Giving wings to talent: Opportunities for doctoral students in the UK to visit India

Historically, India has always been a major exporter of international students, but these days the country is also becoming an attractive destination for overseas study. As one of the five swiftly developing BRICS countries (along with Brazil, Russia and China) India has begun to emerge as an advanced centre for modern commerce, research and innovation. This economic growth has helped drive an incredible expansion in Indian higher education during the first decade of the 21st century: The number of universities in India has more than doubled since 2000 and its higher education system is now one of the largest in the world.

The range of PhD opportunities on offer in India reflects its combination of cutting edge innovation and vibrant traditional culture. Several of the country’s top universities are becoming established as global hubs for scientific, technological and medical research, with the government keen to promote further progress in these areas.

Building up a talented pool of well trained, internationally active doctoral students is an essential step towards establishing world-class research systems. Improving mobility at the doctoral level helps the researchers in terms of intellectual development, career progression, access to existing and emerging world class facilities and access to comparative research, environments and populations.

To nurture the future researchers of India and the UK, the Department of Science and Technology, India and British Council India jointly announced a dynamic and transformative three year PhD placements programme for doctoral students in India and the UK at the recently held UK-India Science & Innovation Council.

The PhD placement programme is a part of the recently announced Newton-Bhabha Fund – a five year, £50 million joint programme launched in 2014 by the UK and Indian governments. The Newton-Bhabha programme forms part of the Newton Fund, a £375 million fund administered by the UK’s Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The programme will sponsor UK and Indian PhD students to spend a period of their study (3 to 6 months) in Indian and UK higher education institutions starting from March 2015. The aim of the programme is to provide students exposure to Indian Science & Technology milieu, gain practical skills and develop collaborative networks. These placements are envisaged as a source of mutual cultural and professional enrichment for both the students and their host institutions.

The placement will include return airfare, travel insurance, monthly stipend, accommodation and one time arrival allowance. For details on eligibility criteria and selection process, visit British Council website.

For PhD students in the UK, finding an Indian institute and a supervisor for your research could seem like a daunting task. One effect of the phenomenal growth in Indian universities is the wide variety of institutions that are now operating in the country. This range may seem difficult to manage at first, but there are some useful resources available to help you.

The Indian government is currently taking steps to monitor new universities and ensure standards of quality are met. The body set up to do this is the Indian University Grants Commission (UGC) and their website is worth checking if you’re looking for an Indian host institute/university. You should also look at the list of labs under the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Over the coming weeks, we’re hoping to profile some of the key Indian research institutes working in the priority areas under the Newton-Bhabha Fund. These are – sustainable cities and rapid urbanisation; food; water; energy and public health and well-being. This will be helpful to give you a flavour of the top research institutes in India in the area of your research. If you’d like to be featured on those profiles, please get in touch!

Guest Blogger:  Leena Arora. She is the Head of the Newton Programme for British Council India. In her current role, she is responsible for leading the planning, stakeholder engagement, implementation and monitoring of the British Council Newton Fund programmes in India. Prior to this, she was working with the British High Commission as Senior Advisor, UK Science and Innovation Network. Leena has a B Tech in Biotechnology and MBA in International Business.