First Indian university in Qatar, offering ‘affordable’ education, to commence classes in mid-Sept

Milestone International Education, a company registered in Qatar, has collaborated with India’s Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) to set up the MIE-SPPU Institute of Higher Education

Team News Porter

For Indian expatriates who nurture the wish that their children pursue their university education in Qatar but cannot do so due to the affordability factor, there is a news to bring cheer, an official has said.

According to a news report published in Qatari daily Qatar Tribune, the first Indian university in Qatar is all set to commence classes in four programmes from mid-September.

Milestone International Education, a company registered in Qatar, has collaborated with India’s Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) to set up the MIE-SPPU Institute of Higher Education, according to the news report in Qatar Tribune. The university’s Doha campus, with a capacity of 660 students, will be offering four-year degree programmes – Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Commerce, and Bachelor of Business Administration.

Any student who has enrolled in MIE-SPPU will be considered a student of SPPU and can join any of the 900 colleges affiliated to the SPPU, the report noted.

SPPU is ranked as one of the top 600 universities across the globe as per the latest QS World University Ranking and one of the 10 top universities of India.

“All the programmes have been approved by Qatar’s Ministry of Education and Higher Education. In Arts, we are offering Economics and Psychology; in Commerce, International Banking, Banking and Finance; in Management, Marketing and Finance; and in Science, Data Science and Information Technology,” MIE-SPPU President Hassan Chougule was quoted as saying in an interview with Qatar Tribune.

The Higher Education Institute, located at Barwa Commercial Avenue on Industrial Area Road at Ain Khalid, has 11 classrooms with 60 students per class and a campus covering 6,300 square metres area.

Chougule said the campus would have facilities like laboratories, auditorium, indoor recreation area, cafeteria, library, book store and a stationery shop.

Qualified and experienced professors deputed from SPPU will be teaching on the first offshore international campus of SPPU in Qatar, Chougule said, adding that Prof Bimalendu B Nath has been appointed as the director (Principal) of MIE-SPPU Qatar.

Chougule said students of any nationality who have passed 12th grade or senior secondary school examination are eligible and can apply for registration. Initially, only Qatar residents will be given admissions. However, if the Qatari government issues student visas, then students from other countries may also seek admission in future, the news report quoted Chougule as saying.

“Qatar resident students were always looking and waiting for affordable higher education after passing senior secondary school examination in Qatar,” he said.

“We have decided to set up a university campus because there were not many affordable options for higher education for students in Qatar. On an average, universities in Qatar are charging QR25,000 per semester which is unaffordable for a majority of the parents. We first decided to start with QR30,000 per year but later reduced by QR2,000,” Chougule was quoted as saying in the Qatar Tribune report.

“Currently, our fees are QR28,000, QR30,000 and QR34,000, according to the academic programme,” said Chougule, adding that the university would provide shuttle bus service between the campus and the nearest Free Zone metro station,” he added.

He said part-time programmes like Executive MBA for graduates who are employed in Qatar and B.Ed for teaching community will also be offered in near future.

“We also have plans to launch full time programmes in pharmaceutical and paramedical, provided we get necessary approval from Qatar’s Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE),” remarked Chougule, adding that establishing a school for special needs children is also the DPS group’s dream.

Chougule, 72, an enterprising businessman, social worker and community leader from Maharashtra, started his professional career with Larsen and Toubro Ltd in India in 1973. He arrived in Doha in 1977 and worked with Manweir Engineering, Behzad Travels and Emad Electricals.

[Doha skyscrapers Image by Konevi from Pixabay has been used for illustrative purpose only]