International branch campuses and the ‘new global regionalism’

Elite Despite the hype, elite US and UK unis are not be lining up to open a campus in India. A closer look reveals Asian universities are the most prolific in establishing branch campuses in neighbouring countries under what is being called "new global re

In October 2009, the Hindu newspaper reported that "nearly 50 foreign universities" were in a queue to open campuses in India, pending passage of the FEP bill (CR, 22.03.10). This enthusiasm peaked at the time of human resource development Minister Kapil Sibal's visit to the US that same month. But it was based on a misunderstanding of the intentions of the great majority of foreign universities and was bound to be deflated. Ivy League presidents were subsequently quoted as saying that "you can't replicate a 300-year-old university in a remote location", "we don't want to set up ... a weaker...