KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research

KLE University is a higher education institution based in Belgaum, a city in the south-west Indian state of Karnataka.

Set up as part of the KLE Society, KLE University was established as the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College in 1963 in response to an extreme shortage of medical facilities in the region.

Today the university teaches degree courses across medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, physiotherapy and nursing, but in recent years has also begun to offer courses in hotel management, music and bio-statistics.

KLE University is clear in its ambitions of becoming one of the top 10 medical colleges in India, and has invested heavily in a state-of-the-art building linked to the Dr Prabhakar Kore Charitable Hospital, alongside a number of other local health centres in the region. Postgraduates and undergraduates receive their practical training here.

The university boasts two major research centres: the Basic Science Research Centre and the KNMC Women and Childs Research Unit. It is also home to the uniquely-designed Medical Simulation Centre, where healthcare students are tested on their ability to handle real-life medical emergencies using manikins and in a realistic “emergency” setting.

Approximately 5,200 students are enrolled at KLE University in total and the university boasts around 725 faculty staff.

The university campus is spread across more than 100 acres and is home to more than 2,500 students. Facilities include a bank, post-office, pharmacy and community radio station.

Away from their studies, students are encouraged to take part in competitive and recreational sports, making use of the university’s competition-size swimming pool, gym and indoor sports stadium.

KLE students take part in inter-collegiate games competitions including cricket, lawn tennis, volleyball, chess and Kabaddi.