The Academy of Tibetan Culture is vital part of Norbulingka Institute, which is located in Dharamsala, India.  As the mission statement reads, "Norbulingka is  dedicated to the handing down tradition and restoring standards by providing training, education and employment for Tibetans. It supports an environment in which Tibetan community and family values can flourish. It reconciles the traditional creatively and respectfully with the modern, and seeks to create an international awareness of Tibetan values and their expression in art and literature."  Here at Norbulingka we recognize that any endeavor to preserve culture must include education as a main component. It is crucial to instill in the younger generations a sense of pride in their cultural identity, so that they are motivated to continue its traditions not only out of a sense of duty, but out of a genuine love and interest. AOTC, as part of Norbulingka, seeks to provide a quality higher education to aspiring Tibetan scholars and artists in order to ensure that the vibrancy and depth of Tibetan Culture is passed down through the generations.

    Norbulingka, with the help of the Central Tibetan Administration, is able each year to provide a tuition-free education to 20 young scholars, and 7 aspiring artists at the Academy of Tibetan Culture. AOTC began in 1997, and this July, we welcomed our fifth batch of students. To enter  this program, students must compete in a rigorous application and examination process. This year, out of some seventy-five applicants, only twenty were accepted for sponsorship, although other students may join for a small monthly fee.         
   
    The students, once admitted, receive a free education as well as room and board,  but the course is far from being a free ride. Students are awake before dawn each day, and after morning prayers, are in class from 8 am until 5 at night. Their curriculum consists of Tibetan Religion/Philosophy, Tibetan Grammar, Tibetan Poetry, Tibetan History, Chinese, and English, as well as weekly courses in Western Philosophy and Tibetan Medicine. And for their final year, each student produces a thesis on a topic of their own choosing.
   
    However, the students happily make the sacrifices that are required of them because they understand the importance of education, especially in determining the future of Tibet. One student explains that AOTC "is indispensible for me and for my country for the preservation and dissemination of Tibetan culture. To make sure a country and its people survive and last for a long time, conserving the national language and culture is key...Education is the creator of everything we [Tibetans] want."