Major international collaboration for Strathclyde Business School
A major international collaboration between Strathclyde University and pioneering infrastructure company SKIL is to result in a campus being created in Greater Noida, near Delhi, which will deliver undergraduate, postgraduate and MBA level courses.
The long-term agreement is in its final stages and is an important new link between Scotland and one of the world's most important economies. Scotland's Enterprise Minister, Jim Mather, was among the first to welcome the news, announced on October 28, as he met Professor Susan Hart, Dean of Strathclyde Business School, and JP Rai, Group CEO of SKIL, in the Indian capital.
Enterprise Minister Jim Mather said: "This new collaboration will help strengthen relations between Scotland and India - one of the world's fastest growing economies - and progress the education aims of the Scottish Government's India Plan. By expanding its reach into India, Strathclyde Business School is helping raise Scotland's business and executive education profile on the global stage. I look forward to seeing this partnership progressing."
The branch campus has been a year in the planning and is set to open in September 2011. In the first tranche of developments, more than 1200 students are expected to join the School, where they will be taught by 40 internationally recognised staff from India and Strathclyde Business School in Glasgow. The recruitment process for a Dean and the first 20 India-based staff will begin next month.
Professor Jim McDonald, Principal of the University of Strathclyde, said: "India's commitment to education as a means of furthering economic development for its people resonates strongly with Strathclyde's own ethos. As a leading international technological university, we have a proven track record of working closely with business and industry to develop outstanding graduates and excellent research, both of which have a positive impact on wider society.
"We are very proud to welcome students from more than 100 countries to Strathclyde. The new Delhi campus will widen access and give more Indian students the chance to study for a high quality degree with Strathclyde Business School without relocating to the UK."
Professor Susan Hart, Dean of Strathclyde Business School, said: "India's position as one of the fastest growing Prof. McDonaldglobal economies has led to an urgent demand for excellent education to develop the business leaders of the future. We are delighted to be working with our partners in India to create this branch campus, which will offer students world-class teaching informed by cutting-edge research.
"The collaboration has thus far resulted in a Master in Management, which will be the first course to be launched at the new campus. It has been designed by combining the insights and knowledge of SKIL executives and with the help of Indian senior academic advisers."
The Masters in Management is a two year programme aimed at developing entrepreneurial and dynamic business leaders. In the following years, the School will also offer a three-year Bachelor in Business Administration (BBA), and the globally renowned, one-year Strathclyde MBA programme, which has already seen international success in centres in Bahrain, Dubai, Greece, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Oman, Singapore and Switzerland.
Mr Nikhil Gandhi, Group Chairman of SKIL, said, "We at SKIL take pride in joining hands with the prestigious Scotland School. The Government of India's recent policy initiatives has underlined the need to focus on quality as well as quantity, and we are happy to partner with one of the very few triple-accredited Business Schools in the world. The establishment of the Strathclyde Business School will contribute to the enhancement of skill sets and knowledge levels of Indian management students. This reinforces our commitment to empowering the youth of India with the best in Education the world has to offer, and to be in the vanguard of economic growth in the years ahead."
Mr JP Rai, Group CEO of SKIL said, "We have worked with Strathclyde to ensure that the original Strathclyde curriculum is delivered in the context of the role that Indian managers will be expected to play on the world stage. The Noida initiative is the first step, with many more such campuses coming up in the future, with ever widening disciplines being covered."
Strathclyde Business School has more than 25 years experience of delivering education in over 10 countries across four continents, has a Queen's Award for Exports and belongs to the 1% of business schools in the world with full accreditation from the three principal international accrediting bodies, AACSB International, EQUIS and AMBA. The branch campus will maintain these same high standards.
SKIL will provide the campus infrastructure which will include a library, IT, and teaching and student support accommodation. It is hoped that the collaboration will be further developed in India with branch campuses in Mumbai and Chennai in the longer term.
Scottish Development International (SDI), the specialist international trade and investment service of economic development agency Scottish Enterprise, has two offices in India and works to facilitate partnerships between Scottish and Indian organisations.
Lena Wilson, Chief Executive of Scottish Enterprise, said: "This collaboration will position Scotland as a key player in the Indian business and executive education market. This new partnership in education will benefit both Scotland and India, creating research and development opportunities, encouraging the transfer of knowledge and paving the way for more co-operations in the future.
"As opportunities with India continue to grow, Scottish Development International is working hard to ensure that Indian businesses and organisations see Scotland as an innovative, forward-thinking country - one that's easy and efficient to do business with.
"We are committed to strengthening and building upon Scotland's existing links with India, one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, to further raise Scotland’s profile as a globally competitive country."
