Indian state used to be solely responsible for
education, but a 1976 constitutional amendment
made the government partly responsible.
Instead of just determining the standards in two
areas of education, the government became
partners in responsibility with the states.
the structure and design of education is still
basically the responsibility of the states, the
government is responsible for the quality of the
education. The government's interests had
rested mainly in secondary education, more
specifically universities and colleges, until a
movement in the 1990s sought to improve primary
education and adult literacy.
in education for women is something the
government has attempted to achieve. Since
independence, the literacy rate of females has
jumped up sharply from 7.2 percent in 1951 to
39.29 percent in 1991. As of 1997, the
literacy rate of females made it over the 50th
percentile. The same year, the literacy
rate of males was 73 percent
From time immemorial, India has been a center for
learning. Thousands of years ago, great scholars used to teach through the
scriptures. A variety of subjects such as philosophy, religion, medicine,
literature, drama and arts, astrology, mathematics and sociology were taught and
masterpieces on these subjects have been written.
Under the Buddhist influence,
education was available to virtually everyone who wanted it and some world
famous institutions arose out of the monasteries, such as, Nalanda, Vikramshila
and Takshashila (now in Pakistan). Nalanda is especially noteworthy, flourishing
from 5th to 13th century AD. It had at one time about ten thousand resident
students and teachers on its roll, which included Chinese, Sri Lankan, Korean
and other international scholars.
During the 11th century, the Muslims established
elementary and secondary schools, "Madrassahs" or colleges and even
universities at cities like Delhi, Lucknow and Allahabad, using Arabic mostly as
the medium of instruction.
During the mediaeval period, there was excellent
interaction between Indian and Islamic traditions in all fields of knowledge,
like theology, religion, philosophy, fine arts, painting, architecture,
mathematics, medicine and astronomy.
With the arrival of the British, 'is education
came into being with the help of the European missionaries. In 1817, Hindu
College was established in Calcutta. The Elphinstone Institution was set up in
1834 in Bombay. In 1857 three universities were set up at Calcutta, Madras and
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Since then, Western education has made steady advances in the country.
With 226 universities and thousands of colleges affiliated to them, 428
Engineering colleges and technological institutes, more than a 100 medical
colleges, scores of agricultural institutes and many other specialized centers
of learning and research in every subject and discipline, India can claim its
position as one of the leading countries providing quality higher education to
its people as well as to students and scholars coming from countries all over
Indian universities and institutes of higher
education and research today have made significant contribution to transmission
of knowledge and enquiry into frontiers of science and technology. In the field
of traditional subjects of arts and humanities as well as in pure sciences,
applied physics and chemistry, mathematics and in areas of technology, the
universities and higher institutes have been playing a leading role to transform
the country into a modern industrialised, technologically advanced state.
ushering of green revolution and tremendous progress in dairy development have
made India a major food-producing country on one hand; on the other hand, its
development of space technology, production and launching of indigenous
satellites, development of peaceful nuclear energy have brought it into the
forefront of technologically advanced nations to which a large number of
developing countries looks for training and guidance
The Indian universities and institutes of higher
learning have been playing their role to promote the needs and aspirations of
higher education and research to Indian students and scholars. These centers
have been extending their cooperation and friendship towards students of other
developing countries also, where facilities for higher studies and research are
Higher Education System in India Universities and specialized institutes are
the centers for higher learning in India. The studies and disciplines cover a
wide range of subjects from poetry to computer engineering to space research.
Most of the universities and higher centers of learning and research are
autonomous in function. A good number of universities have a federal structure
composed of affiliated colleges on one tier and the university departments on
The affiliated colleges teach, in general, undergraduate courses,
whereas the university departments conduct postgraduate teaching and advanced
research. The university decides the criteria of admission into colleges and
coordinates the first degree examination in the undergraduate programs and
award of degree.
Some other types of universities teach both undergraduate and postgraduate
courses in general disciplines as well as in technical and professional courses.
There are no affiliated colleges attached to them.
There is a third category of universities and institutions where technical
and professional courses are taught at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
Names like Indian Institute of Technology, Birla Institute of Technology, All
India Institute of Medical Sciences, Indian Forest Research Institute, Indian
Veterinary Research Institute can be quoted. Some institutes only offer
postgraduate and research courses such as Indian Agricultural Research Institute
and Post Graduate Institute of Medical Research.
The distinctiveness, flexibility and the quality of higher education in India
have been attracting more and more international students to come to Indian
universities. In contrast to the expensive university and higher education
offered in the USA, in the western European countries or in Australia, higher
education is still highly subsidized in India and therefore, affordable.
Further, students from developing countries find a greater sense of belonging
and confidence-sharing as they have many social and cultural values common with
Courses and Degrees
Undergraduate courses, in general, are of three years leading to the final
examinations. The universities and higher institutes award Bachelor's degrees in
Arts, Science, Commerce, etc. However, undergraduate courses leading to a first
degree in professional subjects like Engineering, Medicine, Dentistry and
Pharmacy are of a longer duration ranging from four to five and a half years.
Courses in Arts, Science and Medicine are of two years ending with a Master's
degree. For Engineering and Technology, it is of one and a half years. In some
specialized fields for instance, for a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) degree, the
possession of a Bachelor's degree in any other discipline is required before
admission can be obtained.
Some universities and higher institutes offer a diploma or a certificate
course of shorter duration in disciplines like Engineering, Agricultural
Sciences and Computer Technology. The duration of these courses varies from
university to university.
Eligibility for Admission
For admission to undergraduate courses, universities/institutes of higher
education in India require candidates to complete 12 years of schooling. They
should have passed in 5 subjects in the Senior Secondary or equivalent
examination. Candidates are expected to obtain 60-70% marks in their qualifying
examinations. For admission to undergraduate technical courses, candidates
should obtain, 75-80% in their qualifying examinations which should include the
subjects Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics and English. Admission
requirements to undergraduate pass courses are not very rigid. For technical and
professional courses at the undergraduate level, however, applicants can be
admitted against nominated seats/paid seats according to prescribed guidelines.
The universities in the country are autonomous and are free to establish
regulations of their own, related to acceptance of qualifications from countries
other than India. The Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has been accepted
as an accredited agency at the national level for undertaking the assessment of
foreign academic credentials.
The following examinations have been equated with
the Senior Secondary Examination (Class XII) in this country and is considered
to be the minimum admission requirement for the first degree program,
including professional disciplines:
GCE Examination of the UK with passes in five subjects at the ordinary
level (O level) and two subjects at the Advanced Level (A level). For
admission to first degree professional courses, three passes at A level in
Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics/ Biology are essential. Knowledge of English
is also compulsory for admission.
Baccalaureate Examination of France.
International Baccalaureate of Geneva.
High school graduation from the accredited institutions of the USA.
Intermediate/ Senior Secondary/ Higher Secondary/ Certificate level
Examination of the approved Board of Secondary Education in Bangladesh,
Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf
Twelve years of Secondary stage qualifications of National Examination
Board/ Council of the Ministries of Education of Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda,
Indian universities do not give blanket recognition to the degree/ diploma/
certificate awarded by foreign universities or educational boards. It is
therefore, advisable to apply for admission along with a copy of the syllabus of
the qualifying examination passed by an international student in his home
International students wishing to study at an Indian university are
advised to ascertain their eligibility from Indian diplomatic missions or refer
to the AIU publication "Equivalence of Foreign Degrees" available with
the Indian Missions in their country; or write to:
Evaluation and Information Unit
Association of Indian Universities,
AIU House, 16 Kotla Road, New Delhi-110 002. INDIA.
The Evaluation and Information Unit of AIU will evaluate the academic
program completed by the international student.
Universities and University Level Institutions in India
There are presently 226 university level institutions in India including
39 'Deemed universities.' Out of these 155 are traditional universities, 34
Agricultural Universities, (including Fisheries and Veterinary sciences,
Horticulture and Dairy Technology), 17 are Engineering and Technology
Universities including 6 Institutes of Technology, 14 Universities of
Medical Sciences and Technology, a National University of Law, Institute for
Population Sciences, Indian Statistical Institute, Indian Institute of
Science, 1 University for Journalism, 1 University for Ayurveda, 5
Universities for Women's Studies, 6 Sanskrit universities, 7 Open
Universities,7 Universities of Fine Arts and Music and 1 University of
History of Art, Conservation and Museology.
There are more than 8000 colleges affiliated to these universities and it
is estimated that nearly 5 million students are on roll. Out of the number
of colleges mentioned above 150 offer MBBS and higher degrees in medicine,
74 in Dentistry, 90 in Pharmacy, 62 in Nursing, 170 in Agriculture and
allied courses, 428 in Engineering, 116 in Ayurveda and 75 in Homeopathy.
BA, BSc, BCom, BEd, LLB, MA, MSc, MEd and other higher degrees in
disciplines of basic sciences, social sciences and humanities including
foreign languages, international relations, social studies, education and
law are offered at most of the conventional universities or colleges.
Master's courses in business management (MBA) and allied courses are offered
at 292 colleges/ institutes including 4 Institutes of Management, which are centers of advanced learning.
Along with constituent colleges of
universities, a large number of research centers of the Council of
Scientific and Industrial Research, Bhaba Atomic Research Center, Indian
Council of Agricultural Research, Indian Council of Medical Research, Indian
Council for Social Science Research are also affiliated to the university
system and offer research for doctoral and postdoctoral programs. A list
of universities and university level institutions in India is available at
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Medium of Instruction
In most of the universities the medium of instruction is English. Some
universities and colleges have switched over to Hindi and regional
languages. Postgraduate education is conducted in English at most of the centers. The medium of instruction is English for scientific, technical and