UK vs. India Education: Advantages, Disadvantages, and Recommendations

This essay provides a comparative analysis of the education systems in the UK and India, focusing on the experiences of international students. It begins by outlining the advantages and disadvantages of the UK education system, including its high-quality resources and research opportunities, as well as the financial burden and potential culture shock. A case study highlights the challenges within the Indian education system, such as inequality and employability issues. The essay then compares the two systems, noting the UK's emphasis on critical analysis versus India's focus on memorization. Recommendations for improving the Indian education system include increasing awareness, investing in infrastructure and technology, promoting skill-based education, and addressing issues related to teacher training and global perspectives. The essay concludes by emphasizing the need to shift towards skill-based education and practical application to foster a qualified generation of youth. Desklib provides access to similar essays and study resources for students.

Running head: EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:
Total word: 2045

1EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
Introduction:
In recent years, there has been a rapid increase in researches on education systems for
several reasons. There is a massive increase in student migration for education purpose that
questions the motives behind it1. The UK is one of the states that have a large number of
international students across the world including India. The essay aims to compare the education
system between the two countries, the UK and India, in order to analyse the advantages and
disadvantages international students encounter in the UK education system. Also, the essay will
aim to recommend changes for India evaluating the reasons the ways the changes could be
implemented. The essay discusses the advantages and disadvantages of studying in the UK
followed by a case study along with the comparison of the two country’s education system.
Lastly, the essay is about recommendation and the ways they can be implemented.
The advantages and disadvantages of UK’s education system
For years Indian students choose the United Kingdom as their study abroad destination. It
is not surprising to hear students in India selecting the UK as their further study destination
anymore. It is unquestionably true that for every Indian student the primary consideration while
considering their higher study choices they think most about the host country. It is not only the
value of the degree but also the career choices following the career options. It is essential to
consider the advantages and disadvantages of the host country before deciding on education and
career2.
The UK has a long history of welcoming international students, and it is one of the
popular destinations for higher studies. It is the country of top universities in the world such as
1Kumar, Perveen, Shantanu Sarkar, and Rashmi Sharma. "Migration and diaspora formation: Mobility of Indian
students to developed countries." IMDS Working Paper Series 8.May 2009 (2009): 29-45.
2West, E. G. Education and the Industrial. 2018.

2EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge and Imperial College, London. The UK
education system has retained continuously its position as a popular destination among
international students. For years it has provided quality education with excellence in the standard
of teaching and research at the UK universities and schools.UK is widely known for its rich
resources available or research purpose3. The country puts across approximately 6.4% of global
journal articles and many more academic resources. Along with the academic benefits, the
county also provides opportunities for practical knowledge through job opportunities. A student
working part-time gets the same rights as a full-time employee. Also, students get job
opportunities after their graduation with the help of a work permit. The UK offers scholarships
and financial support as additional help to the students who cannot afford expensive tuition fees.
Also, Indian students in the UK get free medical treatment by NHS4.
While there are advantaged, there are certain disadvantages as well. The disadvantages of
the UK education system are mostly associated with non-educational factors. The most profound
disadvantage of the UK education system is financial issues.UK is the fourth most expensive
country that makes the average cost of tuition, living and accommodation in the UK highly
valuable which is often hard for many international students to endure. Culture shock including
language, food, behaviour and social roles are often unfavourable to many international students.
Also, the UK education system is stressful as the time to get a degree in the UK is too less. Also,
the learning time is too less giving less scope of learning5.
3García, Hugo A., and María de Lourdes Villarreal. "The “redirecting” of international students: American higher
education policy hindrances and implications." Journal of International Students 4.2 (2014): 126-136.
4Gibbs, Graham, and Alan Jenkins. Teaching large classes in higher education: How to maintain quality with
reduced resources. Routledge, 2014.
5Evans, John. Equality, education, and physical education. Routledge, 2017.

3EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
Case study:
Indian cities and villages are filled with colleges and universities. However, they are not
providing a higher level of education. The need actual need of the hour is to impart education of
higher level for the deserving candidates who want to excel. Along with primary education to
eliminate illiteracy from society, the main goal should be a reduction in the drop-out-rate as
well6. India is a country with complex social issues among which some are unexplainable.
Inclusion is one of the significant challenges of Indian education system7. Girls are restricted
from going to school in rural areas; children aged 4-16 years with mental and physical
disabilities are out of school. Although there is the Right to education, many children do not get
the scope of going to school. Although students complete their studies they do not achieve the
job that they aim8.
Comparison of the education system in your country and the UK
In India education system is provided by both private and public sectors where the
control and funding come from three major areas, central, state and local. Western education
system is ingrained in the Indian education system to some extent with the establishment of the
British raj. India has a long history Gurukul system of education where students were taught rally
by the elders and knowledge was passed from one generation to another generation9. However
the situation is different in the present days. Education is one of the fundamental rights in India.
India has recently improved its education system for which the credit is often given to the
6 Agrawal, Tushar. "Educational inequality in rural and urban India." International Journal of Educational
Development 34 (2014): 11-19.
7Khare, Mona. "Employment, employability and higher education in India: The missing links." Higher Education
for the Future 1.1 (2014): 39-62.
8Nath, Shanjendu. "Higher education and women participation in India." (2014).
9Pilz, Matthias. "India: Preparation for the world of work." Education system and school to work transition.
SpringerVS, Wiesbaden (2016).

4EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
economic rise of India10. The education system in India is dived into primary, middle, secondary,
higher secondary, under graduation and post-graduation. The much of India’s progress is in the
private institutions and still continues to grow. However there are several challenges that India
continues to face challenges, regardless of growing investment in the education sector, India’s
25% population is still under the category of illiterate11.The quality of education, when compared
to the other developing nation, is still considered poor. There are limited seats in college
positions and lack of qualified teachers for teaching positions. Although there is a large
population of international students, it is only in private institutions.
On the other hand, education in the UK is under the Department of education along with
the department of business, innovation and skills. The state schools take responsibilities at the
regional level while the local authorities take responsibilities for public education. The education
system is divided into three categories, primary, secondary and tertiary12. Education in the UK is
compulsory until the age of sixteen. There are well-recognised universities proving the best of
educations. Their system is much organised and has flexibilities that help students to learn along
with working. While India’s education system focuses on memorising concepts, the UK has a
system that encourages critical analysis and problem solving. While India lacks resources and
infrastructure the UK has world class infrastructure along with a rich collection of resources13.
10 Bellenoit, Hayden JA. Missionary education and empire in late colonial India, 1860-1920. Routledge, 2015.
11Gupta, A. 2015. Divided government and private growth in India.International Higher Education, (35).
12 “UK Education System Guide 2019 - Everything You Need to Know.” Study in UK, 13 Mar. 2019,
www.studying-in-uk.org/uk-education-system-guide/.
13Chatterjee, Parag, and Asoke Nath. "Massive open online courses (MOOCs) in higher education—Unleashing the
potential in India." 2014 IEEE International Conference on MOOC, Innovation and Technology in Education
(MITE). IEEE, 2014.

5EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
Recommendation for changes for the education system in your country
Certainly, with the present status of India's education system, it can be stated that India's
education system has a lot of room for improvement. Firstly, awareness about the importance of
education needs to be spread. It is only when the value of education and the importance of
education is clear the population will move towards learning. A necessary investment towards
building the education system is essential in order to improve the quality of education. Since
India is a developing country, many people cannot afford schooling or studies after high
secondary. Therefore an investment needs to be made from the public as well as public
organisations on education and welfare14. Embracing technology is another important factor that
Indian education system needs to pay heed. Technology can be used as a subject and as a tool for
education. Apart from improving the infrastructure of the education system India needs to make
amendments in its system as well. India’s education system certain teaches to the point however,
it does not involve logical thinking and reasoning skills. Every subject in the UK has a scope of
developing their theoretical knowledge into practice by using assignments that push towards
critical analysis and problem solving15. Therefore, students fail to implement their knowledge in
the practical world. The India education system has a system of limited seats which allows only a
few children to get in the place they want. It is one of the significant challenges that the Indian
education system face when they have to choose their career after high school. A child fails to
develop its persona with the education system in India even though it is known that it is the
personality that is more important than academic qualification. An unnecessary competition has
become the norm of the Indian education system that leads students to fetch marks while
14Aithal, P. S., and P. M. Kumar. "Analysis of Choice Based Credit System in Higher Education." International
Journal of Engineering Research and Modern Education (IJERME) Volume I, Issue I (2016): 278-284.
15 Burchell, Jon, Steve Kennedy, and Alan Murray. "Responsible management education in UK business schools:
Critically examining the role of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education as a driver
for change." Management Learning 46.4 (2015): 479-497.

6EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
forgetting the importance of building personality. In India education system is provided by both
private and public sectors where the control and funding come from three major areas, central,
state and local16. Therefore, the initiatives should be taken from their end as well. Also, looking
at the courses, Indian education system consists too much information on nationalism that
overlooks the importance of global outlook. Although love for country is a positive behaviour, it
is more important to provide the student with the global outlook and global perspectives.
Indian’s education system has a major portion vacant for effective teachers. The low pay scale
and improper resources discourage professionals to choose teaching as a profession. Therefore,
teachers and academic professionals are not sufficiently trained in many educational institutions.
Overall the focus of the education system has turned towards quantity and not quality based
studies.
The reasons and the ways the changes should be implemented
Considering the population of India, it is certainly a big challenge to implement the
changes. In order to improve the education system in India, the focus needs to be shifted towards
skill-based education. The memorising technique requires being changes through changing the
pattern of the syllabus and incorporating more practical based syllabus. The education
institutions can begin awareness by rewarding creativity, original thinking, research and
innovation17. These are the important factors that help to build a brighter nation along with a
qualified generation of youth. The government and the private organisation can invest in the
education system by devoting a certain percentage every year towards the improvement of the
education system18. Through more investment, the profession of teachers can be redefined with
16 Harriss-White, Barbara, and Gilbert Rodrigo. "Innovation in India's Informal Economy." (2014).
17 Krishna, Anirudh. The broken ladder: the paradox and potential of India's one-billion. Cambridge University
Press, 2017.
18Tilak, Jandhyala BG. "The political economy of education in India." Education and Development in India.
Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore, 2018. 33-84.

7EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
higher salary and opportunities. This will attract more people to the teaching profession. A right
amount of investment is required on technology, specifically for the government school where
children are deprived of quality education. The young students will only be interested in
researches when there is a scope of growth, therefore the local, state and centre need to
implement changes in a way that would encourage more students towards research and
innovation. The primary education should be compulsory, and it is in India as well. However,
the challenges are when people from below poverty line do not send their children to school in
order to send them for work19. This specific mindset needs to be changed through awareness and
encouragement by every responsible body including media. Also, even though primary education
becomes mandatory, higher education needs to develop by creating opportunities. Limited seats
and reserved needs to be eliminated in order to provide equal education to every education20.
Conclusion
While on the broader aspect it is often done in order to find the ways a nation can
improve its future, on smaller aspect, it is an individual concern where every parent want to
provide their children with best. The massive increase in student population who move out of the
country to receive proper education has good reasons. Although studying in the UK has some of
the disadvantages, it certainly offers a wide range of opportunities. India is a developing country
that lacks some resources to create the best education system for now. However, it is working on
it and has made tremendous progress in private education institutions. The UK, being a
developed country has resources and a long history of welcoming international students. For
years it has provided international students with quality education which make it a strong host
country for the educational purpose. Therefore, students seek the opportunity to study in the
19 Dheer, Ratan JS, Tomasz Lenartowicz, and Mark F. Peterson. "Mapping India’s regional subcultures: Implications
for international management." Journal of International Business Studies 46.4 (2015): 443-467.
20Galanter, Marc. "Competing equalities: law and the backward classes in India." 2018.

8EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
United Kingdom. For years Indian students choose the United Kingdom as their study abroad
destination. The difference is certainly due to the various factors such as a social, economic and
environmental factor that makes each country different in its way. There are indeed ways to
improve the education system in India. However, considering the population, it will require more
years to reach the goal.

9EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
References
“UK Education System Guide 2019 - Everything You Need to Know.” Study in UK, 13 Mar.
2019, www.studying-in-uk.org/uk-education-system-guide/.
Agrawal, Tushar. "Educational inequality in rural and urban India." International Journal of
Educational Development 34 (2014): 11-19.
Aithal, P. S., and P. M. Kumar. "Analysis of Choice Based Credit System in Higher
Education." International Journal of Engineering Research and Modern Education
(IJERME) Volume I, Issue I (2016): 278-284.
Bellenoit, Hayden JA. Missionary education and empire in late colonial India, 1860-1920.
Routledge, 2015.
Burchell, Jon, Steve Kennedy, and Alan Murray. "Responsible management education in UK
business schools: Critically examining the role of the United Nations Principles for
Responsible Management Education as a driver for change." Management Learning 46.4
(2015): 479-497.
Chatterjee, Parag, and Asoke Nath. "Massive open online courses (MOOCs) in higher education
—Unleashing the potential in India." 2014 IEEE International Conference on MOOC,
Innovation and Technology in Education (MITE). IEEE, 2014.
Dheer, Ratan JS, Tomasz Lenartowicz, and Mark F. Peterson. "Mapping India’s regional
subcultures: Implications for international management." Journal of International
Business Studies 46.4 (2015): 443-467.
Evans, John. Equality, education, and physical education. Routledge, 2017.
Galanter, Marc. "Competing equalities: law and the backward classes in India." 2018.

10EDUCATION SYSTEM: UK AND INDIA
García, Hugo A., and María de Lourdes Villarreal. "The “redirecting” of international students:
American higher education policy hindrances and implications." Journal of International
Students 4.2 (2014): 126-136.
Gibbs, Graham, and Alan Jenkins. Teaching large classes in higher education: How to maintain
quality with reduced resources. Routledge, 2014.
Gupta, A. 2015. Divided government and private growth in India.International Higher
Education, (35).
Harriss-White, Barbara, and Gilbert Rodrigo. "Innovation in India's Informal Economy." (2014).
Khare, Mona. "Employment, employability and higher education in India: The missing
links." Higher Education for the Future 1.1 (2014): 39-62.
Krishna, Anirudh. The broken ladder: the paradox and potential of India's one-billion.
Cambridge University Press, 2017.
Kumar, Perveen, Shantanu Sarkar, and Rashmi Sharma. "Migration and diaspora formation:
Mobility of Indian students to developed countries." IMDS Working Paper Series 8.May
2009 (2009): 29-45.
Nath, Shanjendu. "Higher education and women participation in India." (2014).
Pilz, Matthias. "India: Preparation for the world of work." Education system and school to work
transition. SpringerVS, Wiesbaden (2016).
Tilak, Jandhyala BG. "The political economy of education in India." Education and Development
in India. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore, 2018. 33-84.
West, E. G. Education and the Industrial. 2018.