Higher Education system

India has one of the largest Higher Education system in the world. There are a large number of Indian as well as foreign students who a pply every year to Indian universities and colleges. For all those who wish to study in India, it is very important to get prior and correct information about the courses that you would like to undertake, the university you want to apply to and how to go about the application procedure. For an international student, it is also important to know the accommodation facilities, weather conditions, food habits and cost of living in the city in which he or she intends to study.

Central Government is responsible for major policy relating to higher education in the country. It provides grants to UGC and establishes central universities in the country. The Central Government is also responsible for declaration of Education Institutions as 'Deemed to be University' on the recommendation of the UGC.State Governments are responsible for establishment of State Universities and colleges, and provide plan grants for their development and non-plan grants for their maintenance.The coordination and cooperation between the Union and the States is brought about in the field of education through the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE).Special Constitutional responsibility of the Central Government: Education is on the 'Concurrent list' subject to Entry 66 in the Union List of the Constitution. This gives exclusive Legislative Power to the Central Govt. for co-ordination and determination of standards in Institutions of higher education or research and scientific and technical institutions. 

University Grants Commission (UGC) is responsible for coordination, determination and maintenance of standards, release of grants.Professional councils are responsible for recognition of courses, promotion of professional institutions and providing grants to undergraduate programmes and various awards. The statutory professional councils are:

• All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE)
• Medical Council of India (MCI)
• Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR)
• National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE)
• Dental Council of India (DCI)
• Pharmacy Council of India (PCI)
• Indian Nursing Council (INC)
• Bar Council of India (BCI)
• Central Council of Homeopathy (CCH)
• Central Council for Indian Medicine (CCIM)
• Council of Architecture
• Distance Education Council
• Rehabilitation Council 

Advantages of Studying in India : India is fast becoming a major economic power in the world today. And if its growth trend continues for some more years, it would soon be playing a major role in the world economy along with China. This itself has been a major cause of attraction for many international students. Moreover, India's successful stint with democracy has also been a major magnetic force for scholars around the world. However, apart from knowing India well, there are some other advantages that are attracting students to study in India. Some of these are –

Low Cost: The cost of education in India is quite low as compared to many other countries of the world.  
Quality Education:Government of India established statutory bodies to ensure quality of education in India. There are some educational institutes in India that provide world class education. Indian institute of technology, Indian institutes of management, Indian Institutes of Science, National Law Schools, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University are some such Institutes. The government of India is also speeding up the efforts to establish more such institutes that can offer quality education in India.
Consultation Service: The government of India provides consultation service to the interested international students through Education Consultants of India (Ed.CIL). Thus one can get all the information about the Indian education system, cost of education, duration, visa, accommodation facilities even before landing up in India.
Unique Courses: Apart from above mentioned advantages, one can also study some unique courses that were discovered and developed by the traditional knowledge system of India. Ayurveda, Sankrit, Yoga, Hindi are some such courses that enthuse many international sudents.Structure of higher education in India.In the Indian system, higher education includes the education imparted after the 10+2 stage - ten years of primary and secondary education followed by two years of higher secondary education. The first degree, the Bachelor's degrees, is obtained after three years study in the case of liberal arts, and four years in the case of most professional degrees (four and half in case of medicine and five/six years in case of law}. The Master's program is usually of two years duration. The research degrees (M.Phil and Ph.D) take variable time depending upon the individual student.The postgraduate degree programs involve 2 years of study after first degree. These include M.Tech, MD, MS and MDS programs that take 2 years after B.Tech and MBBS/BDS respectively.
The M.Phil. program, is of one and-half year duration. It is a preparatory program for doctoral level studies. PhD program is research study for 2 years and can take several years while D.Sc. and D.Litt. are awarded by some universities after PhD for original contributions. 

In addition to the degree programs, a number of diploma and certificate programs are also available in universities. Their range is wide and they cover anything from poetics to computers. Some of them are undergraduate diploma programs and others postgraduate programs. The duration varies from one year to three years.Universities, deemed universities and institutions of national importance are largely autonomous institutions entitled by law to design, develop and offer programs which they consider relevant and appropriate for the national needs. Colleges and other institutes in turn, are expected to be regulated by the Universities with which they are affiliated or associated. Given the wide reach and variety of institutions and programs of higher education, a number of professional, regulatory bodies and councils have been established to ensure proper development of higher education in the country in a coordinated manner. 

Technical Education Overview : Technical Education plays a vital role in human resource development of the country by creating skilled manpower, enhancing industrial productivity and improving the quality of life. Technical Education covers courses and programmes in engineering, technology, management, architecture, town planning, pharmacy and applied arts & crafts, hotel management and catering technology.The technical education system in the country can be broadly classified into three categories – Central Government funded institutions, State Government/State-funded institutions & Self-financed institutions. The 65 Centrally funded institution of technical and science education are as under:

• IITs – 15
• IIMs – 7
• IISc, Bangalore – 1
• IISERs – 5
• NITs – 20
• IIITs – 4
• NITTTRs – 4
• Others (SPA, ISMU, NERIST, SLIET, NITIE & NIFFT, CIT) – 9
• Total - 65