Now you can get a job in the UK with an Indian degree — Here’s everything you need to know

• UK and India have signed an MoU mutually recognising each other’s education degrees.
• The two countries also signed two more agreements – on maritime education and a framework agreement on the healthcare workforce.
• Negotiations for the India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) are ongoing and will be concluded by August 31, commerce secretary BVR Subrahmanyam said.

The United Kingdom is one of the most popular choices among Indian students, as the country is home to some renowned universities like Oxford, Cambridge, LSE etc.

On Thursday, July 21, the Indian government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UK government, which will be highly beneficial for Indian students who wish to study in the island nation.

“From today onwards, UK degrees will be recognised as equivalent to Indian degrees. You can take a degree there (in the UK) and will be eligible for employment in India. However, professional degrees such as medicine, pharmacy, engineering, architecture will not be covered under the pact,” commerce secretary BVR Subrahmanyam said at a media briefing on July 21.

Undergraduate and postgraduate degrees will now be recognised in both the countries. This means that an Indian student who has a degree from one of the Indian colleges will now be eligible to pursue higher studies in the UK and vice versa.

This also means that Indian degree holders will now be treated on par with UK degree holders and will be eligible for jobs in the UK as well.

The UK government has plans to attract more international students to its universities and hence, will be giving an economic boost. “The agreement will make UK universities even more appealing to Indian applicants and is likely to provide an economic boost, as the benefit to the UK of welcoming non-EU students is estimated by industry to be around £109,000 per person,” the UK government said in a statement.

The two countries also signed two more agreements – on maritime education and a framework agreement on the healthcare workforce. The latter pact will facilitate the training of healthcare professionals and nurses in India by the UK government, as the country is facing a shortage.

The maritime MoU paves the way for the governments to recognise the degrees, training and competency in maritime education in the respective countries.

The MoUs are part of the UK-India Enhanced Trade Partnership (ETP), which was agreed upon by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year.

Negotiations for the India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) are ongoing and will be concluded by August 31, said Subrahmanyam.

Currently, the fifth round of negotiations for the FTA is underway. “In August, we will be negotiating every day. The hope is to conclude the deal by August 31 and I am confident that we are on track,” Subrahmanyam said.

The trade between both the countries is worth $24 billion. “Our investment relationship supports over half a million jobs. Since 2017 the UK Government has secured new access to India’s market, which businesses estimate will unlock approximately £92m of additional UK exports every year in spirits, oats, pork products, and more. India is projected to become the world’s third largest economy by 2050,” the UK statement read.

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