July 6, 2009

India Struggles to Become a Destination for Foreign Students

New government efforts may help, but only a handful of institutions have had success so far

Namas Bhojani for The Chronicle

Chinese students speak with their Indian instructor at the Vellore Institute of Technology, a private engineering college in India that has formed a partnership with Wuhan U., in China, and will enroll 700 Chinese students this fall.

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Namas Bhojani for The Chronicle

Chinese students speak with their Indian instructor at the Vellore Institute of Technology, a private engineering college in India that has formed a partnership with Wuhan U., in China, and will enroll 700 Chinese students this fall.

By Shailaja Neelakantan

Vellore, India

When Chen Jing and her classmates arrived in India two years ago they were shocked to discover that their university served meat only twice a week.

"In China we eat meat daily," says Ms. Chen, who in May completed a bachelor's degree program run jointly by Wuhan University, in China, and the Vellore Institute of Technology.

After a number of students complained, the Vellore institute not only began serving meat daily, but also flew chefs in from China to cook for