World Class

While studying in a foreign university that is ranked 16th globally, I was often asked why I chose the Australian National University (ANU) by my teachers. They half expected me to say wide eyed that I heard so much about the great education dished out there. I would disappoint them by saying that going to Australia was a childhood dream ever since I read “A Town like Alice”. A sis-in-law in Melbourne and an opportunity from the Government to have the Missus & Chathu along on a scholarship helped swing the decision.

In all fairness, I must say that I am not too enamoured by the education I received out there. I had to toil much more for grades in my Post Graduate Diploma in Management from MDI Gurgaon, 18 years back. Even a part time Law degree from Chennai needed some sustained hard work. This foreign Masters degree in Public Policy was a breeze. But I still rate the institution high for several reasons. While Indian colleges emphasize on memorizing, theoretical rigour and hard work, the Australians were high on fairness, transparency, maintenance of academic facilities, application oriented education, student’s capability to independently work and deliver. Do I welcome the advent of foreign universities to India? Considering that I am not supposed to voice my opinions on emerging government policies, I still can’t resist saying a thumping no. Two important reasons. One, only money spinners among foreign universities will be attracted to the idea of setting up shop here. So there would be no world class education as we have come to expect. Two, when we have global brands like IITs, NITs and IIMs, can’t we give them freedom to expand and establish more campuses independently in collaboration with State Governments and corporations? It is a no brainer that in due course we will be able to attract foreign students to this country. We have a reputation of having produced bright guys who did well globally. All we need to do is leave education to academicians and keep Babus/politicians out of it. Isn’t it ironical that most of the autonomous universities and professional colleges in India have been cornered by politicians? (with a liberal dose of help from Babus!!)

We should be able to replicate the administrative systems in foreign universities. In fact it is the easiest part. In ANU, the number of printouts that I could take from the online network printer during each semester was specified and anything above my quota has to be paid for. My identity card could secure me entry to buildings after University hours if I wanted to sit late and work on an assignment. Assignments are submitted online, and they are checked by “turnitin” software for academic honesty. The University offered a good quality of life. Libraries are extremely well maintained and computerised. Every facility is linked to our identity. Class rooms are bright, clean and well maintained. The lawns are neat and trimmed. Probably, our universities could train their administrators to replicate world class facilities here- at a much lower cost. The tougher part comes next. The Academic supervisors out there were fair in their assessment- no mean task, considering that in Australia, we were such a diverse group of students from all over the globe speaking in several accents. Fairness and transparency has to be built in over a period of time. For Indians that could be the real challenge.

It is surprising to hear icons of Indian software industry arguing for higher fees and autonomous, self-sustained universities so that students could take loans and pay for a world class education. They can always pay back the loans when they start working, they say. I disagree. I suspect a section officer in my Ministry can hardly afford to send his child to IIM even if he gets admission, if the fees were very high. We are just not that kind of people (who won’t mind taking a loan to give a pricey education for our kids). On a government Babu’s salary, it is a tough choice. So the fees need to be calibrated at an affordable level, with more scholarships and some government grants.

Lastly, education might be the next revolution waiting to happen. I can see it in my home state, children of auto rickshaw drivers, maid servants etc, struggling to educate their children for an Engineering or medical degree. It wasn’t like this in our time. The flip side of it is that the opportunities for vocational education and careers in blue collar have not kept pace. The not-so-bright among us ought to have opportunities for vocational education and lead a decent life, get married, educate their kids and move up in life. In Australia plumbers often earn more than doctors. Professional standards for any vocation are stringent and well defined out there. It is getting tougher to find a good professional plumber or carpenter in India these days. Plumbing is a demanding job that involves fixing toilets or in other words dealing with shit. A doctor isn’t insulated from that either…