Pro Chancellor, Symbiosis International (Deemed University) & Principal Director, Symbiosis

Dr. Vidya Yeravdekar

Dr. Vidya Yeravdekar is the Principal Director of Symbiosis Society, which encompasses the Symbiosis schools and institutions under the Symbiosis International (Deemed University). A dream of her father, Dr. S .B Mujumdar of creating 'a home away from home' for international students, Symbiosis today, has transformed itself into a multi-disciplinary, multinational, multi-cultural International University having students from all states of India and international students from 85 different countries. The University has institutes under 8 faculties viz. Management, Law, Humanities & Social Sciences, Health Sciences, Computer Studies, Engineering, Media Communication & Design.

Dr. Vidya holds a Post Graduate Degree in Medicine, a degree in Law and is a Ph.D. in 'Internationalisation of Higher Education in India'. To promote international understanding through quality education, she has brought in innovative approaches at Symbiosis International (Deemed University) through international collaborations with some of the top Universities in the world.

Dr. Vidya has been able to influence policy regulations for promoting and bringing in innovative approaches to higher education in India through her appointments on various governmental bodies. She has been a member of University Grants Commission (UGC), Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) and Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). She is a member of the Governing Board of several organisations like Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, Swarnim Gujarat Sports University, Yeshwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, Research Committee of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), Public Health Foundation of India and Symbiosis University of Applied Sciences, Indore. She is a Member of the State Knowledge Advisory Board of Higher Education, Government of Andhra Pradesh and Member of the Task Team of Arts Management Strategy for Karnataka. She is a member of many corporate bodies such as Mahratta Chamber of Commerce & Industries, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), Confederation of India Industry (CII), and Not for profit organisations like HK Firodiya Foundation, India International Centre (IIC), Pune International Centre (PIC) & Pune Citizens Police Foundation.

Dr. Vidya has been appointed as Director on the Board of RITES Limited under Ministry of Railways, Government of India. Recently, Dr. Vidya has been appointed as Member of Sub-Group on Higher & Technical Education and Skill Development of Chief Minister's Advisory Council, Government of Rajasthan.

Dr. Vidya has presented papers at various National & International Conferences and has numerous research publications to her credit. She has authored a book on 'Internationalization of Higher Education in India' based on her experiences and research in this field. This book is published by SAGE Dr.Vidya's hard work has won her numerous awards and accolades and she is now focussed on making Symbiosis International (Deemed University) benchmarked amongst one of the best Universities in Asia.