Making Higher Education In Elite Institutions Accessible To Lower Income Group Students : A Study Of Student Support System In IIT Delhi

Abstract

From post-independence period to post-liberalisation period, higher education has expanded rapidly, with this, financial resources in higher education have also seen a rapid expansion. But with the massification of higher education, the increase in the supply of financial resources was not able to match the increase in demand of higher education. This led to 'inaccessibility‘ of higher education among disadvantaged groups of society. Higher education became available to only those who could 'afford‘ it, defying the very nature of education as a 'social‘ good. The following study attempts to assess IIT Delhi‘s student support system to analyse how elite institutions like IIT Delhi are increasing accessibility among lower income group students. This case study research addresses the problem through student perspective and analyses the result through the concepts of human capital theory and foregone earnings. The overall aim of the study is to understand the problems that lower income group students face regarding the financing of their higher education and the extent to which the student support system of IIT Delhi is effective in helping them. The study also proposes a student-friendly model, in order to increase the accessibility of higher education among lower income groups.