Unlike earlier models of transnational education, which relied heavily on visiting faculty, foreign universities setting up campuses in India are creating full-time academic positions while supplementing them with faculty seconded from overseas campuses and visiting professors.
The University of Bristol has appointed 11 full-time faculty members for its Mumbai campus and plans further recruitment. The university said local faculty would teach alongside academics visiting from Bristol for short-, medium-, and long-term assignments, while academic governance, quality assurance, and degree awards would remain under Bristol’s existing institutional framework. The institution also plans joint research programmes between its UK and Mumbai campuses.
“We have a significant India-based plan to open up opportunities for local faculty to be based full-time in Mumbai,” Professor Michele Acuto, Pro-Vice Chancellor for global engagement at the University of Bristol, told Business Standard.
Victoria University said its Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR) campus would recruit faculty from Indian higher education institutions alongside academics seconded from Australia, internationally recruited faculty, and visiting industry professionals. The university said the curriculum and pedagogy would mirror those at its Melbourne campus, while grading appeals would be handled by review committees in India.
“Our faculty for Victoria University India’s Delhi-NCR campus will consist of experienced academics from top Indian higher education institutions, seconded faculty from Victoria University Australia, and global faculty from top institutions across the world, as well as visiting and guest faculty from the industry,” Abhishek Sharma, chief operating officer, Victoria University India, told Business Standard.
The University of Wollongong India is also planning to expand its academic workforce as enrolments grow, with further recruitment expected from August. Campus Director Nimay Kalyani told Business Standard that most new appointments would be India-based, supplemented by faculty from the university’s campuses in Australia, Dubai, and Malaysia. “The majority of these appointments are expected to be filled by India-based academics, including highly accomplished faculty returning to India after international careers, as well as academics from the Indian higher education sector,” Kalyani added.
Faculty recruited in India would be employed directly by the university under locally compliant contracts, Kalyani said. Recruitment would be governed by Indian regulatory requirements alongside the university’s global academic policies and Australia’s quality assurance framework.
The University of Wollongong, Deakin University, and the University of Southampton have already begun academic operations in India. A second wave of foreign universities, including the University of Bristol, Victoria University, the University of Liverpool, and the University of York, is preparing to open campuses.
Emeritus, which supports the India operations of seven foreign universities, including the University of Bristol, the University of Liverpool, the University of York, and Victoria University, handles non-academic functions such as campus administration. Faculty recruitment, however, is carried out directly by the universities, said Avnish Singhal, president, India, Asia-Pacific, and Middle East consumer business at Emeritus.
According to Singhal, universities use the same faculty search panels and recruitment processes for India appointments as they do at their home campuses. “It is usually a mix of faculty. There will be academics seconded from the home campus for six months to a year or more. There will also be globally recruited faculty who relocate to India or are already teaching in other countries, as well as high-quality local faculty, because the campuses are serving the Indian market. It’s a healthy mix of all three,” Singhal added.
He added that senior academic leadership, including the provost, is typically recruited globally or seconded from the home campus.
The hiring plans indicate that foreign universities are building permanent academic teams in India rather than relying primarily on visiting faculty, even as academic oversight and senior leadership continue to be anchored at their home campuses.
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