Raffles Education Corp invests in design education in India

Singapore-based Raffles Education Corp which made its entry into India in 2009 is on an expansion mode and by the year-end will have eight design colleges across the country with an investment of USD 24 million.

The Chairman and CEO of Raffles Education Corp, Chew Hua Seng has said that there was enormous potential in the Asian region and the premium educational institution was looking at 20 colleges in India alone in the next couple of years. "We are investing for the future."

Raffles, he said, offered world-class design education which did not exist in this part of the globe. The key components would be - foreign faculty; high-end technology; and international-level infrastructure. Raffles which opened design colleges in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore in 2009 will soon be opening colleges in Chandigarh, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Hyderabad.

The college offers courses in design technology to do with fashion; interiors; graphics; multi-media; animation; jewellery etc. The college offers three-year degree programmes with the student having the option to do either one year diploma; two year diploma or a three-year degree programme. The cost of the degree programme is Rs. 15 lakhs.

Mr. Chew said that Raffles had studied the demographic profile of India and China and saw huge potential in these markets. "There is an expanding middle class in these two countries and they have aspirations which are truly international." Asian countries give emphasis on manufacturing rather than design, but this was fast changing. "Asia has disregarded design, only now some Asian countries have realized how central design is in the economic growth path itself."

Raffles Education is over 20 years in Singapore and 16 years in China and has come to be known as a leading premium educational institution having bagged major international design awards in the past, including the Audi Fashion awards; Smirnoff Fashion International awards etc.

Raffles is also planning to set up a university in India for which it is on an exploratory mission. "We see potential in Delhi and Mumbai for design, whereas Bangalore and Chennai are hard crack for us as they are steeped into information technology."