Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) will open entrance tests to foreign students in eight countries for undergraduate and postgraduate studies, including Pakistan, Dubai, Sri Lanka, Singapore, and Dubai, starting from 2017, reported The Hindustan Times.
The ministries of External Affairs and Human Resource Development took the decision.
Currently, entry tests held outside of India are only open to Indian nationals in 18 IITs.
“This is the first time we have planned to admit foreign students by holding tests abroad. To begin with, we will admit students from the JEE/GATE exams to be conducted in 2017,” said a senior Ministry of Human Resource Development official.
Eligible students will be selected through a common entrance exam administered by the IITs with the help of Indian missions.
Indian students need not worry about greater competition for admissions as seats for foreign students are additional. Foreign students will also pay higher fees compared to Indian students, whose fees are subsidised.
The Indian government is keen to draw foreign students to its IITs to boost international rankings.
The Ministry of External Affairs will grant student visas for the duration of the period of study rather than require annual renewals.
Since the first test launching the initiative will be held in 2017, preparation to reach out to students is already underway as IIT Mumbai has been ordered to prepare promotional material.
The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) will be the nodal agency on behalf of the MEA for the tests.
Opening the entrance test to Pakistanis means that admissions are up for grabs, but the question of acceptance ─ to the academic programme and the student body ─ still stands, and the treatment and security of Pakistani students will also remain an issue.
