NEW DELHI: Yale University constitutes a total of 165 Indian
students enrolled currently (not including Indian Americans), forming the 3rd
largest group of international students at the institution. The group seeks a
total financial assistance of about 3.6 million dollars each year.
But this support sought isn't merely one sided. The "Yale
Community", formed by the alumni and parents of current students from
India extend support to Yale as well. The community consels young and bright
kids towards opportunities at Yale. They help the students when they visit
India for placements and research. The community also helps Yale
philanthropically. The University President Peter Salovey was here in the city
to interact with this community, and also to sign an MOU with Ashoka University
for collaboration. This shall be only the second collaboration with an Indian
institution by Yale. The first one being with IIM Bangalore, which formed a
part of the Yale-managed Global Network for Advancement Management.
Salovey said that most collaborations in Yale initiate at the
ground level. Acquaintances among group of faculty at Yale with that of any
other institution often leads to a collaboration, he said, in justification to
why Yale collaborated with a private university. One of Ashoka's founders,
Ashish Dhawan, is a Yale alumnus. In Singapore, Yale has collaborated with the
government.
He pointed out that the India Initiative and India-Yale
Parliamentary Leadership Programme are relatively very new when compared with
Yale's more than century old association with India. Yale has had a Sanskrit
scholar since the 1840s. The study of linguistics and religion has always
invited students to learn Sanskrit. Also, several Indian languages, namely,
Gujarati, Tamil and Urdu are also taught at the university. There are faculty
positions in fields including anthropology, political science and comparative
literature, where the studies are majorly linked to India. As a result, the
number of Indian students has significantly grown over the years at Yale,
placing it just behind China and Canada.Of the 165, 40-45 are undergraduates
and the rest graduate students.
Yale has an admission policy called "in the need-blind way", which
supports talented students without any means to pay for the course. The
University provides a large number of such students with full funding.
Currently, there are more international students on full funding compared to
domestic ones. An average student from India receiving scholarship support
from Yale is getting USD 60000 in a year in order to pay for an all-in cost
bill. The family contribution is about USD 5000, said Salovey. One third of the
total budget and more than half of the scholarship budget comes from University
gifts, and eventually end up in an endowment. Hence, Yale has found a way of
'expanding at home'. It is increasing its intake by 200 - 800 over four years -
after 45 years.
Tags: Yale University
International Students
Indians In Yale
