The COVID-19 pandemic has done little to lessen the interest among foreign students for the courses offered by the University of Kerala.
As many as 1,042 students from 35 countries, including 550 from Afghanistan alone, have applied through the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) for various undergraduate (UG), postgraduate (PG), MPhil and PhD programmes.
The university, which has been striving to position itself as a preferred destination for higher education among students from developing countries, hopes to enhance its global image by absorbing as many applicants as possible.
According to Sabu Joseph, director of the university’s Centre for Global Academics which handles international students’ affairs, the number of applications is possibly the highest in the university’s history. Last year, the university had approved admissions for 105 students of which nearly 20 joined various courses. The count was expected to become much higher this year, he said.
Besides Afghanistan, there were applications from Bangladesh, Nepal, Syria, Iraq and various African countries, including Uganda, Botswana and Kenya. The university received one application from United States for a UG programme.
There were 611 applications for various PG programmes, including 170 for MBA alone. Foreign students have also shown interest in pursuing Masters in Computer Science, Political Science, Public Administration, Economics, English, Sociology, MCom, MCA, Mathematics and Environmental Science.
As many as 283 applications were received for UG courses, including Bachelors in Computer Science, Social Work, Political Science, Psychology, Physics and LLB. There were also 148 applications submitted for PhD in 25 subjects such as Management Studies, Political Science, Computer Science, Chemistry, Sociology, English and Education. The university has recommended admitting 70 applicants among the PhD aspirants.
Mr. Joseph said the high demand could be attributed to the positive feedback given by current and former foreign students. He said that while those who gained admissions would be given priority in the hostel facilities on the university’s Karyavattom campus, efforts were on to establish a separate hostel for foreign students.
