India’s higher education system is approaching a critical expansion phase as the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 pushes for a 50 per cent Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) by 2035. A new report warns that meeting this target will require an unprecedented increase in capacity at a time when institutions are grappling with infrastructure gaps, staffing shortages and changing learner expectations.

According to a study by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Grant Thornton Bharat, titled Continuous Improvement Journey of Higher Education Institutions: Approaches and Practices Shaping the Future of Learning, India will need 86.11 million higher education enrolments by 2035. This represents an increase of nearly 85 per cent over the next decade and demands an estimated annual capacity growth of 5.3 per cent.

The report states that traditional brick-and-mortar campuses alone cannot accommodate this scale, noting that new models such as digital universities, virtual learning systems and credit-based online programmes will be essential. The conclusions are based on three roundtables involving northern universities and additional secondary analysis.

The study notes that employability is becoming a core element of curriculum design due to rapid shifts in the labour market, with 40 per cent of core job skills expected to change by 2030. Institutions are adopting micro-credentials, modular credits, work-integrated learning and AI-enabled assessments to align programmes with industry needs.

The report also highlights rising pressure from technological change, governance demands and student expectations, describing the current period as an operational imperative that requires faster institutional adaptation.

In its assessment, the report observes that the national conversation is moving from improving access alone to addressing scale and quality together. It warns that India’s demographic advantage will depend on whether the higher education system can expand capacity and modernise effectively in the coming decade.

Inputs from PTI

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