Purdue University, USA, is looking to deepen its relationship with India, by launching a number of new initiatives with institutions and corporates.
As a first step, the university signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras (IIT-M) on Friday. They are also creating a country-wide Purdue alumni network, where former students can share their experiences and knowledge.
In an interview to The Hindu , Mitchell E. Daniels Jr., President, Purdue University, said, “The MoU is for joint research between the two universities, and will soon lead to a joint degree programme, where students can receive a degree from both Purdue and IIT-M simultaneously.” He added that there was already a significant amount of collaborative work taking place between Purdue and IIT-M in various fields.
The two institutions are also exchanging notes on teaching methodologies to improve the quality of students across the board, he said.
“We are putting in a lot of effort into evolving newer teaching methods. All our lectures are now available online, so that students do not have to attend lectures. Instead they can listen to lectures in their own time,” he said.
“In future, we are hoping that classroom sessions will be more targeted at the needs of the students,” Mr. Daniels said.
The university is also focusing on introducing all their students to research at an undergraduate level, he added.
“We are also hoping to share our expertise in dealing with corporates, which will help with future research at IIT-M,” Mr. Daniels said.
According to Suresh V. Garimella, Executive Vice-President of research and partnerships at Purdue, close to 1,500 students from India are studying at Purdue. “India, is therefore, one of the countries with which Purdue is looking to build a deep relationship,” he said.
Purdue is starting an India-Purdue lecture series in partnership with Purdue alumnus C.N.R. Rao, National Research professor.
The inaugural session will be held in January in Bengaluru and Chennai on Measuring Molecules: Mass Spectrometers in Science, Medicine and Business, Mr. Garimella said.
