Education Ministry to Strengthen Regulations on Foreign Ties of Nepali Colleges
The Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology plans to amend its directives for regulating colleges with foreign affiliations, based on suggestions from two expert panels. A Central Monitoring and Evaluation Committee meeting Sunday created a new committee to oversee the amendment process. The committee, chaired by a joint-secretary from the ministry, includes representatives from the ministries of finance and law. Shankar Koirala-led Panel formed by former Education Minister Sumana Shrestha, the panel identified that many foreign-affiliated colleges in Nepal lack quality and fail to follow the current regulations. It is recommended that colleges should only be allowed affiliations with universities ranked in the top 1,000 globally (according to the Times Higher Education World University rankings). Only 8 out of 59 such colleges in Nepal meet this criterion. Both panels revisions to affiliation criteria, student admissions, quotas, and scholarship systems. A five-year transition period was proposed for existing colleges to secure affiliations from globally reputable universities. College managers, particularly from the International Education Providers Association, have raised concerns about the impartiality of the panels, claiming that many members of the Aryal-led panel come from competing institutions. The association has challenged the ministry’s move in the Supreme Court, arguing that the changes should be made with broader consultation. In India, only foreign institutions ranked in the top 500 globally (according to the Times Higher Education or Shanghai Jiaotong rankings) are allowed to affiliate with Indian colleges.
Binil Aryal-led Panel chaired by the Dean of the Institute of Science and Technology, Tribhuvan University, the panel also raised concerns about the performance of such colleges and recommended tighter regulations.
Legal Oversight Koirala-led brings foreign-affiliated colleges under legal frameworks to ensure compliance with minimum standards. A committee of university professors would be responsible for how colleges should operate until the law is enacted. Transparency in college operations it should clearly display information about their programs, curricula, fees, and other relevant details for the public to access.
