All IITs International Relations Conclave- 7 Global IITs To Emerge, 1000+ Scholarships & Fellowships Proposed!

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) are top engineering institute in the nation. Every year lakhs of students appear for the JEE to get admission to the IITs and other top engineering colleges. It is safe to say that for IITs, their reputation precedes the name. The institutes even have permanent real estate in the NIRF ranking list. And now the authorities want to cross borders with the IIT legacy. A 17-member IIT council has been set up to look into the matter. Following this, the fourth All IITs International Relations Conclave also saw propositions regarding possible international scholarships and fellowships to build on the International stature and ranking. 

To begin with, the council made a few suggestions, including a list of 7 countries that fit the criteria for launching international IITs.  Listed ahead are all the details of the criteria on which the suggestions have been based. You will also find the propositions made in the Conclave.

Indian International Institute of Technology: The Committee

The news of the IIT Council considering international launches isn't out of the blue. In fact, some IITs have been toying with the idea for quite some time now. This includes IIT Madras which has been considering authorities in Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Tanzania in the matter. IIT Delhi has also been in talks with the Department of Education & Knowledge in Abu Dhabi with the intention of making IIT global. 

But this is the first time, that a formal committee has been set up to look into the matter. The committee is chaired by Dr. K. Radhakrishnan. Other members of the committee are- the Directors from IIT Madras, Delhi, and Kharagpur, Directors of the Indian Institute of Science, ISM Dhanbad, Kanpur, and Guwhati. Also serving on the committee are vice-chancellors of the Delhi University, JNU, Banaras Hindu University, University of Hyderabad, and the International Relations Dean from IIT Bombay.  

IITs Go Global- New Beginnings

The 17-member committee set a string of parameters on which they adjudged the possibility of international IIT campuses. These included 

• The amount of interest and commitment from the countries
• Ecosystems and the ability to recruit elite staff
• Academic lineage
• Regulatory requirements
• Potential branding & reputation advantages for India. 

Based on the assessments, the committee has suggested the following viable options for launching the Indian International Institute of Technology brand name:

As per some reports, the mission has received collaboration suggestions from the Univerisity of Oxford, University of Birmingham, University of Cambridge, King’s College London, and University College London. In addition, IIT Delhi seemed to be the top choice for students from Egypt, Malaysia, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. But the committee has cautioned the authorities against rushing into anything. They have come up with a 5 steps to go about launching the Indian International Institute of Technology.

Plan for International Indian Institutes of Technology

The 5-step plan suggested by the committee at the IIT Council is:

• Select location and attach a mentoring Higher Education Institution (HEI)
• Selecting the campus site
• Curating academic programs to be offered
• Recruiting quality faculty and staff
• Outreach planning, and seed fund mobilization

Indian International Institute of Technology: Operations

The committee has also made suggestions regarding how the international IIT campuses should be operated. To begin with, one of the primary suggestions is to only launch residential campuses, conditional upon the host country making necessary provisions and providing support. They have also suggested that these international campuses cater to the local populace of the host country, and cap the number of Indian students at these campuses at 20%. 

All IITs International Relations Conclave - Scholarship And Fellowships

The fourth edition of the Conclave was recently conducted at IIT Gandhinagar. A proposal was made at the conclave with the aim to quadruple the number of international students across all IITs (national, and proposed international). The idea is to boost the recruitment of international students at the nation's premier institutions. In particular, bringing the percentage up to 5% from the current 1% at the IITs. This falls in line with one of the primary goals of the New Education Policy, that is, internationalization. The proposal seeks to accomplish the goal by offering targeting scholarships and fellowships to international students. 

It includes creating 1000 annual scholarships for international students across IITs. Also creating 200 overseas fellowships for UG students at IIT to pursue 6-8 week internship experiences at international universities or corporate labs. Last but not the least, 100 study abroad fellowships for IIT Ph.D. to spend a semester abroad.

What are your thoughts on the decision to take the IIT legacy and campuses- GLOBAL? Will this add to the already renowned IIT brand name?

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