A Historic Milestone: A Batch Like No Other

Deakin University Welcomes India’s Inaugural Cohort to GIFT City Campus

A historic milestone was achieved this week as Deakin University proudly welcomed its inaugural batch of students to the GIFT City Campus in Gujarat, India. Ranked among the top 200 universities worldwide, Deakin is the first international university to establish a teaching campus in India. This marks the beginning of a new era as students commence classes in the Master of Cyber Security (Professional) and Master of Business Analytics programs.

Key Highlights

• Deakin University aims to achieve its vision of accessible and inclusive education of the highest standards, aligning with India's visionary National Education Policy 2020. Students can access the same quality of education offered in Australia, complete with prestigious international accreditations, without needing to go abroad.
• The GIFT City Campus is set to adopt global standards of learning and innovation, offering education modeled after the Australian system and tailored to meet the needs of the Indian industry and workforce.
• The curriculum is designed to provide Indian students with unparalleled opportunities for growth and development, equipping them with skills and knowledge that are globally recognized and highly sought after.
• The tuition fee is set at 21 lakh INR delivering the promise of providing globally acclaimed standards of course and curriculum at an affordable fee structure.
• Upon graduation, these students will join Deakin’s largest international alumni network, which includes over 20,000 graduates worldwide.

A 360-degree win-win for the Indian student

The Deakin University GIFT City Campus provides a great opportunity for Indian students. It provides world-class international education, state-of-the-art facilities, and a unique learning environment in a cutting-edge business hub. Indian students can earn a globally recognized degree without traveling abroad, reaping all the associated benefits.

Scholarships

Deakin University, Australia, and Gujarat International Finance Tec-City are proud to announce the launch of the Deakin University and GIFT City Scholarship Program 2024, offering fully funded tuition and living scholarships to two deserving Indian students who otherwise cannot access a world-class international education. This partnership initiative underscores the commitment of both institutions to enhancing accessibility, fostering academic excellence, and providing opportunities for talented individuals to pursue higher education.

2 students, one in each course have received the scholarship to pursue higher education and secure opportunities for a stellar career in the future without any pressure. These students – Bhavika for Business Analytics and Jankit for Cyber Security hold tremendous potential and promise but their ambitions were hindered by limitations to finance their studies. Deakin is honoured to be the enabler for the fulfillment of their dreams.

Delivering on promises

Deakin University's GIFT City Campus stands as a transformative model for cross-border education and global partnerships. This pioneering venture underscores the role of international institutions as vital contributors to India's knowledge ecosystem. It showcases the immense potential of strategic global collaboration in strengthening the Indian education system, presenting a compelling value proposition for delivering world-class education to India's significant tertiary student population.

Key Highlights

• Empower India's 4.13 lakh students to become leaders in the nation's growth journey.
• Increased accessibility and affordability of world-class education in India
• Bridges gaps in desired education standards in India while providing international standards targeted for the Indian academia and industry landscape
• Deakin University's India campus introduces innovative teaching methods, practical learning, industry interface, and international curricula. This approach synergizes with the fintech industry, offering students hands-on experience within their studies.
• Deakin's India campus partners with top firms like TCS, Infosys, and Xebia to provide students with valuable industry exposure, fostering internships, job placements, and research projects closely tied to real-world applications.
• Continued learning, skilling, and entrepreneurship as Deakin aligns its courses with the Indian industry needs to develop strategic skills in Indian students, preparing them not just for India but also for the global workforce.

Other details of note

• Volume of interest in India – With the first-of-its-kind endeavour, the campus has received registrations and expressions of interest in thousands. The first cohort of students to take admissions shows the interest and demand for global learning, courses, and industry integration in academics in India.
• Regions of India that got the maximum turn-out - It is an absolute delight that students come from across India. To break it down, the largest number is from the state of Gujarat itself but very closely followed by Maharashtra and New Delhi. Ahmedabad and Surat have given us the maximum students closely followed by the capital, New Delhi as well as young professionals from Chennai and Bengaluru.

Demographic details of the batch–

• The diversity of the first cohort of Deakin’s India campus is fantastic. There is a predominance of students who come with a few years of work experience. This is understandable as they are clearly looking to build upon themselves and are now sure about the line they want to pursue.
• They are all within the age range of 21 to 27.
• The batch size for Business Analytics is understandably larger as students from different backgrounds of study in their undergraduate courses are eligible to join. In contrast, students in the cyber security batch come from IT and Computer Science fields, which is a prerequisite for studying this course.

The biggest motivator among students who have joined the campus -

Hands down the biggest motivator for students is the access to join an international university, have a degree in an emerging field endorsed by a reputed international university with a clear specialisation in the field. The second motivator is the accreditation and global validity and exposure acquired through completion. The standards of course, curriculum, and teaching are the same as that in Australia and the fees are half as that overseas. Added to this the possibility of graduating with an international degree without the cost and hassle of relocating and settling abroad is a huge draw for students.

Support and placement services available for students at the campus -

• Deakin is strategically located within GIFT City which is a thriving corporate ecosystem. Our courses answer the workforce needs of business entities set up here.
• It has a great connect with many top-of-the-line corporate entities here such as – IIBX, Infosys, HCLTech, TCS, NSE Academy, XEBIA, India INX, L&T Edutech, INDIFOUR CONSULT PRIVATE LIMITED, IBMIBM
• Deakin’s career guidance team DeakinTALENT is here to support students with their profile-building, communication skills and presentation skills etc
• They will be assisting the students by connecting them for potential internships and placements later.
• We have appointed a dedicated placement coordinator who shall oversee and deliver on targets of ensuring success for our students. He comes with experience and knowledge of the Indian career climate and pathways for professional excellence here.

About the Faculty

• The faculty team is in place and are all set to start teaching and infuse their experience and dynamism into the learning.
• The faculty have vast industry expertise and experience to deliver the application-oriented learning aspects of these courses.
• There is a 60:40 mix of faculty who are from Deakin in Australia teaching the students here to the number of new faculty from India who have joined us.