Business Standard poses a question and solicits responses from students across India for their weekly column “ Student’s Corner”
The topic for last week was “Do you think inviting business houses to set up higher education institutions in India will help better the higher education scenario?”
The current scenario of higher education in India has become a mere game of money. Inviting business houses will worsen the situation, for they will look forward to money making for which again seats will be sold. Surely India lacks in opportunity and infrastructure but inviting business hubs won’t solve the problem. In last couple of years many engineering colleges have cropped up and still the quality has not increased. India surely needs quantity for its huge population but not at the cost of quality.
Indian institutions has been delivering best quality of higher education for the students. Students who go for higher education outside India also been drastically decreasing .By inviting business houses to setup in India, it will cause a huge difference in cost for the same courses providing by our institutions. It will not improve the quality education, rather it will improve only the essence of a foreigner in the minds of Indian students.
— Vinod PV, ICFAI, Kerala.
While inviting business houses to set up higher education institutes would surely improve the quality of higher education, it is necessary to ensure equity by providing financial support to the weaker sections of the society. Business houses are more concerned with profit maximisation as they charge exorbitant amounts in the name of course fee. Moreover as ‘education is for all’ so quality and equity both have to be looked at before increasingly allowing the business houses to step into the field of education, which provide a better learning in a global context through international collaborations with universities abroad.
— Devika Singhal, IBS Gurgaon
Institutions should be invited because in India the need for education is changing with time . The pressure on private schools to take and provide for students of less privileged backgrounds means the students are increasingly diverse. Private schools are institutionalized, but this need not necessarily be a bad thing.Many opportunities are available through a private education which a state school will not provide, sport, music etc. Exploring beyond the curriculum is a key part of the ethos and can help expand student’s minds.
— Ketan Thakur, IBS Pune.
Companies have a lot of power in the community and the economy. The capital required to set up or fund institutes of higher education is in plenty with the business houses. It is a win-win situation for both students and the companies, the students get the best of infrastructure, education and guidance in form of guest lectures by corporate leaders running these institutions. On the other hand business houses get a good chance to build their brand much stronger by opening these institutes under CSR initiatives and in turn get skilled human resource needed to run their companies.
— Varun Kapoor, IBS Hyderabad.
If a corporate sets up an educational institute, one may get 2 years of full time education – cum – training. The office would be merged with the institute. A special department where the seniors and on field officers give us lecturers. Specialization is from beginning and every student is given a tiny work or other. For instance, students are asked to sell a pen worth Rs. 500 by the organization and the lecturer teaches us about differential pricing and market segmentation then. This could be encouraged.
— Vivek Kumar Debuka, IBS Kolkata.
The corporate world plays a major role in providing the right feedback and requirement for today’s managers. How well they need to be trained and be prepared for the challenges of localisation and globalisation in today’s corporate industry and amidst stiff competition. Big business houses ultimately know their own requirement and accordingly they play a major role in shaping the managers who will lead tomorrow. Therefore, it is very important to have the involvement of business houses to set up higher education institutions in India and it will also definitely improve the higher education scenario in the right context.
— Stephan Rodrigues, IBS Mumbai.
In India, corporate sector is the biggest user of educated manpower but very few are ready to contribute in the educational sector. Inviting them to set up higher educational institutions will not only create healthy competition among students but also encourage them to take higher education. Moreover, quality of education provided in private colleges is way better than any government college. Establishment and expansion of educational institutions have been mainly shouldered by state. So inviting business houses to set up educational institutions will expand the horizons of knowledge to meet the demand of resources in various sectors.
— Abhishek Fanse, IBS Hyderabad.
India at present is facing a opacity in education sector. For instance, if an MBA aspirant wants to get enrolled himself into a premier B-school, he/she has to pay high capitation fees, unless he is able to secure a seat through merits. So if business houses setup their institution, there would be augmentation in the this opaqueness and thus would accelerate the burden on these students. The possible solution to this standpoint is that if government, in consensus with these companies, start institutes with lateral funding to them then it can reduce students’ burden.
— Vivek Kamalia, IBS Mumbai.
The corporate sector should set up educational institutions because the amount of public resources available for health and education is limited. The working group on higher and technical education for the 12th plan projected a resource requirement of Rs 4,13,368 crore. So allowing funds from business houses will initiate improvement in quality education with technological up-gradation. However, these houses should not make the institutes another business ventures like their factories. They have to think of the social and service aspects. Monetary returns should not occupy their minds while providing education to the society.
— Devang P Gandhi, IBS Mumbai.