Saksham Bharat: A Scholarship App for Higher Education

This project is based on the foresight research and strategy development work conducted as part of my Major Research Project at OCAD University, Toronto, Canada.

To find more information about my project, Click Here.

Introduction

The Indian higher education system is a pillar that supports the development of a skilled labour force essential for the nation’s continuous economic growth and uplifting millions of people out of poverty into the Indian middle class. Vocational education and training within the higher education system train the workforce in-demand skills and job roles through long-term and short-term skill development courses and degree programs.

Educating our labour for the future has been integral to the Indian national strategy. As a nation of 1.4 billion people, India must take advantage of its strengths and minimise its weaknesses.

With critical uncertainties like climate change, migration, geopolitical instability, and many other unknown crises, the future in the twenty-first century looks different from anything encountered in the past.

In this project, I present Saksham Bharat: A Scholarship App for Higher Education, an artefact from the future.

What is an Artefact from the future?

Artefacts from the future are tangible or visual representations of possible future scenarios designed to make abstract future concepts more concrete and relatable. These artefacts can take various forms, such as prototypes, mock-ups, illustrations, videos, or written narratives.

They serve several purposes:

1. Helping people visualise and understand what the future might look like.
2. Stimulating discussion and debate about future possibilities and the implications of current decisions.
3. Engaging stakeholders in the foresight process by providing tangible examples of future scenarios.
4. Allowing for the testing of ideas and strategies in a simulated future environment.

The Historical Setting

It is the year 2049.

The Indian higher education system offers Vocational Education and Training (VET) through school curricula and dedicated higher education streams.

Through a system of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), training centres, colleges, and universities, VET programs of variable lengths are offered to students. The program curricula mix theoretical and practical courses, comprising collaborative learning opportunities, mentorships, and apprenticeship opportunities for students and graduates. These programs are affordable and accessible to all students who aspire to enter the skilled workforce or start their venture.

However, this wasn’t true in the past.

With the rising living costs in Indian cities and limited family wealth, most students in the 2020s studied in poorly administered and managed colleges and universities. Students found that aspiring to study in good government and private colleges required access to vast amounts of financial resources. An average student in the 2020s had to spend money to access quality education, such as:

• Preparing for competitive exams by taking admissions in private coaching centres
• Residing in large cities like Delhi and Mumbai leads to high living costs (rent, utilities, transit, and food)
• Paying high registration fees for competitive exams
• Paying tuition and ancillary fees after getting admission into a private/government institute
• Applying for student loans also required access to capital
• and many more

It was that a change was needed.

Shifting Tides

In the 2020s, students applied for student loans or burrowed money through the informal money lending system—the debt burden on the aspiring. The lower and middle classes increased exponentially with the increase. Students and their families found themselves in a vicious cycle of debt that threatened to stagnate and stop the growth of generational wealth in Indian families.

Then, the government of India reinvented access to vocational education and training in higher education institutes through a network of scholarships, student employment, grants, and student awards to reduce the financial burden on students and their families.

Views began to change about the role of students and their families in the higher education system in India. The perspective that students should carry the burdens of pursuing education independently with minimal support from the state was challenged. Many decried that the existing affirmative actions in the Indian education system weren’t enough. Stakeholders in the VET called for state intervention in making modern multi-disciplinary vocational programs more accessible, aspirational, and affordable in India.

New models emerged, with the government starting national scholarships and bursaries for vocational students. Through direct-benefit transfers, the government deposited money into the bank accounts of students pursuing higher education. Several state governments developed affirmative action systems to reduce the financial burden on higher education.

Institutionalising Support

By the time it was fully adopted, the new model of scholarships and financial support for students had some key characteristics. Students applied for funding before they were preparing to apply for higher education. Students receive funding and financial support directly from the government through cash transfers.

Students could explore learning and working opportunities that fit their career aspirations. Many students chose to concentrate on specialised multi-disciplinary programs and applied for eligible scholarships. Cash transfers and student employment opportunities financially liberated students and removed the social stigma surrounding working during education.

Students dove enthusiastically into applied environments — doing internships and willing to take financial risks in starting their ventures, freelancing, and working in contractual jobs. Faculty began to report a generally higher level of intellectual engagement from students in their programs.

Saksham Bharat

Saksham Bharat (Capable India) is the national scholarship and student financial support system created by the Government of India in the 2020s. It is a single-window system for students and graduates of the Indian higher education system to access financial support, scholarships, student awards, bursaries, and direct cash transfer schemes.

Below, you can see the mobile application designed by the government to make the single window system accessible to all students and graduates in India.

Design Process

Research and Analysis

The scholarship system in India is a complicated and opaque network of scholarships awarded by the Government of India, other state governments, public colleges and universities based on reservation policies, private colleges and universities based on student performance and many more.

The Government of India developed the National Scholarship Portal in 2016 as a one-stop platform for accessing various government scholarships. It streamlines the application, verification, sanction, and disbursal process of scholarships provided by the central and state governments.

However, students face several challenges in pursuing quality education at higher education institutes.

• Soaring Tuition Fees: Tuition fees in Indian universities have increased. For instance, in 2021, the average annual tuition fee for a Master of Business Administration (MBA) program in a top-tier Indian institute ranged from ₹7 lakhs to ₹25 lakhs.
• Limited Scholarships: Available scholarships fall short of meeting the financial needs of all students. In 2022, only 7% of Indian students pursuing higher education had access to scholarships, leaving a vast majority without financial support.
• Student Loan Debts: Many students turn to loans to fund their education. The outstanding education loan amount in India reached ₹2.36 lakh crore (approximately USD 32 billion) in 2023, reflecting the growing reliance on loans.
• Regional Disparities: Financial disparities among states in India exacerbate the challenges. Students in states with lower per capita income face even more significant financial hurdles in accessing quality higher education.
• Increasing Costs of Accessing Education: In addition to tuition fees, transportation and examination fees are also periodically hiked, affecting parents’ overall budget.
• Lowering Quality of Scholars: Higher education costs more, and the financial implications of this decision would discourage students who plan to pursue PhD and higher studies after graduating from these institutes with an undergraduate degree.
• Suppressing the Entrepreneurial Spirits: Students who plan to follow the start-up route feel discouraged by raising fees, which could hamper the prospect of many innovative ideas coming to light and nip the evolving entrepreneurial culture in the bud.

The scholarship system in India faces several significant challenges that hinder its effectiveness in supporting students.

1. Accessibility and Awareness: Many students, especially those from rural areas, are unaware of the available scholarships due to a lack of information dissemination and outreach.
2. Complex Application Processes: The application processes can be complex and intimidating for students and their families, who may not have the necessary resources or knowledge to navigate them​​.
3. Selection and Distribution: The criteria for scholarship selection can be rigid and do not always account for students' diverse needs. This often results in scholarships being awarded to a limited number of candidates.
4. Administrative Inefficiencies: The scholarship system in India suffers from administrative inefficiencies. This includes issues like delays in disbursement, misuse of funds, and lack of transparency in the selection process​.
5. Lack of Holistic Support: Scholarships often focus only on tuition fees, neglecting other essential expenses such as accommodation, books, and living costs.
6. Quality and Credibility of Educational Institutions: The credibility of degrees in various institutions can be questionable due to inconsistencies in the examination and evaluation processes. This problem is compounded by scandals related to cheating, paper leaks, and fake degrees, which undermine the value of educational achievements and the scholarships tied to them​​.

Define

A quick analysis of the scholarship system uncovers several insights to improve scholarship access.

1. Students and scholars outside metropolitan regions and top universities remain unaware of scholarships, grants, and schemes offered by government and private organisations. Hence, awareness-building activities among the masses are essential.
2. Bureaucratic red tape, administrative inefficiencies, and lack of technological adoptions lead to delays in awarding student funds and increase the chances of misappropriation of scholarship funds.
3. The different public schemes run by the union and state government for people in education and training lack covering the cost of pursuing education and earning an income that can support students pursuing education away from home in expensive urban centres of India.

Ideate, Design, and Prototype

So, the design problem is as follows:

How might we support Indian students' access to scholarships, grants, and funds to pursue education and training at Indian educational institutes?

The Achievements

• Improved the scholarship application process and made the system flexible to incorporate future schemes and initiatives to support students financially.
• Removed the digital barrier due to language, access to an internet connection, and access to electronic devices.
• Revitalised and reduced bureaucratic processes that hinder access to financial support.
• Developed new digital infrastructure that can handle more student traffic accessing funds for different purposes.

Where Next?

This is the second artefact from the future based on my work at OCAD University. Below, you can continue exploring the future of vocational education in the Indian higher education system.