With New Education Policy (NEP 2020), the need to send your ward abroad for higher studies is no longer needed

When the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 was unveiled in July 2020, much of the public conversation revolved around mother-tongue instruction and school reforms. Yet its most far-reaching impact may well be in what can be described as the liberalization of higher education in India .

For decades, Indian students equated “quality education” with “foreign education.” Parents willingly spent tens of lakhs of rupees believing that global standards existed only outside India. NEP 2020 has altered that equation.

Today, foreign universities are setting up campuses in India . The University of Southampton (UK) has been approved under UGC’s foreign campus regulations. In GIFT City , institutions such as Deakin University (Australia) , University of Wollongong (Australia) , Queen’s University Belfast (UK) and Coventry University (UK) have established or announced campuses. These are not mere MoUs but operational academic presences.

At the same time, Indian institutions are no longer confined within national borders. IIT Madras (Zanzibar) , IIT Delhi (Abu Dhabi) and IIM Ahmedabad (Dubai) have demonstrated that Indian brands can travel. The old complaint “we are not allowed to go abroad” no longer holds. The legal hurdles are gone. What remains is competitiveness, reputation and the ability to sell value in global markets.

NEP has also encouraged joint, dual and twinning degree programmes , multidisciplinary learning, multiple exit options and deeper research integration. The entry of global universities will raise the bar on research culture, international faculty recruitment and industry partnerships. Government support through research grants, innovation missions and idea labs adds momentum.

Parents must rethink the reflex to send children abroad for “quality.” Often what students seek is exposure diversity, global classrooms, cultural exchange. That exposure can increasingly be obtained at home in mixed Indian-international campuses, supplemented by exchange programmes in visa-friendly destinations such as Dubai, Singapore or Australia/New Zealand.

The protective wall around Indian higher education has fallen. Institutions must now reform and compete. But for students, the message is clear: global education need not mean leaving India.