If you are aware of the topography of Gurugram, you would not have missed out the point that its Golf Course stretch in the past decade has evolved as a premier location with real estate assets of all kinds. High end residential societies (some of them even defining signposts of best in the luxury segment nationally), corporate offices and commercial clusters are now the key attributes of the location. Come August and the location will add one more asset to its portfolio. UK-based leading higher education institute Southampton University, which is counted among top 100 institutes in the world, is opening a full-fledged campus in the extension stretch of Golf Course Road.
“Our university started in Southampton and has since grown into a globally recognised institution,” says Deborah Gill, professor & VP (education), University of Southampton. “We were awarded a Royal Charter by the Queen in the first year of her reign, officially becoming a degree-awarding university in 1952. Today, we are a multi-faculty university with 25,000 students across our two campuses. We offer 350 undergraduate and postgraduate programs with strengths in STEM fields, including computer science and artificial intelligence”. The institute has been a founder member of the Russell group, an elite consortium of research-intensive universities in the UK. It is commencing its Indian journey with four UG and two PG courses. In India, the courses offered in the first year would be: BSc Business Management; BSc Accounting & Finance; BSc Computer Science and BSc Economics and PG courses on MSc International Management and MSc Finance.
A full-fledged campus
For Southampton University, India will be the third port of call in terms of establishing a presence with a full-fledged campus. Apart from its home turf, the institute had earlier established a campus in Malaysia and, now, it is all set to make a debut in India. It, however, has various research and dual degrees collaboration with leading institutes across the world including some premier higher education units in India. “We established our first international branch campus in Malaysia 12 years ago, marking a significant milestone in our global expansion,” informs Kieron Broadhead, deputy VP, operations, University of Southampton. “In addition to this, we have developed strategic partnerships with leading universities worldwide for research collaborations, teaching exchanges, and joint degree programmes. Notably, we have an ongoing collaboration with IIT Madras, focusing on dual degrees and joint research initiatives”.
Meanwhile, Southampton University’s arrival is being viewed as an important development. With one of the fastest growing economies in the world having set the target of doubling its gross enrolment ratio (GER) to give a decisive push to higher studies within a decade’s time, the observers have been talking about the scope of quantitative escalation in the capacity. At the same time, there has also been buzz about leading foreign universities with a sizable population of Indian students (in their original campuses) eventually setting up their shops at their doorsteps. This is slated to strengthen the qualitative higher studies regime in the country. As part of this drive, some institutes have agreed to open their campuses in the GIFT City in Gujarat and now Southampton is arriving in India though it has chosen a location (Gurugram) which, among other things, is today also known as a higher education hub. “Southampton University’s maiden attempt to start a campus in India is a landmark attempt in Indian higher education,” observes Harivansh Chaturvedi, director general, IILM. “First, it is starting its operations with all statutory permissions. It is bringing here the long legacy of the UK University in providing quality education. Hopefully, its future success in Indian terrain will bring more reputed universities in India”.
And making a difference on the quality front is what Southampton University management is promising as its debut date draws close in India. “We are committed to maintaining the same academic standards and curriculum across all our campuses, ensuring that students receive a globally recognised degree. Our programmes are designed to be employer-focussed, emphasising skill development, sustainability and international exposure. This flexibility allows us to cater to students who may not be ready to study abroad but still seek a globally relevant education,” emphasises Gill. The Indian unit of Southampton University will be spearheaded by Vishal Talwar, a well-known name in the higher education sphere in the country, who has previously been at the helm of operations of some leading private institutes.