Located in the eastern region of India, the rich cultural heritage of West Bengal is manifested in its literature, music, folklore and dance. Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, is often referred as the ` cultural capital of India`. The Universities in West Bengal have a glorious past and they have produced some great scholars.

The University of Calcutta is one of the oldest universities in the world. It is a teaching cum affiliating University. The University has several campuses in the city.

The West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences imparts education in various branches of Veterinary and Animal Sciences along with Dairy Technology and Fishery Sciences.

The Vidyasagar University at Midnapore has introduced courses on several unconventional subjects and encourages research in unexplored fields.

Netaji Subhash Open Universityfollows the pattern of Indira Gandji National Open University(IGNOU)

University of North Bengal was set up with the aim of spreading knowledge in six North Bengal districts and also the northeastern state of Sikkim.

University of Kalyani was established in 1960 with affiliating colleges scattered in the districts of Nadia, Murshidabad and parts of North 24 Parganas.

Rabindra Bharati University is well known for its Fine Arts and Visual Arts Department. It was established in 1981 to commemorate the contributions made by Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar to the society.

Netaji Subhas Open University offers distance education on various subjects. It was established in 1997 and in 2006, the University received the Excellence in Distance Education Award from Commonwealth of Learning (COL).

Indian Statistical Institute ,Professor P.C. Mahalanobis in Kolkata 1931 founded Indian Statistical Institute The institute imparts courses in research training and application of statistics to the natural and social sciences.

Indian Institute of Technology with one of its campus in Kharagpur has gained repute for producing the best technical brains in India.

The Bengal Engineering and Science University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral courses in nine engineering disciplines and four non-engineering disciplines.

The Bidhan Chandra Krishi Vishwavidyalaya is a pioneer institute in the field of Agricultural Education, Research and Extension. . The campus of this reputed institute is located at Mohanpur in the Nadia district.

University of Burdwan is a teaching and affiliating institution. It caters to the educational needs of over five districts, Bardhaman, Hooghly (excluding Serampore subdivision), Bankura, Birbhum and Purulia.