The top delegation of 22 universities from the UK will be in India on a five-day visit to scout for New Education Policy (NEP). The delegation will be studying aligned collaborations, according to top officials from the British government. The delegation of UK higher education leaders will hold meetings with key state and central government officials to re-energise the relationship between the higher education sectors in both countries.
The British Council, the UK's international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities, will host the delegation. The delegation will have representatives from 22 UK universities, Universities UK International (UUKi), Department for Education (DfE UK) and Department for International Trade (DIT UK) to meet Indian government bodies and university leaders.
Mr. Steve Smith, International Education Champion, UK Government, stated that the India-UK education relationship has emerged at the tail end of the pandemic stronger than ever. Over the next few days, the delegation will focus on expanding the scope and scale of India-UK partnerships in a range of thematic areas, through different models of collaboration such as Transnational Education (TNE), dual degrees, knowledge and expertise sharing, amongst others.Â
He further added that the delegation representatives are eager to take the opportunities being opened up through the implementation of NEP 2020 and are confident that they will be supported and guided through our interaction with government officials across different states. He further added that in the next four days, the delegation will interact with ten states and hope to lay the foundation for many strategic partnerships.
The delegation will discuss the developments between the two countries over the past few years since the last visit to India. The delegation will focus on the need for greater India-UK collaborations in the field of science, research and innovation to address shared global challenges and develop potential higher education collaboration opportunities, as noted in the NEP.Â
The delegation will also further discuss the opportunities for UK universities to explore collaboration with Indian businesses and employers and discuss current trends in two-way international student recruitment and mobility in India and the UK. It will also discuss migration and mobility partnerships, mutual recognition of higher education qualifications and more initiatives for the internationalisation of higher education.
Ms. Barbara Wickham OBE, director India, British Council, stated that the UK is India’s strongest partner in the space of education, research and innovation. She added that the strategic India-UK Roadmap 2030 announced by the two prime ministers’ spotlights greater bilateral collaboration to strengthen intellectual exchange so that great minds from both nations continue addressing global challenges through science and research.