The President and Vice-chancellor of the University of Southampton, Prof. Mark Smith, has said that the University of Southampton could explore the possibilities of having its campus in Goa,
“Goa is definitely one of the locations we are looking at, and presently, we are very open-minded,” he added, pointing out that his Goa visit was aimed at understanding what the overall landscape in India is like and where the best opportunities for the Indian partners as well as the University of Southampton are.
Prof. Smith Prof. was recently in Goa to attend the QS India Summit 2023 at Cavelossim; the event witnessed the participation of leaders from Oceania, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the rest of the world.
Speaking further, Prof. Smith said that he met people on the ground during his visit to Goa, which was very difficult to do during the Coronavirus pandemic. “Meeting and hearing friends from the Indian higher education sector and the politicians and leaders was a privilege,” he noted.
Speaking about India, Prof. Smith said it is clear that India is the most populous country and becoming an even stronger economic power. “It is important that a university like Southampton looks at the possibilities of the potential of a country like India,” he added, pointing out, “However, we are genuinely interested in the opportunity, so we will continue to explore actively over the next few months, year or so.”
Maintaining following China, India is the second most important international market for the UK-based University; Prof. Smith stated that as far as overall numbers go, India is competing with China, and that is because a key number of students is coming into the UK’s education system from India.
Speaking about the QS India Summit 2023, Prof. Smith said that he has spoken about the ability of UK universities to be a partner or open up activities in India. “If you look at the University of Southampton itself, there are at the moment just under 400 Indian students studying for Southampton degrees,” he informed, observing that since the Pandemic, the number has shown a year-on-year increase of around 25 per cent and it is looking as though it’s continuing to grow.
Maintaining that India has shown a very positive and buoyant picture in the education sector since the Pandemic,” Prof. Smith stated that several students from Goa are also moving to the UK, even though the question of their fate in the aftermath of Brexit was a matter of concern for aspiring candidates, especially in the case of those students who had travelled to the UK on a Portuguese passport, acquired due to the Portuguese citizenship of either one’s parents or grandparents born prior to the Liberation of Goa.
“In fact, it is more difficult for those with a Portuguese passport now than it was before; however, the scenario is still optimistic,” Prof. Smith observed, adding that it, however makes no difference now because that’s one of the consequences of Brexit with Europeans being no different in terms of immigration policy from the rest of the world. “Therefore, it does not make a difference whether one has an Indian or Portuguese passport,” he noted.
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