Comparison of Private Universities in India based on NIRF Ranking and Fee Charging Strategies

Abstract

The need of additional universities in Indian higher education system to provide higher education to all eligible population of the country and the success of private university model in the USA tempted the Indian government to give permission to establish Private Universities in the country. Accordingly, based on section 22 of UGC act, the Indian government has allowed the state governments to establish private universities in the respective states. Presently there are 264 private universities in the country spread over 22 states. Due to non-availability of any financial support from the state and central governments, private universities are trying to sustain through their only strategy of service differentiation through 21st century curriculum and industry integrated programme design. In this paper, we have studied and compared some of the private universities in India in terms of their infrastructure, faculties, variety of courses, and fee structure of identified courses. We have also studied the performance scores given by NIRF, MHRD, Govt. of India for various criterions like Teaching, Learning & Resources, Research and Professional Practice, Graduation Outcomes, Outreach and Inclusivity, Public Perception. Based on the annual fee charged by the private universities established before 2010, we have identified three types of strategies which include low-cost – low quality, high-fee – high-quality, and nominal-fee – high quality strategies and analysed them based on the philosophy and background of such universities in general. We have also identified other innovative strategies offered by many private universities, in general, to differentiate themselves from publicly funded universities. The paper also contains some recommendations based on the observations to improve the quality, relevancy, and effectiveness of educational services and research contributions of private universities.