
Inside foreign universities’ desperate attempts to woo indifferent Indians
From Daybreak by The Ken
June 1, 2026 · 11 min · Episode 761
About this episode
The episode explores the challenges faced by foreign universities in attracting Indian students amidst a surge in campus setups in India.
Seventeen foreign universities have set up campuses in India in two years. Most can't fill their seats. And a Rs 1,000 crore scholarship push launched last month is the most visible sign yet that something isn't working. The pitch is this: a western degree without the visa hassle, at Rs 15 to 25 lakh a year, which is roughly what Ashoka and Plaksha charge, but without the research environment or the actual campus. Students who wanted to leave India aren't particularly interested in a single-floor setup in a Gift City corporate building. So why are so many foreign universities suddenly this desperate for Indian students? Tune in to find out. *Correction: The host mentions that Emeritus is the parent company of Eruditus. Eruditus is the company that has partnered with seven schools for a revenue-sharing model, not Emeritus. Emeritus is a brand under Eruditus. *Clarification: The profit Eruditus posted of $400 million is independent of its partnerships with the universities. Classes under this partnership are yet to start and has made no revenue yet. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive…
Topics covered
- foreign universities
- Indian students
- education
- scholarships
- higher education
- international campuses
Keywords
- foreign universities
- Indian education
- scholarships
- higher education
- student enrollment
- western degrees
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Ashoka, Plaksha
Places: India, Gift City
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