Multi-faceted and driven by the desire to transform education in India, particularly management education, is the best way to define Dr. Sandeep Pachpande. Chairman and Managing Trustee of Audyogik Shikshan Mandal (ASM), one of India’s premier education groups providing quality education from KG to Ph.D., Dr. Sandeep is frequently invited by universities, industry, and associations from around the world to deliver keynote address, chair sessions and to share his vision on education. He holds B.E. in Computer Science from D.Y. Patil College of Engineering, Pune, and MBA in International Marketing from the Leeds Metropolitan University in the UK. A lifelong learner, immediately after earning his PhD, Sandeep underwent the Senior Executive Leadership Program of Harvard Business School in 2017 and is currently pursuing the Kellogg Executive Scholars Program at Kellogg School of Management.
Indian students have always been drawn towards studying in foreign universities abroad. This attraction has been due to a number of reasons. For instance, reputed universities abroad provide quality education, relevant to business and industry requirements. Certification from such educational institutes increases prospects of good job placements anywhere in the world. On the other hand, India does have renowned educational institutes, but these are a few and cannot satisfy the increasing number of students wanting to study here.
The number of Indian students studying overseas comes next only to China. Indian students increased from 66,713 in 2000 to over 3,00,000 students in 2016. This shows an annual growth rate of 22 per cent in a span of 16 years.
With the outbreak of COVID-19, many universities in the USA have deferred opening their physical campus. For instance, Boston University for the rest of the spring semester and all summer sessions had directed its students to return home cancelled in-person classes and moved to remote teaching.
There has been a sudden pause for Indian students aspiring to study abroad. With most of the countries shutting borders, this has become difficult for the students wanting to pursue studies abroad. Most foreign universities are cancelling overseas admissions due to uncertainty. Indian students will certainly look for admissions here in India so that they can continue with their studies without any hindrance. This will result in a spike in admissions domestically.
Most reputed Indian institutes have tie-ups with foreign universities, so students can do the same courses through these Indian institutes as well. For instance, ASM IBMR has a tie-up with global renowned institute like Harvard Business School online where students are provided with study material from these institutes, but ably supported by faculty of ASM. Students get access to interactive webinars, class sessions besides face to face support by faculty of ASM.
ASM has another tie-up with the City University of Seattle. for a 1+1 (2 year) degree course where students have an option to study for the first year in India and the second year in the USA. There are huge cost benefits to the students as they can save anywhere between 30 to 40 lacs on fees for 1 year and stay cost abroad.
The current pandemic has led to many schools and education institutes postponing their exams. Most higher education institutes and universities are closed and new admissions are put on hold.
This pandemic has been a blessing in disguise for most reputed Indian education institutes who have been at the forefront of raising the bar; in terms of providing quality education in sync with industry requirements. Indian students will benefit the most as they will now have access to global standard education without incurring huge expenses.