The Dons Are Weeping

It has finally happened. The ultimate travesty that is making traditionalists weep and old Etonians wondering what the world is coming to. That bastion of British educational excellence and tradition, that has held firm for the past 500 years, has finally been breached. The venerable University of Oxford has succumbed to the outsourcing scourge.

To add insult to injury, Oxford did not condescend to open its first foreign offshoot in some civilized country, like the United State, but in one of Britain’s former colonies – in India, for heaven’s sake. Oxford University vice-chancellor, John Hood, announced the establishment of the Oxford University Business Centre, which will be part of the Business School at Oxford.

Hood justified the university’s choice of location by stating "India has become increasingly important for Oxford and the world at large." More important than America – the country that saved Britain’s sorry ass in World War II? Talk about ingratitude.
Some Americans will, no doubt, take the high road and declare they don’t need Oxford. They have Harvard. Well guess what? Harvard is seriously considering setting up a branch of its Business School in India too.

So why has India suddenly become the location of choice? Partly it’s because India is one of the few developing countries in the world – outside Africa – where a fair proportion of the locals speak English. But I suspect the main reason is economics. India’s economy is growing at around 9% every year; and a lot of people have a lot of disposable income. They will well be able to afford the astronomical fees that Oxford – and later, Harvard – are certain to charge. Another reason could be prestige. An increasing number of the brightest of Indian students are preferring to do their graduate degrees in the US, rather than England. Perhaps, Oxford wants to remind them where it all started.

So will a piece of Oxford be transported - lock, stock and barrel – to India. Not really. For one thing, I don’t think anyone knows how to build a cloister these days. For another, the bustling city of Pune, where the Business Centre will come up, is a far cry from ‘England’s green and pleasant land’.