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ASU selected to participate in India initiative by Institute of International Education


Denis Simon
August 22, 2012

The Institute of International Education recently announced its selection of Arizona State University to participate in the 2013 India initiative of the International Academic Partnership Program.  

As a participant in this key program, ASU faculty and administrators will engage in a series of site visits and interactive discussions arranged by the Institute of International Education to help forge, implement and sustain new, innovative partnerships with tertiary institutions in India. The strategy-building program includes a study tour to India in early 2013 to learn about the Indian higher education system and meet with potential partner campuses.

“As one of the so-called BRICs countries, India promises to play an increasingly important role in the global economy in the 21st century. Many ASU faculty members are engaged, directly and indirectly, in the study of India affairs. India also represents the country with the second largest number of international students at the university, many of whom are working on master’s and doctoral degrees. We plan to develop collaborative partnerships with both public and private tertiary institutions as a key component of ASU's global engagements,” said Elizabeth D. Phillips, ASU Executive Vice President and University Provost.

ASU will form a faculty task force lead by Denis Simon, ASU vice provost for International Strategic Initiatives in the office of International Strategic Initiatives, that will work on prospective partnerships, conduct an inventory of activities pertaining to India and develop a strategic plan focused on partnering with Indian institutions. Partnership activities may include joint programs, additional student exchanges or faculty linkages for collaborative research and teaching to provide resources to build partnerships with India and other countries.

“This initiative will allow us to establish a range of new academic partnerships that will support our internationalization goals regarding student recruitment, research collaboration and institutional cooperation,” Simon said. “India is one of the world’s most populous nations, but it also is a country where a great deal of emphasis has been placed on higher education as a mechanism to advance the country’s economic development goals.  We believe we can play a meaningful role preparing Indian students for the globalized world of the 21st century.  We also believe that this initiative will help open doors for ASU students and faculty to study and conduct research in India.”

The Institute of International Education’s Center for International Partnerships in Higher Education developed the IAPP program in 2009 with an initial two-year grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education. The goal of this grant was to help jumpstart an academic partnership program in higher education between the U.S. and other countries that would grow into a self-sustaining program.

“Higher education is an important area of the strategic partnership between the United States and India because of its impact on fostering collaboration on critical issues that we face today,” said Institute of International Education President Allan E. Goodman. “This new phase of the International Academic Partnership Program and the strong group of campuses will strengthen the educational ties between our two nations and pave the way for students and scholars from both countries to gain important international perspective. We remain confident that academic partnerships will continue to be a core pillar of the relationship between our two countries.”

During the 2010-11 academic year, India remained the second leading place of origin for international students in the United States (after China) with 103,895 Indian students enrolled in U.S. higher education, according to Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, published by Institute of International Education  with support from the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Students from India accounted for approximately 14 percent of the total international student population. "Open Doors 2011" reports that India hosted 3,884 U.S. students in 2009-10, an increase of 44 percent from the previous year, mostly due to the collective efforts of the public and private sectors to increase U.S. study abroad to India.