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Facilitated and chaired by: Dr Miguel Antonio Lim, who is the co-convenor of the International Research and Researchers Network. For more details about the network and its activities, please click here.

Overview

India has emerged as one of the most significant new frontiers for transnational higher education (TNE), creating significant opportunities - and challenges - for universities around the world to establish a deeper and more sustained presence in one of the world's largest and fastest-growing higher education systems. Recent Indian policy reforms have opened new pathways for international engagement, prompting a growing number of institutions to explore innovative models of partnership, branch campus development, and academic collaboration.

This panel sets the foundation for discussion with an overview of the landscape of international campuses in India, followed by a framework to analyse and situate UK campuses in comparison with other universities. It provides the context for a deeper panel discussion drawing on diverse viewpoints and experiences from UK universities already engaging with India.

Drawing on panelists’ experience of developing, operating, and researching educational ventures in India, panelists will reflect on the strategic motivations underpinning institutional engagement, the opportunities for expanding access, research and teaching collaboration, and the practical realities of implementation. Furthermore, it will discuss risks related to becoming part of the local education ecosystem, drawing from perceptions of 'foreignness' and 'elitism' to 'extractivism', and strategies to mitigate these risks, drawing from the concept of TNE as a mutual and equitable exchange.

This panel brings together senior leaders and practitioners from across the UK and the British Council to examine the evolving landscape of UK-India TNE. The discussion will critically explore key challenges surrounding regulation, quality assurance, financial sustainability, organisational capacity, cultural adaptation, student experience, among others. It will also consider how institutions from across the UK nations are approaching the Indian landscape, highlighting both shared priorities and distinctive national and institutional perspectives.

Schedule

Speakers

Alethea (Thea) Bleyberg is the International Student Advisor for undergraduates at Queen's Business School, Queen’s University Belfast, where her work spans international student support and the School's broader internationalisation agenda. She joined Queen's after 20 years as a teacher, leader and university counsellor in international schools in Beijing, Hong Kong and Singapore. She is also a doctoral candidate in Higher Education Leadership and Management at Luiss Business School, where her research interest centres on how UK universities construct and sustain narratives of financial viability around internationalisation.

Rahul Choudaha is a scholar-practitioner and leader specializing in mobility trends, decision-making, and the experiences of international students, as well as transnational education and international branch campuses. His paper on the three waves of international students, published in Studies in Higher Education, has been widely cited. As Professor and COO, he laid the foundation for the launch of the University of Aberdeen's India campus. Before returning to India, he spent 18 years in the United States leading research at global organizations such as Morning Consult, GMAC, Studyportals, and WES. Dr. Choudaha has delivered nearly 200 conference presentations and has been quoted more than 300 times in leading global media outlets, including the BBC, Bloomberg, Financial Times, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He has been affiliated as a Senior Researcher with the Center for Studies in Higher Education at UC Berkeley and as a Visiting Scholar at Steinhardt, New York University. Dr. Choudaha holds a PhD in Higher Education from the University of Denver.

David Cockayne is Associate Dean at the University of Liverpool Management School, and has extensive leadership experience in higher education strategy, curriculum innovation, and internationalization. David has played a key role in the design and delivery of transnational education, executive education, and international collaborative programmes, working with partners across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. His work focuses on creating industry-relevant, future-oriented learning experiences that bridge academic excellence with real-world impact. David's research explores the nature and effect of emerging technologies and innovation in the business of sports, media, and entertainment. He is also a regular applied contributor to discussions on the future of higher education global engagement, and the evolving role of universities in an increasingly interconnected world.

Heather Cockayne is an Associate Professor at the University of Manchester, scholar-practitioner, and educational leader specialising in international and transnational higher education. She has extensive experience in international partnerships, curriculum development, student experience, and inclusive educational practice. Her work focuses on creating equitable learning environments and enhancing educational opportunities for diverse learners across cultural and geographical boundaries.

Eduardo Ramos has a career spanning over 20 years in regulation, policy and operations of international education in the UK, France, Spain and the United States. As Head of Higher Education Systems and Internationalisation, he currently leads the strategy, pursuit and implementation of relevant activities of the British Council Going Global Partnerships programme: providing direction and consultancy on internationalising higher education, strengthening systems and institutions, and enhancing learners' outcomes. This includes complex and innovative programme design to support sustainable system collaborations and institutional partnerships. Some of the large-scale initiatives in his portfolio include the British Council Transnational Education (TNE) Strategy which provides direction to the tertiary education sector’s aim to build sustainable and scalable TNE, the Transnational Education Exploratory Grants that provide funding to foster collaborations between the UK and a range of countries globally, and the longstanding Gender Equality Partnerships Grants.

Lee Rensimer is a Lecturer in Education, Practice and Society at the UCL Institute of Education, and a Deputy Director of the Centre for Global Higher Education at University of Oxford. His research sits at the intersection of comparative and international education, higher education studies, and global development, with an interest in the geopolitics of education, including transnational education, global partnerships, and regionalisation initiatives.