Page 40 - EW May 2020 for Flipbuilder

Cover Story

INDIA’S TOP 150

PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES

A b initio, your editors have
accorded special importance
to private institutions of
higher learning. We believe
private universities with
investment and reputations
to lose, are more likely to
provide rigorous, globally
benchmarked academic,
research and life skills
education

n recent years privately promot-
ed universities, particularly new
genre, globally benchmarked
Iliberal arts and sciences under-
grad colleges modelled on America’s MAHE vice chancellor Dr. Vinod Bhat: notional disadvantage
famous Ivy League institutions, have
captured the imagination of the have accorded special importance to objective. Therefore to avoid apples
country’s aspirational post-liberali- private institutions of higher learn- and oranges type comparisons,
sation middle and upper class. The ing. We believe that academically and we believe that the public interest
steadily rising number of unem- financially autonomous standalone — and the interest of parents and
ployed graduates holding devalued privately-promoted higher educa- school-leaving students in particular
degrees of government — especially tion institutions with investment and — would be better served if public
state government — universities reputations to lose, are more likely and private institutions of education
notorious for their crumbling infra- to provide rigorous, globally bench- are ranked separately. This is the
structure and obsolete syllabuses marked academic, research and life distinction we make in our annual
and curriculums, has created acute skills education. EducationWorld India School Rank-
awareness of the value of real rather This not to say that your editors ings — the world’s largest and most
than ritual education dispensed by are indifferent to government col- comprehensive schools annual sur-
the majority of government institu- leges and universities. Some public vey — published every September.
tions of higher education tightly higher ed institutions promoted at Now after several years of chop-
controlled by generalist bureaucrats taxpayers’ expense by the Central ping and changing, we have resolved
out of touch with the requirements of and state governments also make a to follow a similar path while rating
Indian industry and business. substantial contribution to national and ranking India’s most respected
Therefore ever since Education- progress and development. However institutions of higher learning. Last
World (estb. 1999) started publish- they are hamstrung by numerous month (April) we published league
ing its annual EW India Higher Edu- social and community goals that tend tables ranking India’s most respect-
cation Rankings in 2013, your editors to dilute their academic excellence ed private autonomous, govern-

40 EDUCATIONWORLD MAY 2020