The Cost of Engineering Education and Who Should Pay

1
The Cost of Engineering Education and Who Should
Pay?

• Vishwani D. Agrawal
• Agere Systems, Murray Hill, New Jersey, USA
• and Rutgers University
• va_at_agere.com

2
Contents

• Purpose of higher education
• A syllabus
• Cost
• Finance
• Conclusion

3
Purpose of Higher Education

• Most Important Be a responsible and useful
  citizen.
• Important Be a self-learner and creator.
• Important Be a communicator.
• Important Be a knowledge expert.
• Important Be a problem solver.

4
A Computer Eng. Syllabus
5
Cost Model Assumptions

• Students on campus 1,000
• Faculty 100
• Support staff 100
• Infrastructure land, buildings, labs, 30 year
  financing
• Operation

6
Cost

• Infrastructure 100 sq. ft./person _at_ Rs. 10k/sq.
  ft.
• Rs. 40M/year
• Staff _at_ Rs. 500,000/person
• Rs. 100M/year
• Operation Rs. 50,000/person
• Rs. 60M/year
• Total cost Rs. 200M/year

7
Per Student Cost
Rs. 200M ------------- Rs. 200,000 1,000
8
Finance Options

• Student pays Rs. 2 lakhs annual tuition.
• Student pays Rs. 2 lakhs/year from bank loan,
  which is paid back upon employment.
• College provides tuition loan, which is paid back
  by student upon employment.
• College runs like a publicly owned business.

9
Conclusion

• Engineering curriculum must include humanities
  (ethics, economics, communication skills).
• Self-learning skills are most important.
• High cost of standard education is justified by
  increased productivity.
• Public-ownership model has merit a high return
  on investment may be possible with highest
  quality of education.