Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Australia for the Third Australia-India Annual Summit in Melbourne, the entry of new Australian universities into India has entered an operational phase. Leading the charge is Victoria University (VU) Delhi NCR, which formally received its Letter of Approval (LoA) from the University Grants Commission (UGC) during the summit, clearing the path to commence teaching this August.
With this, VU will become the third Australian university to start classes in India – Deakin University and the University of Wollongong are fully operational with active student classes at their GIFT City campuses in Gujarat. VU will be followed by UNSW, Flinders, Western Sydney, Western Australia, and La Trobe, who are in campus setup, regulatory approval, and launch phases.
VU’s vertical campus
VU’s first campus in India is a 50,000-square-foot dedicated vertical space located at Candor TechSpace in Gurugram. Designed to mimic the iconic VU Tower in Melbourne, it will deliver the VU Block Model, where students focus intensively on one subject at a time in immersive, four-week blocks. The campus will offer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in Business, Data Science, Cyber Security, and IT.
“Delhi NCR provides a strong strategic advantage because it is north India’s commercial capital,” Abhishek Sharma, chief operating officer at VU Delhi NCR, told FE. “Our co-location with Fortune 500 companies and tech firms means students will have direct opportunities to engage with startups and corporates through curriculum-integrated projects. We are also signing MOUs with leading global firms for research, training, and placements.”
Sharma added that the facility is built with an eye on the future: “The campus features collaborative learning classrooms and digital teaching spaces, while running on zero water discharge and aiming for net-zero emissions by 2027. Our vision is to support 7,000-8,000 students over our initial 10-year term, with roughly one-third of faculty exposure coming from international specialists, particularly from Australia.” VU India has also introduced a Global Mobility Program for semester exchanges and transfers to Melbourne, alongside scholarships of up to Rs 3 lakh per year.
Flinders in Bengaluru
Simultaneously expanding the Australian footprint, Flinders University received a Letter of Intent from the UGC during the summit to open an international campus in Bengaluru by early 2027. Situated in India’s technology and biotechnology hub, the Flinders campus will welcome students into high-tech and business courses, including Computer Science, Information Technology, and an MBA (Future Business). Flinders University vice-chancellor Colin Stirling noted that the approval is a step to build partnerships that strengthen education, research, and industry collaboration across both nations.
Sharing the broader bilateral picture, Ravneet Pawha, vice-president (Global Engagement) and CEO (South Asia) at Deakin University, told FE that talent has emerged as the next strategic pillar of the India-Australia relationship. Pawha noted that as India marches towards Viksit Bharat 2047, international education has shifted entirely from student mobility to localised capability building. “Rather than acting simply as degree providers, Australian universities are becoming long-term partners co-creating industry-ready workforces directly where the talent exists,” Pawha said.