| |
|
|
Leebron, Keller-McNulty talk about India trip President David Leebron and Dean Sallie Keller-McNulty of the George R. Brown School of Engineering traveled to India in January to meet with educational, business and government leaders. They discussed their trip in this Q&A with the Rice News.
|
| During their trip to India, President Leebron and Dean Keller-McNulty met with the president of India. Show here are Mr. H. L. Bajaj, who arranged the meeting, President Leebron, the president of India, Abdul Kalam, Dean Keller-McNulty, and Kevin Foyle, senior director of development. |
 |
|
Q: Why go to India?
Leebron:
There are a number of reasons for Rice to engage more fully with India. India is the world’s second most populous country. Within two decades, it will be the third largest economy. It is already playing an important role in two vital areas: information technology and pharmaceuticals. Thus, India presents several important opportunities for Rice.
First, there are three ways to provide our students opportunities to learn about India, and we intend to pursue all three. Our students can learn here at Rice about India, from members of our faculty and from visiting professors from India. We can also enroll more students from India. We also hope to increase the number of students who pursue study-abroad opportunities in India. Second, India offers opportunities for research collaboration. These include some of the high-quality educational and research institutions in India, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, and also corporations with significant research operations in India. In fact, a number of Rice faculty are already engaged with a wide range of researchers and institutions in India.
Finally, one of our missions is to solve problems faced by millions of people around the world. Researchers at Rice recently discovered the means to use nanotechnology to remove arsenic from water—a serious problem in India. The next step is for our researchers to collaborate with people in India to make sure the technology works.
Q: How do India’s engineering programs compare with those in the U.S.?
Keller-McNulty:
Many of the undergraduate programs are on-par with U.S. programs. At the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), for example, the students are terrific. The schools select the top 1 to 2 percent of applicants, compared with top-tier U.S. institutions that select the top 10 to 20 percent of applicants. We did see some variability in facilities, but we visited several institutions we would be proud to encourage our undergraduates to attend.
Q: A number of universities are sending delegations to India. What can Rice offer India that other schools cannot?
Leebron: Some schools are seeking to open branch campuses or independent operations in India—which is a matter of some controversy. Rice seeks to operate through collaborations and partnerships. The most important thing we offer is the very high quality of our students and faculty. The best Indian institutions are of very high quality and have amazingly good students. In fact, we’re both concerned that any visiting or exchange students will be able to keep up with the work. We are confident that Rice students can do so, and we’re also confident that we will offer even the very best students from India a challenging and rewarding educational opportunity.
Q: Do engineering educators in the U.S. and India face similar challenges today?
Keller-McNulty: We do face similar challenges—for example, expanding the number of women in our programs. We both face funding and infrastructure challenges. In India, research funding is strong at many of the institutions, but they are short on funds to travel abroad. We will be looking for ways to help with that dilemma. Both countries cannot keep up with the physical infrastructure demands of faculty and students. Both countries are interested in collaboration.
Both countries also are feeling the strain of not having enough scientists and engineers. In both, higher education is competing strongly with industry and government for PhDs. India would like to see more people who are educated in the U.S. return to India. Both countries are concerned about the overall set of experiences we give to our engineers. In India, many of their management programs are closely linked to engineering—perhaps something we could learn from.
Q: President Leebron, how does the India you just visited compare with the India you visited 25 years ago?
Leebron: I was often asked if I had visited India before. I sometimes replied that although I had visited India 25 years ago, it was my first time to visit this India. I was referring to the significant changes in India, something my hosts appreciated. The Indians are rightly proud of their economic achievements since the 1990s. Its growth rate is among the best in the world. A recent survey showed that Indians today are the most optimistic people in the world. A quarter century ago India was trying to be as closed an economy as possible. Today, there is evidence of foreign investment everywhere and also of the success of Indian exports, which has been to the advantage of the economy and the Indian people.
Indians expect the next decade to be an important and exciting time. That said, some things haven’t changed. Poverty remains pervasive. India has not yet made critical infrastructure investments, particularly in transportation. But there are good indications that those investments are now being made or will be made in the near future.
Q: What do you think this trip achieved?
Leebron: The trip heightened Rice’s visibility in India, which I think is vital to our Vision for the Second Century. We began conversations with important partners in education and industry. As a result of what we learned, we have begun to narrow our focus and will begin to build relationships. Ultimately, it depends on our faculty. So we will be consulting very closely with faculty members to see where their interests lie, what collaborations they would like to build and how the university can help them do so.
Next story >>
Home
|
Rice University, MS-364 - 6100 Main Street - Houston, Texas 77005-1892
© Copyright 2006 Rice University
|
| |
| |
| |
|
