Page 27 - EducationWorld March 2023

Prof. Shyam Menon Sunil Kant Munjal
Vice Chancellor Chancellor, BMU

Are the liberal arts elitist? “Those institutions of specialisations, it is important to have
For many students and their families, higher education that a leadership that comprehends, can
the price-tag for a private liberal arts work in Liberal Studies communicate effectively with and
degree is simply too much. Depend- are committed to the thus lead a wide spectrum of nar-
ing on the school, the cost of tuition rowly specialised professionals. So,
fees range from Rs. 2.25-9.25 lakh creation and nurturance liberal arts is for those who are ready
per year and upto Rs 11 lakh inclu- of a leadership that is to have a longer gestation period to
sive of room and board. The high imaginative and creative...” leadership positions, not so much
premium is due, in large part, to the — Dr. Shyam Menon, Vice focused on immediate returns to their
fact that private universities don’t Chancellor, BMU investment in higher education.”
receive government support and must Finally, private universities need
therefore recover their costs through fore, Education (including Higher to be upfront with students about the
tuition fees. Many would come to the Education) remains a public good. financial risk of choosing them over a
conclusion that private liberal arts Those institutions of Higher Educa- public institution. Private liberal arts
programs are elitist. How can educa- tion (both government supported programs are expensive because they
tors responsibly answer this charge? and privately promoted) that work in recruit top talent, deliver cutting-edge
To begin, private institutions must Liberal Studies are committed to the curriculum, and promote low student-
not lose sight of education as a public creation and nurturance of a leader- to-faculty ratios. Their students
good. Dr. Shyam Menon, the Vice ship that is imaginative and creative, receive a world-class education at a
Chancellor at BMU, puts it this way: and with high levels of sensibilities fraction of the cost and without going
“All institutions of Higher Education and awareness of the social and his- abroad. However, the issue remains:
(particularly Universities) are public torical contexts.” Are the Liberal Arts only for those
institutions. They may be promoted Framing their work as a public who can pay? Private programs, if
by either governments or private good, liberal arts universities should they are truly committed to the values
entities. But all of them are legislated then focus their efforts on building of liberal education, must be prepared
through institutional procedures the next generation of ethical leaders. to invest in their student body in the
provided for in the Constitution of As Dr. Menon states: “The Liberal form of generous merit-based schol-
India. In that sense, all of them serve Arts are for creating and nurturing arships, need-based fee waivers, and
a public function. In essence, there- leadership. In a world of increasing graduated tuition scales.

Works cited ▪ Godwin, K. A. (2015). “The Worldwide Emergence of Liberal Education.” International Higher Education, (79), 2-4. https://doi.org/10.6017/
ihe.2015.79.5835 ▪ Pushkar. (2022). The Coming Liberal Arts Wave in India. International Higher Education, (109), 15-17. Retrieved from https://ejournals.bc.edu/
index.php/ihe/article/view/14485. ▪ Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India (2020). National Education Policy. New Delhi, 2020. https://
www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf (accessed 22 August 2022). ▪ University Grants Commission (2022). Curriculum and
Credit Framework for Undergraduate Programmes. New Delhi, 2022. https://www.ugc.ac.in/pdfnews/7193743_FYUGP.pdf (accessed 16 January 2023). ▪ Wheebox
(2021). India Skills Report 2021. Gurgaon, 2021. https://indiaeducationforum.org/pdf/ISR-2021.pdf (accessed 2 February 2023).
EDUCATIONWORLD MARCH 2023