Higher Education Institutions in India: Perceptions of International Students
22 Pages Posted: 4 Oct 2012 Last revised: 11 Nov 2012
Date Written: October 4, 2012
Abstract
This paper is the culmination of a larger research study that was undertaken at Symbiosis Center for International Education (SCIE), a constituent institute of Symbiosis International University (SIU), Pune, India. The justifiably groundbreaking study, which pivoted on the findings of a survey of international students, was conceived with the guiding idea of contributing to the discourse on international students’ experiences in India. The debate on the subject of international students has assumed unprecedented proportions in India; for that reason, the scarcity of research on the subject comes as an obtrusive insufficiency. What is more, there is little in terms of experiential investigation — quantitative or qualitative to bear out the scant conceptual writings that do exist on the internationalization of higher education institutions (HEIs) in India. The vast majority of published literature is mainly concerned with regional and institutional distribution of international students, and the Government of India initiatives in this regard. The subject of experience and reception of this student group has been wholly forsaken.
The research paper upholds that student satisfaction and engagement are the cornerstones of performance indication of hosts to international students: both the country and HEIs. It is from here that conceptual research and policy recommendations ought to branch out. In light of this, the research study was so designed as to arrive at a scientific and definitive overview of the international student community in India. The survey in question compassed the demographic silhouette of international students, as well as the students’ level of cognizance and perception of all manner of aspects related to their respective HEIs and India as host country.
The paper avers that the whole exercise of conducting the survey turned out to be very illuminating indeed; the findings were laden rich with information and insights. In addition, it has led to the promise of discovering more loose ends in the subject that merit research interest.
Keywords: international education, higher educational institutions, quality assurance, student satisfaction, student engagement, performance indicators, demographic profile, Indian higher education system
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