JNU Cuts Semester Fees For Int'l Students By Up To 80%

Time of India

3 days ago

New Delhi: In a bid to reverse a sharp decline in international student enrolments,
Jawaharlal Nehru University
has slashed the tuition fees for foreign students by up to 80% starting this academic year. The new fee structure is aimed at reviving the university's global academic footprint, vice-chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit told TOI.
For students from SAARC countries, the semester fee for the humanities programmes has been reduced from $700 to $200— a 71% cut. For science programmes, it now stands at $300, reflecting a 57% drop. For students from Africa and Latin America, the revised fees are $400 for science—down from $1,900, a 78% reduction, and $300 for humanities—down from $1,500, an 80% reduction. Students from West Asia will pay $600 instead of $1,900, a 68% cut, in science and $500 instead of $1,500, a 66 % drop, in humanities.
For students from all other countries, the semester fee has been revised to $1,250 for science courses from $1,900, a 34 % drop, and $1,000 for humanities from $1,500, a 33% cut. All foreign students will now have to pay a one-time registration fee of $500.
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The revision comes against the backdrop of a steep drop in foreign student admissions at the university in recent years. JNU had 152 foreign students in 2020-21, which dropped to 122 in 2021-22, 77 in 2022-23, and just 51 in 2023-24, TOI reported earlier.
The number of source countries also fell drastically—from 14 in 2020-21 to eight in 2023-24. Countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, which earlier sent the highest number of students, now have little to no representation on the campus, the report had stated.
Students had pointed to the high fee structure as a major deterrent.
Vice-chancellor Pandit told TOI, "I and my team worked on rationalisation of the fee structure for international students.
Implementing National Education Policy 2020's vision and mission, we studied the best practices of higher education institutes and implemented this for the 25% over and above quota given by NEP and University Grants Commission." She added, "We aim that this will attract students from G20 countries—a vision of PM Modi for Global South.
The university is gearing itself for Viksit Bharat and achieving global and inclusive classrooms."
Welcoming the move, JNU International Students Association president Saugat Phuyal said this was a long-pending demand and the revision would help restore diversity on the campus, especially from SAARC countries. "We have seen a sharp fall in international students in recent years, particularly from SAARC nations. The new fee structure is a positive step that will make JNU more accessible again to students from these countries," he added.
The university hopes the reduced fees, along with its academic reputation and targeted outreach efforts, will bring a renewed wave of foreign students to the campus.