‘IIT-Kanpur opened up a world for me; hope to collaborate more with Indian universities’: Oregon State University President

Dr Jayathi Y Murthy: We aim to open up research and educational collaboration with Indian institutions. As I am from India and have been working for nearly two years with Oregon State University, this was a good time to make those connections.

Both, IIT Kanpur and Delhi have research work going on in areas that are important to Oregon State University as well. One example is in climate science, sustainability, and environmental energy. We came with the hope of learning about what they (the IITs) are doing about it, and get opportunities for our faculty members to collaborate with Indian faculty, have joint workshops, and more.

Further, we are in conversations with IIT Delhi, Hyderabad and Madras.

Q: …but do you aim to make these collaborations solely with IITs?

Murthy: At Oregon State University, we are open to making all connections. However, since I am an IIT graduate, it was easier to form connections here. We are surely open to collaborating with other institutes too where such researches are being carried out.

Q: You were a student in IIT at a time when women students were not very common. How was the experience of being a minority student?

Murthy: My batch had only two women students, including me, and my immediate senior batch had none. We went in as young women who were proud of our association with such a reputed institution. However, we were in extreme minority and we didn’t know what we were getting into, and neither did our parents. Institution had no idea how to deal with women students, so we did face some problems with settling in. We used to sit in classes but wouldn’t dare ask a question to avoid getting noticed.

Things were not that liberal back then in terms of relationships between men and women. However, it eased with time and the institute opened up a whole new world for me.

It is on the institution to create that comfortable environment for bright minds to not just function but bloom during their college days. This is the time when young people are finding their identities, therefore, an institute has to provide that opportunity for everybody to show that talent.

Q: Has the number of Indian students increased in the past few years?

Murthy: Yes, the number of Indian students at Oregon State University increased from 211 in fall 2019 to 179, 261 and 309 in 2020, 2021 and 2022, respectively. In fall 2023, Oregon State University had 368 Indian students.

Undergrad vs Grad Comparison of Indian students at Oregon State University.

In addition to this, we also have Indian students who are on post-graduation Optional Practical Training (OPT) and some enrolled only for a Spring or Summer term and not for the full year. Currently, the total number of Indian students here is 556. This number includes students who were not degree-seeking.

The most popular courses among Indian students at Oregon State University are Computer Science, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, and Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering.

Q: Be it IITs or western universities, mental health has been a major issue among students.

Murthy: It’s a huge issue all across the US, particularly after Covid. Every campus in the country is struggling with mental health issues. Oregon State University is investing heavily in our student affairs division for mental health professionals to help out.

It is also an issue in the IITs; it was there in the past too. I have been reading about increasing suicides here. While there surely is trained psychological help and mental health support, you have to look at systemic things too. We have to see that what is the system doing? For example, if you’re exerting extraordinary pressure to succeed on very young people, that’s something you got to look really hard at. It is not just that this young person needs help. Of course they do, but what’s the arena in which they’re functioning is also very important.

Q: In terms of Indian students studying abroad, they often face mental health issues due to the financial burden of studying abroad. How do you plan to tackle this issue at OSU?

Murthy: We do provide counselling services for international students. The main thing is to focus on providing proper guidance on making the right financial decision. Nobody should be selling snake oil (to fund their foreign education). Students should be aware about what can they expect in terms of help from the institute, what does it take to find a job. While we may not be able to control some things such as geopolitics, US politics, economies, immigration policies etc, we try to be as clear as possible for everybody.

For example, currently there’s tech downturn, and they’re not hiring, and this could be a problem for some. So, we do try to help in terms  of emergency funding, but it cannot be extensive.