Preparing global engineers: USA-India academia & industry led approach

A major challenge in engineering education today in India is preparing students with the skill set needed for a global industry. This paper describes an innovative partnership between two institutions of higher education in India and USA and a multinational corporation to address this challenge. The collaborative manner in which the industry and institutions internationalized the curriculum is a key feature of this program. This unique approach has resulted in the employees of a multinational company in India being able to get two high quality Masters-level degrees in engineering, customized to their current and future requirements at a very affordable price point. This paper looks at cost savings, collaborative course development between industry and international academia, using technology to deliver courses and on-the-job professional development program for employees while keeping the employees motivated. But there are also interesting lessons learnt regarding teaching in English, adjusting to the local cultural context and the overall integration into the Indian academic setting. The process innovation described here would be of great interest to academia, industry and education policy makers and has the potential to be replicated in the entire field of non-engineering and interdisciplinary academic programs.