exciting for Brunel,” he said. 

The NEP has brought a clearer framework on how an international university can work in India and that has led to a change in discussions with our partners

Sagar Bahadur, Acumen

Coventry University, which has signed MOUs with IIT Bombay and Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management, has been able to set up a joint collaboration on global research projects between institutions. 

On developing pathways to international collaboration, the university’s regional managing director, India hub, Leena Arora Kukreja, elaborated on some key aspects. 

“When it comes to creating partnerships with institutions such as IIT Bombay and GITAM, it is important to have multiple touchpoints between the universities. We have focused on creating periodic visits from both institutes to visit labs and research facilities, while also encouraging meetings between VCs and deputy VCs to explore areas of funding,” she said. 

Just months after building a global hub in New Delhi, Coventry is now looking to partner with Australia’s Deakin University, which is one of the first foreign institutions to build a campus in India’s GIFT city. 

“Our partnership with Deakin is a great example as even before the MOU was signed, teams in both institutions were talking to each other and identifying joint projects,” stated Kukreja, who added that dual PhDs with newer IITs are also in focus. 

The need for funding also became an important talking point among the panellists, who termed it a challenging process. 

“Apart from maintaining international partners, fundraising is a challenging aspect. In the past two years we were able to raise €2 million, which has been possible because of our partnership with several universities,” said Saxena. 

NMIMS has been able to score funding from the British Council, in partnership with Bristol University, Erasmus, and Open Science, according to Saxena. 

“Doing all of this in the first year would not be possible as a lot of universities here don’t belong to IITs and IIMs so they are largely focused on teaching. With the government’s mandate now moving towards research, a lot of us have started investing.”  

“Funding is important and it is being assessed which areas need them, from semiconductors to net zero goals,” added Kukreja. 

Building an ecosystem to “get your house in order” is also a significant aspect of international partnerships, said Wastling while addressing the audience. 

“The general strategy as an institution is to understand how you can match your research aspirations, choose your partners, develop a network, and create a recognition outside,” he suggested. 

“The question also remains if partnerships in India can raise their profile together rather than just acting alone.”