Global higher education analytics and rankings organisation QS Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) and management consulting firm Primus Partners have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on higher education and skilling advisory projects across India.
The agreement, signed in New Delhi, aims to combine QS’s international expertise in higher education rankings, benchmarking, labour market intelligence, and institutional internationalisation with Primus Partners’ experience in policy consulting and implementation across education, skilling, and public sector initiatives.
Under the partnership, the two organisations will jointly pursue consulting assignments with central and state governments, focusing on key priorities in India’s education and workforce development landscape. Areas of collaboration include higher education reforms, institutional accreditation frameworks, university internationalisation strategies, and skill development programmes aligned with the goals of the National Education Policy (NEP).
The collaboration will also support efforts to strengthen workforce readiness by helping governments, skill development missions, and industry bodies design talent development strategies that respond to evolving labour market demands. By combining global insights with local implementation expertise, the partnership aims to contribute to the creation of future-ready talent pipelines across sectors.
According to the organisations, the initiative will leverage QS’s globally recognised data and research capabilities alongside Primus Partners’ extensive experience in managing large-scale, multi-stakeholder policy engagements across India.
Dr. Ashwin Fernandes, Chair of QS India and Vice President for Strategic and International Engagement at QS, said the partnership brings together global expertise in skills and workforce transformation with strong on-ground execution capabilities. He noted that the collaboration would help governments develop talent that is both globally competitive and locally relevant.
Charu Malhotra, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Primus Partners, said the partnership reflects a shared commitment to combining evidence-based policy approaches with international best practices to support India’s education and skilling transformation.
The collaboration comes at a time when India is focusing on expanding higher education access, improving institutional quality, and strengthening workforce preparedness to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving economy. Through this partnership, QS and Primus Partners aim to support policy development and implementation efforts that enhance educational outcomes and strengthen the country’s skills ecosystem.
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