PRIVATIZATION OF EDUCATION IN NEPAL: PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS

Kedar Prasad Acharya University Grants Commission Email: [email protected]

Abstract: This paper intends to figure out the characteristics, trends of privatization of engineering education in Nepal and associated problems and prospects therein. For the purpose, five universities and their constituent and affiliated campuses are considered as the population of the study and out of these, five universities and ten affiliated campuses have been selected for the study. The researcher has collected, stored, retrieved, and analyzed relevant data, responses from multiple sources on privatization of engineering education in Nepal. The outcome duly proposes certain recommendations to achieve socioeconomic goals in order to ensure that quality human resources are available for the design and implementation of a desired future for the well being of the mankind.

Keywords: privatization, engineering services, private sector, engineering education

Introduction Institutional learning in the oriental society guided by the Vedic philosophy started through the Gurukul system from 500 B.C., whereas it was guided by Christian and Islamic philosophy in the western society and the middle eastern society respectively. In the course of the advent of the society, higher education emerged as a powerful weapon in the welfare state philosophy and philosophy of the social democratic consensus (Tilak, 2004). Thus, higher education is characterized by state provision and financing by the state. It is an investment and is expected to pay for itself; and the government will recover its costs through consequent higher tax receipts (Mishan, 1969). Modern neoliberal economic reform policies initiated in the 1980s and based on the philosophy that any aspects associated with the public are inefficient and any aspects associated with the private sector are 'ipso facto' – efficient and desirable brought a complete change in that social democratic values and welfare states was replaced by the free market philosophy that stresses individual economic values and gains (Tilak, 2004). The private sector now holds the center stage (Tilak, 2004). The market (private sector) can do everything for everybody. The private provision of higher education is a very effective measure to improve efficiency. It is considered as an important measure of easing the financial crisis. To enhance efficiency, the role of the government should be confined broadly to the formulation of a coherent policy framework (The World Bank, 1994, Tilak, 2004). 196 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016

With the introduction of economic reform policies, the role of higher education is reinterpreted and redefined. Social democratic visions encapsulated with higher education are being replaced by market driven policies and the role of the government is being reinvented. These paradigm shifts resulted in cut downs or even criticism of public subsidies (Tilak, 2004). Nepal is not aloof from this global phenomenon. After the introduction of multiparty democracy and the introduction of the multi-university concept and liberalization of economy, engineering education in Nepal has seen tremendous growth over the past decade both in the number of students and number of colleges. The growth has been skewed towards private dominance, and it raised many questions mainly about that quality, equity in access including others. At the same time, many stakeholders suspect about the average quality of graduate students and college (Varshney, 2006) in the Indian context. Similarly, the World Bank, WTO and Provision of General Agreement of Tariffs and Trade (GATS) brings the policy posture on privatization of higher education in the ground that economic returns on primary education far exceeds those in higher education and private returns on tertiary/higher education far exceed the social returns (Acharya, 2013). In this line, this research article aims to find out the major characteristics and trends of privatization of engineering education in Nepal; in particular, it tries to find out how the state has been involved in promoting, regulating and managing private engineering education and the government’s policies on privatization of higher education, and how this policy dresses the issues of equity and accessibility.

History of technical education The modern education system started in Nepal with the establishment of the Durbar High School for the ruling dynasty of the Ranas (Bhattarai, 2007) whereas the history of technical education started when a trade school was established in 1930 to impart technical skills to the students. Technical training school was established in 1942 and the school offered trade and sub overseers programs in engineering. In 1959, Nepal Engineering Institute started offering civil overseer courses leading to a Diploma in . Corollary to this, the Technical Training Institute was established in 1965 with the assistance from Government of Federal Republic of Germany and offered courses on general mechanics, auto mechanics, electrical engineering and mechanical drafting (IOE, 2013). In 1972, the Nepal Engineering Institute at Pulchok, Lalitpur and the Technical Training Institute at Thapathali were brought together under the umbrella of the to constitute the and these two institutes were named as and Thapathali Campus respectively. Since then, various efforts were made to horizontally and vertically expand the engineering education in the country.

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 197

Emergence of private higher education sector in Nepal After the introduction of multiparty democracy in 1990, Kathmandu University from the private initiative was established by the act of parliament. This opened up avenues for private sector involvement in engineering education too. The School of Engineering of KU as a constituent school was established where undergraduate level education has been imparted. The establishment of Nepal Engineering College with the affiliation of Tribhuvan University in the year 1994 was the landmark for the growth and development of engineering education from the private sector in the country (Bhattarai, 2007).

Policy posture of privatization of higher education in Nepal As education is investment at present to reap benefits in the future, it is a type of investment which provides benefits distinct from goods which is productive over a long term (Varshney, 2006). Following the wave of market principles, the supply has been growing. It is argued that market principles can not applied to education due to various reasons. For example, markets are largely driven by economic considerations. In fact, students and parents are not able to ascertain quality for the price they have to pay. It is due to the fact that they will enter the labor market after their graduation. The quality of engineering colleges can be known considering what type and kind of infrastructure they have, the quality of the faculties, including tracer study, alumni association, academics, and industry feedback, etc. (Varshney, 2006). In line with this debate, it was in 1980 that TU started to extend affiliation to the colleges from the private sector after then the government gave permission to TU and this opened avenues for the private sector in higher education. The Eighth Plan and the Ninth Plan highlighted the role of private sector in higher education. In 2006, The Ministry of Education issued “Fundamental policies for the establishment of technical higher education institutions from the private investment, 2006”.

Policy and procedures of granting permission to establish private engineering colleges It was realized that there is a lack of clear cut policies and procedures for establishing engineering higher educational institutions in the country. In individual university act gives legal right to establish constituent and affiliated higher educational institutions to the universities. The university sets the criteria, procedures and methods of granting affiliation, including terms and conditions. Similarly, Nepal Engineering Council is also involved in the process of establishing engineering colleges. The Ministry of Education also has been involved in the process. As per the practice, the proposed college has to be registered in Nepal and have to apply for

198 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016 establishing the college in the MOE along with the application fees of Nrs. 200 thousand (Nrs. 400 thousand for SAARC investors & Nrs. 600 thousand for third countries, investors). The MOE conducts studies of the proposed colleges and decides over the matters. If MOE opts for grant permission, it issues a Letter of Intent (LOI). After getting LOI from MOE, the institutions have to apply to Nepal Engineering Council (NEC) and the affiliating university. The proposed engineering colleges are evaluated based on several criteria, including the credibility of the institutional management and program providers, assurance of the laid compliance of norms and standards, the market sensitivity of the program output (NEC, 2014). If both the agency approve, then the engineering institution comes into the existence. In principle, MOE does not have such permission granting authority because Nepal opted higher education system on an autonomous basis. UGC works as the buffer between the government and the university, but seems to have no power over it. Similarly, the Nepal Engineering Council is the professional body entrusted to maintain the standard of engineering profession in the country. A major responsibility for the establishing engineering education has been given to the university, but it is in the mess. The reason behind it is that the MOE overruled the rights and responsibilities given by the Act to the universities. Similarly, NEC Acts do not mention clearly about the rights and duties in relation to the establishment of engineering campuses. Based on the rules approved by the government, NEC crafts the rules and based on those rules sets quotas.

Methods This research is descriptive, exploratory in nature. The population of the study consists of five universities that offer engineering education either as constituent or affiliated campuses. Out of them, five universities and twenty affiliated engineering campuses have been selected for the study. The primary and secondary data were gathered, tabulated in order to meet the purpose of the research. Colleges were surveyed and relevant data were collected through web sites, offices of controllers of examination, telephoning, questionnaires and informal talks.

Results and discussion

Present status of engineering education: At present, 10 universities (Tribhuvan University (TU) - estd. 1959; Nepal Sanskrit University (NSU) - estd. 1986; Kathmandu University (KU) - estd. 1992; Purvanchal University (PU) - estd. 1995; (POKU) - estd. 1997; Lumbini Buddha University (LBU) - estd. 2006; Agriculture and Forestry (AFU) - estd. 2011; Far Western University) FWU - estd. 2011, (MWU) - estd. 2001 and Nepal Open University (NOU)

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 199

- estd. 2016) and four deemed to be universities (BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences - estd. 1998; National Academy of Medical Sciences - estd. 2002); Patan Academy of Medical Sciences - estd. 2008; Karnali Acedamy of Health Sciences - estd. 2012) are in the country. Engineering education is being imparted through constituent and affiliated colleges of TU, KU, PU and POKU. FWU and MWU have been running engineering programs from the academic year 2013. At present, altogether 47 engineering campuses have been established in Nepal. TU has four engineering campuses as constituent campuses whereas it has ten affiliated private campuses. Similarly, KU has School of Engineering along with environmental engineering incorporated under School of Science. PU and POKU each have one Engineering School whereas they each have fourteen and thirteen affiliated engineering campuses, respectively.

Table 1. Yearly Enrollment Capacity in Engineering Programs University No. of Enrollment No. of Enrollment Total no. of Total constituent capacity affiliated capacity campuses enrollment campuses campuses capacity Tribhuvan 4 1248 10 2224 14 3472 University Purwanchal 1 120 14 2073 15 2193 University Pokhara 1 96 13 2344 14 2440 University Kathmandu 2 305 0 0 2 305 University Mid Western 1 48 0 0 1 48 University Far Western 1 48 0 0 1 48 University Total 10 1769 37 6641 47 8506 Source : NEC (2014), IOE (2014), PU (2014), POKU (2014), KU (2014)

Out of 47 campuses 37 colleges are operated by the private sector and 10 by a public/ university sector (Table 1). In the same vein, thirty-four are located in the central development region, three located in the eastern region, six in the western development region and two each is located in the midwestern and far western region, respectively.

Functions of private engineering education: Tilak (1991) classified privatization of higher education in four categories as extreme privatization, strong version of privatization, moderate form of privatization and pseudo privatization. Nepal’s

200 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016 private higher education function is characterized with the functions described by Geiger (1986) as ‘more’, ‘different’ and ‘less’ function whereas more function is more significant in case of engineering education. Engineering programs offered by HEIs in Nepal: All together 15 engineering programs have been running at undergraduate level in Nepal. Civil, electrical, electronics and communication, mechanical, computer, environmental, agriculture, architecture, electrical and electronics, industrial and geometric engineering programs have been run by constituent campuses and twelve programs excluding industrial, agricultural and environmental engineering has been run by the private sectors. Similarly, six affiliated colleges run various master level programs.

Table 2. Yearly Intake Capacity and Undergraduate Programs Offered by Nepalese Universities/Colleges Programs TU KU PU POKU Constituent Affiliated Constituent Affiliated Constituent Affiliated Civil Engineering √ √ √ - √ √ √ 3,533 Electrical Engineering √ √ - - √ - √ 432 Electronics & 1,598 Communication √ √ - √ √ - √ Engineering √ - √ - - - - 252 √ √ √ √ √ - √ 1,423 Environmental 35 - - √ - - - - Engineering Agriculture Engineering √ ------48 Architecture √ √ - - √ - √ 323 Electrical & Electronics 252 - - √ - - √ √ Engineering Biomedical Engineering - - - √ - - 60 Software Engineering ------√ 96 B.E. In IT ------√ 240 √ ------48 Geometric Engineering - - √ - √ - - 118 Rural Engineering ------√ 48 Total 8,506 Source : IOE, 2014, PU, POKU, KU, MWU, FWU, 2014

Enrollment capacity and students’ preference: Nepal Engineering Council (NEC) sets the enrollment capacity of the colleges based on the minimum requirement. All together 15 engineering programs have been running in Nepal and civil, electronics

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 201 and communication and computer engineering stood at first, second and third in terms of quota and student preferences (Table 2). Educational participation in engineering education: The demand for engineering education is growing year by year. Data of entrance examination of engineering held in 2013 shows the growing demand. More than 12,000 students appeared in the entrance examination of TU, KU, PU, MWU and FWU (Table 3). POKU does not follow the entrance examination system; however, it sets minimum criteria for engineering programs. The table below shows the number of applicants, available seats among the universities.

Table 3. Engineering Enrollment Pressure on Nepalese Universities/Colleges University Enrollment capacity No. of applicants Ratio Tribhuvan University 3472 >8000 0.434 Purwanchal University 2193 1600 -0.37 Pokhara University 2440 NA NA Kathmandu University 305 >1000 0.305 Mid Western University 48 76 0.63 Far Western University 48 122 0.39 Source : Universities, 2013

As the table 4 indicates, KU is ranked number one in Nepal. PU has a negative enrollment ratio in comparison to its capacity.

Table 4. Current Situation of Enrollment in Engineering Programs University No. of student at No. of students at Total no. of students constituent campuses affiliated campuses Female Total Female Total Female Total Tribhuvan 521 4265 1129 7651 1650 11916 University Purwanchal 38 268 649 4206 687 4474 University Pokhara 41 424 860 6110 901 6534 University Kathmandu 183 1072 - - 183 1072 University Midwestern 5 48 - - 5 48 University Far Western 4 48 - - 4 48 University Total 708 5004 4289 16725 4996 21702 Source: IOE, 2014, PU, POKU, KU, MWU, FWU, 2014 @ Figure are of FY 2014 and POKU is FY 2013

202 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016

The number of enrollment is limited by setting quota. Male students out number the female student enrollment. Data revealed tha t about 23 percent of the total students are girls in engineering programs. Similarly, Dalits, disvantaged janajatis and economically poor have access to engineering programs through scholarships and free ships as per the criteria. The researcher doesn't position to disaggregate the data on these aspects but the data revealed that the access has been widened due to the involvement of private sector.

University governance and its impact: In the last one decade, serious issues have been raised by the stakeholders on governance and management of universities along with affiliation practices. As a result, there are doubts among parents, students and employers regarding the goodwill and credibility of the university and its programs. A negative impact has been found in students' enrollment, employability of graduates as well as other aspects of academic life of the students. In 2012 there were 8506 engineering quotas out of which nearly twenty percent were unfulfilled whereas thousand of students flew to India and other countries for engineering education. It is due to lack of credibility of universities and their governance and management.

Cost of engineering education in Nepal: Engineering professionals develop new and innovative products and services designed to simplify and improve everyday activities. Engineering graduate schools provide students opportunities to seek advanced careers and earn higher earnings. Tuition costs of an undergraduate and graduate degree program in engineering are determined by the type of engineering program, as well as the type of the academic institution. Public colleges often have lower tuition rates than the private universities/colleges. Many graduate schools also charge additional fees, such as application, registration and book fees, which increase the total cost of education. Determining average tuition costs is difficult, since rates greatly vary among institutions, and some schools even change the rates within a single semester.

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 203

Table 5. Average Fees Charged by Universities/Colleges {in thousand Nrs. (In 2013 price)} Programs TU KU PU POKU Average Subsidized Full Fee cost in private colleges Civil Engineering 39 286 542 - 322 870 Electrical Engineering 39 286 - - - 850 Electronics & Communication 39 286 - - - 850 Engineering Mechanical Engineering 39 286 542 - - 850 Computer Engineering 39 286 542 - - 850 Environmental Engineering - 286 542 - - 850 Agriculture Engineering 39 286 - - - - Architecture 39 286 - - - 960 Electrical & Electronics Engineering 39 286 542 - 298 850 Biomedical Engineering - - - - - 652 Software Engineering - - - - - 850 B.E. In IT - - - - - 752 Industrial Engineering 39 286 - - - - Geomatics Engineering - - 542 - - 618 Rural Engineering - - - - - 839 Source : Colleges, 2014

TU has set higher fees for foreign students and it is Nrs. 536 thousand for the entire BE/Arch. program (excluding refundable security deposit of Nrs. 115 thousand). According to the report published by the TU planning division, per year per student cost of engineering program is Nrs. 178 thousand (TU, 2014), the average cost for four year programs is more than Nrs. 712 thousand excluding the capital or investment cost. If we considered the capital or investment cost also, per student cost of TU is higher than any private college. This situation also prevails in other universities which depends heavily on public funds.

Fee waivers/scholarship: Many colleges offer graduate students partial or full tuition waivers for certain students or programs. TU, KU, PU, MWU and FWU have fresher schemes based on merit as well as financial needs. All the private colleges of TU and PU have the arrangement that 10 percent of the students have the opportunity to study the program on the regular fees fixed by the university. POKU provides

204 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016 scholarships for 20 percent students enrolled in the constituent campuses and 10 percent in the affiliated campuses. Apart from this, colleges provide additional scholarships by their own, but eligibility requirements vary by campus. For the purpose of equity, it is required to streamline the selection of students for scholarship on the basis of predetermined criteria as well as the financial condition of the students.

Quality aspects of engineering education: Quality of engineering education is a prime focus for service providers. It is challenging to satisfy clients, compete and maintain international standards. As we know that quality can be viewed of different perspective of different stakeholders (employer, students, faculties, institutes, entrepreneurs and government).

Efficiency (Pass rates): The pass rate among the universities and colleges varies according to the quality of inputs, teaching and learning process and learning environment and the examination system. The average pass percentage of the colleges has been given in the figure 1.

Figure 1. Average Pass Rates of Engineering Program

Source : Universities, 2014

Figure 1 shows that KU has the highest pass rate (93.28%) followed by TU (62.22%), POKU (49.11%), and PU (45.57%), respectively in their constituent campus, whereas POKU has the highest pass rate (29.37%) followed by PU (28%) and TU (27.56%), respectively in affiliated campuses. Amongst the universities, KU has the highest (93.25%)average pass rate followed by TU (36.17%), POKU (29.37%) and PU (28.07%), respectively.

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 205

Employability of graduates: Employability and performance of the graduates in the real world is the measuring rod of quality engineering education. A research revealed that there are gaps between academia and industry.

Faculties and other enabling preconditions of engineering education: One can observe that there is great disparity among the degree qualifications of the faculty at the several engineering colleges. TU, KU and POKU have strong faculty strength in terms of advanced degrees. TU has set the minimum qualification for faculty at master level. Ph.D., M. Phil., Master and BE degree holders faculties are involved in teaching, learning and research activities. However, most of the colleges rely on the faculty with bachelor degree, which creates a greater disparity among colleges and universities. Hence, it is imperative to set a minimum qualification for teaching faculty not less than master degree and implement the same to maintain the minimum quality in engineering education.

Internationalization of engineering higher education and its impact: Internationalization in higher education is a two way process—within and outside the home country (Acharya, 2012). Within the country, it implies a diversity of students, the presence of international faculty, collaborative research, use of ICT, setting of branch campuses of foreign universities and collaborative programs in the form of exchange of curricula, teachers, teaching, learning and evaluation practices. These features can be seen in Nepalese engineering education. The presence of foreign universities has been seen in the form of higher education institutions affiliated to foreign universities in Nepal with the approval of the Ministry of Education. In engineering programs, so far, two colleges have acquired the permission from MOE and have been running programs affiliated to foreign universities. Internationalization outside country implies the process of students going abroad for higher study. Yearly, around one thousand of Nepali students go abroad for higher education in engineering programs. As per the estimates, annually, around forty thousand Nepalese students leave the country for higher education (Acharya, 2015). If one looks at the figures of the Ministry of Education, the figure of taking “No Objection Note” was 28126 in the FY 2013/14. This figure does not include the students going to India (MOE, 2014). Every two engineer registered as an engineer in the NEC, one is educated from either India or other foreign university (Personal conversation with a Senior Officer of NEC). It clearly indicates that the student mobility is high and it is a serious question for educational policy makers, planners and educational entrepreneurs.

Estimating the value of engineering education: Engineering services are a huge part of global market. The global spending for engineering service is currently estimated at $ 750 billion per year, and it is expected to increase to more than $ 1 trillion out of

206 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016 which our neighboring country India is holding about 12% of the global market (Booz et al ., 2014). The market for private engineering education has been expanding over the decade and expected to expand further due to growing demand and government's inability to provide more funds for the establishment of new higher educational institutions. The growing demand of engineering has attracted the private sector. At the present situation, about 23 percent students are in the university's constituent campus and rest are enrolled in private colleges. If one considered the size of market for engineering education, the current market is about Nrs. 3.36 billion per year (at 2013 price), which is about one fourth of the annual budget of all the universities of Nepal. In five years, the enrollment will reach to 13,000 students. This will create the market for engineering higher education about Nrs. 5.5 billion (on current year 2013 price). If we can build capacities, infrastructure and reputation, we would be able to cut down the import for education services and the possibility of exporting the services in the future as well.

Effects of privatization of engineering education: Privatization of higher education has many effects— economic, social, and political as well as educational (Bray, 2002). This is also evident in Nepal. The study revealed that privatization of higher education yields merits (Acharya, 2013; Tilak, 2004) in Nepalese context too. It has reduces the financial burden of the state, enhanced the democratic aspirations of the people, decreased knowledge gap between urban and rural poor and rich. In addition to this, privatization promotes infrastructure, teaching and learning competencies, and entrepreneurship. Privatization of higher education also has its drawbacks. It does not guarantee the quality of education provided; it often lacks accountability and widens the gap between the rich and poor; moreover, it promotes profiteering.

Role of regulatory bodies: Various agencies/institutions are responsible for managing engineering education in Nepal. The Ministry of Education, Nepal Engineering Council, Ministry of Physical Planning and Construction, universities, constituent campuses/schools and affiliated colleges are the major actors. Firstly, the role of MOE and NPC is most important in framing and monitoring the policy on privatization of higher education whereas MOF plays a significant role in financing higher education. Secondly, UGC works for the implementation of policies and programs associated with higher education. UGC, the apex body of higher education for the promotion and financing of university education, is also responsible for quality assurance and accreditation system in the country; UGC is also responsible in

Privatization of Engineering Education in Nepal: Problems and Prospects 207 safeguarding the interest and welfare of the poor by making higher education accessible to all. Recently, it has been working to establish a national quality assurance and accreditation (QAA) system in the country. The QAA system itself is a measure to standardize the quality of education provided. Thirdly, NEC has been established to make the engineering profession effective in the country and mobilize the workforce in a systematic and scientific manner by maintaining the quality and standard of the profession. NEC is also responsible for formulating policy required to operate for engineering professions; it provides recognition to a teaching institution, evaluates and reviews the curriculum. Fourthly, universities themselves are autonomous and they have to regulate the overall system within the organization. Regarding the private higher education, they have to safeguard the quality and standards through various measures, including a mechanism that ensures the participation of the under represented groups. It is an imperative to revisit the roles and responsibilities of major actors to achieve the goals of engineering education.

Conclusion Engineering education is expanding both qualitatively and quantitively. Engineering graduates from Nepal have received both positive and negative responses from the market. It is necessary to safeguard national interest and ensure that opportunities are not denied to the deprived and underprivileged regions and people. For the same, existing freeships and scholarships should be aligned to the talent, but poor students by expanding horizons of scholarships and freeships. All engineering colleges should enter to the national quality assurance and accreditation system by ensuring that quality engineers are produced. Establishment of new engineering colleges should be promoted with equating capacities, capability infrastructure and the international reputation. Engineers have great opportunities to be employed in our own country. All the engineering colleges must enhance their quality in terms of teaching, evaluation and research and management efficiency. Privatization is a powerful tool which could be used cautiously to contribute to the betterment of quality of life of the people across the nation.

References

Acharya, K.P. (2012). Internationalization and trade in higher education: opportunities and challenges from Nepalese perspective. The Journal of University Grants Commission , 1, pp. 80-90. Acharya, K.P. (2013). Privatization of higher education in Nepal. Germany: Lamber Academic Publishing.

208 The Journal of University Grants Commission, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2016

Acharya, K.P. (2015). Creating knowledge economy through management education: Problems and prospects in Nepal. BYAVASTHAPAN , 34, pp. 27-32. Bhattarai, D. (2007). Engineering education in Nepal: Prospects and challenges in the new environment. Paper presented at the international seminar on making globalization work: The role of consultants . Nepal. Booz, A., Allen, G. & Hamilton, K. (2014). Globalization of engineering services: The next frontier of India. New Delhi: National Association of Software and Service Companies. Bray, M. (2002). The cost and financing of education: Trends and policy implications. In Education in developing Asia, Volume 3. Philippines: Asian Development Bank Comparative Education and Research Center, The University of Hong Kong. Geiger, R. (1991). Private higher education. In P. Altbach (Ed.), International higher education: An encyclopedia. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc. Geiger, R.L. (1986). Private sectors in higher education: structure, function, and change in eight countries. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press. Institute of Engineering. (2014). Information booklet. Lalitpur: Institute of Engineering. Kathmandu University. (2014). Annual budget and program of the KU 2071/72. Dhulikhel. Ministry of Education. (2014). Nepal education in figures: A glance. Kathmandu. Mishan, E.J. (1969). 21 Popular Economic Fallacies . New York: Allen Lane. Nepal Engineering Council. (2014). Approved engineering colleges/institutions of Nepal, Kathmandu. Pokhara University. (2014). Annual report. Pokhara: Pokhara University. The World Bank. (1994). Constructing knowledge society: New challenges for tertiary education. Washington, DC.: The World Bank. Tilak, J. (2004). Higher education between the state and the market. New Delhi: National University of Educational Planning and Administration. Tilak, J.B.G. (1991). Privatization of higher education. Prospects , Paris: UNESCO, 21(2), pp. 227- 239. Tribhuvan University. (2014). 54 th annual report. Kathmandu: Tribhuvan University. University Grants Commission. (2010-2014). Education management information system; report on higher education 2007/08-2012/013. Bhaktapur: University Grants Commission. Varshney, L. (2006). Private engineering education in India: Market failures and regulatory solutions. Netherlands: Massachusetts Institute of Technology.