In an increasingly interconnected world, higher education is no longer confined by national boundaries.
With growing numbers of students seeking education and employment abroad, Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs) have become critical instruments in facilitating academic mobility, simplifying admissions, and expanding career prospects.
For India and the United Kingdom (UK), the establishment of a formal MRA has marked a turning point in educational collaboration — one that benefits students, institutions, and both national systems.
Understanding Mutual Recognition Agreements
Mutual Recognition Agreements are formal treaties between two countries that acknowledge and accept each other's academic or professional qualifications. These agreements provide a structured framework that eliminates ambiguity and ensures qualifications earned in one country are recognized as valid in the other.
In the case of the UK and India, such an agreement plays a vital role in easing access to higher education and employment across borders.
The need for recognition
For decades, Indian degrees faced inconsistent recognition across UK institutions. Before the 2000s, Indian qualifications were evaluated on a case-by-case basis, often requiring students to undergo additional credential assessments or bridging courses.
Some professional degrees were not accepted at all, creating significant barriers to further education and career advancement.
With the rapid expansion of India’s higher education system in the early 2000s, informal recognition began to emerge, particularly for degrees from premier institutions like the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), and Delhi University (DU). However, the lack of a formal recognition framework meant that acceptance still varied widely between UK institutions.
Between 2010 and 2020, the rise in international student mobility encouraged the UK to standardise its approach.
UK NARIC (now UK ENIC) played a central role in benchmarking Indian qualifications against UK standards. Despite progress, the absence of a comprehensive mutual recognition policy continued to restrict opportunities for Indian students and professionals.
A Landmark Agreement: UK-India Mutual Recognition (2022)
On 21 July 2022, India and the United Kingdom signed a Mutual Recognition of Academic Qualifications Agreement under the UK–India Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP).
This landmark deal formally recognized Indian undergraduate and postgraduate degrees (excluding some regulated professional qualifications) across UK higher education institutions. It signaled the start of a new era of structured academic cooperation between the two countries.
Scope and framework of the agreement
The recognition framework applies to qualifications awarded by:
Accredited Indian institutions
Approved international campuses
Blended learning models that meet national quality standards
However, programmes in regulated professional fields such as law, medicine, and accountancy remain outside the agreement's scope, as they are governed by domestic regulatory bodies.
Implementation is overseen by:
The Association of Indian Universities (AIU) in India
UK ENIC, under the UK Department for Education
These agencies are responsible for credential verification, ensuring procedural consistency, and advising institutions on the interpretation and application of the agreement.
Benefits for students and institutions
The agreement offers several tangible benefits:
Simplified admissions: Indian students applying to UK postgraduate programs no longer need third-party credential evaluations.
Streamlined processes: Universities can assess qualifications based on established frameworks, reducing administrative delays.
Enhanced employability: Indian graduates in the UK gain better access to the job market and post-study work visas.
Institutional confidence: Academic records are evaluated with clarity, fostering stronger institutional partnerships.
Strategic significance in policy and practice
The MRA aligns with the broader India-UK 2030 Roadmap and supports the internationalization goals of India’s National Education Policy (NEP). It recognizes education as a vital pillar of bilateral cooperation and as a catalyst for global engagement.
While the agreement standardizes recognition, it also preserves institutional autonomy. Universities in both countries retain the right to design curricula, assess academic merit, and form partnerships within the bounds of their academic and regulatory frameworks.
Moreover, the agreement supports scalable and sustainable collaboration, encouraging:
Integrated academic programs
Faculty and doctoral exchanges
Joint supervision and research initiatives
Distributed learning and shared instruction models
A model for future collaboration
Recognition agreements like the one between India and the UK are foundational to global academic interoperability. They bring legal clarity, enable seamless cross-border education, and support long-term institutional investments in international partnerships.
The UK–India recognition framework stands as a model for future agreements, showing how two diverse education systems can harmonize their standards while respecting national sovereignty.
Its continued success will rely on ongoing administrative coordination, periodic policy reviews, and active engagement by academic institutions.
Recently GITAM (Deemed to be University) and Coventry University (UK) have entered into a very unique dual degree PhD Degree programme thus enabling students of both the universities to be jointly conducting research and supervised by expert faculty members in the areas Agroecology, Water & Resilience, Future transport and Cities, Intelligent Healthcare, Post digital cultures/Arts, Memory and Communities.
In conclusion, understanding and implementing Mutual Recognition Agreements is not just a matter of academic policy — it’s a strategic move toward building a globally mobile, academically empowered, and professionally prepared generation.
The UK–India agreement is a blueprint for how thoughtful collaboration can turn educational aspirations into international opportunities.
(Prof KNS Achary is the Pro Vice Chancellor of GITAM (Deemed-to-be) University. Views expressed are his own.)
