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UNDERSTANDING THE INDIAN EDUCATION
SYSTEM
India today is the second
largest higher education network in the world. Universities in India are set up
by the Central or State Governments by means of legislation, while colleges are
established by either the State Governments or private bodies / trusts. All
colleges are affiliated to some university.
The different types of
universities are:
Central or State Universities --
while the former are funded directly by the Ministry of Human Resource
Development, the latter are set up and funded by the various state governments.
Deemed Universities -- which
enjoy the same academic status and privileges as a university. Examples are the
Deccan College of Post Graduate and Research Institute, Pune; Tata Institute of
Social Sciences, Mumbai; Indian Institute of Sciences, Bangalore; etc.
Institutions of National
Importance -- are university-level institutions that are established or
designated by Acts of Parliament and funded by the Central Government. These
include the Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management
and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, etc.
Most
universities are 'affiliating universities', which prescribe to the affiliated
colleges the admission criteria and courses of study, hold examinations and
award degrees.
University
departments impart postgraduate education and conduct and promote research in a
variety of disciplines.
Undergraduate
and, to some extent, postgraduate instruction is imparted by the colleges
affiliated to a particular university.
Classification of Colleges
Colleges
in India come under four different categories. This categorization is done on
the basis of the kind of courses offered by them (professional/ vocational) /
their ownership status( Private/ Government) or their relationship with the
university (affiliated/university owned).
University Colleges
These colleges are managed by the university itself and situated mostly in the
university campus.
Government Colleges
The government colleges are few, only about 15-20 percent of the total. They
are managed by state governments. As in
case of other colleges, the university to which these colleges are affiliated,
conducts their examination, lays down the courses of studies and awards the
degrees.
Professional Colleges
The professional colleges are mostly in the disciplines of medicine,
engineering and management. There are few for other disciplines too. They are
sponsored and managed either by the government or by private initiative.
Privately Managed colleges
About 70%
of the colleges are founded by the privately owned trusts or societies. But
these institutes are also governed by the rules and regulations of the
university they are affiliated to. Though initially started up as a private
initiative, the state government also funds these colleges.
Courses offered at Higher Education
Level
Indian Universities offer various
courses in the following disciplines.
Engineering and Technology
Computer Sciences, Information
Technology, Biotechnology and Bio-informatics.
Medical, Dental, Nursing, Pharmacy and
Paramedical.
Agriculture / Veterinary Sciences,
Dairy Technology and Fisheries.
Arts & Fine Arts, Humanities,
Social Sciences, Commerce, Science and Management.
Hotel Management & Catering
Technology, Travel and Tourism.
Fashion Design & Technology.
The academic programmes are offered at
Vocational Diploma, Undergraduate, Postgraduate and Doctoral levels.
Distance Education
In India, there are 66 distance
education institutions functioning in 60 universities besides, 11 open
universities offering distance education programmes. India Gandhi National Open
University (IGNOU), New Delhi is one of the mega open universities in the world
and caters to around 1 million students around the world.
Vocational Education
Vocational Education at
Certificate level are offered by 1500 vocational institutions in the country in
the areas of agriculture, business, commerce, health and para-medical, home
science and humanities in addition to engineering trades.
Courses and Degrees
Undergraduate Courses:-
Undergraduate courses, in general, are of three years leading to Bachelor
degrees. The universities and higher education institutes award Bachelor's
degree 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. Most of the engineering courses are for a duration of four years,
while the medical courses are for a duration of about five and a half years.
Postgraduate Courses:-
Postgraduate Courses in Arts, Science, Engineering and Medicine are usually for
two years ending with the award of a Master's degree. In some specialized
fields for instance, for a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) degree, the possession
of a Bachelor's degree in any discipline is required before admission can be
obtained.
Some
universities and higher institutes offer a diploma or a certificate course of
shorter duration courses in disciplines like Engineering, Agricultural Sciences
and Computer Technology. However the duration of these courses varies from
university to university.
Doctoral Courses:-
Doctoral courses like M Phil and PhD are available only at
the university colleges. These courses involve research work under a
chosen/allotted guide, leading to thesis submission and viva-voce.
Successful completion of PhD course designates the title of 'Doctor' to the individual.