Quality of Higher Education in India and the Role of Private Universities

In India, private educational institutions are highly divergent with respect to scale, enrollment, courses covered and the managing and fiscal capabilities and funding authority. They have been instrumental in increasing access to university education across the country owing to this fact. However, most private institutions do not have a focus on quality; only very few of them meet specific standards above national benchmarks. Nevertheless, public universities remain in the first preferences of higher education seekers after which private universities come in a close second place. The emergence of private and self-financing universities is seen as a measure to cater to the growing demand for higher education. Private educational institutions, interestingly, also become the most rapidly growing segment of the higher education system. This study aims to explore the quality of higher education in India and the role that private universities occupy in this scenario.