Pbi varsity begins courses in pharmacy, sociology
Jangveer Singh
THE horizon is getting wider for budding professionals with Punjabi University introducing new profession-oriented courses keeping in view emerging needs in the fields of pharmaceutical science, sociology and psychology. These courses have been tailored in such a manner that youngsters opting for them are able to create openings for themselves in their fields of study.

Packaging ordinary courses to sell
Dinesh K. Gupta
EDUCATION system has become highly competitive and demanding. Students evaluate different courses based on the quality of placement they are likely to get after the completion of their studies. That is why one finds that the students aspire to join those courses which ensure gainful employment.

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Pbi varsity begins courses in pharmacy, sociology
Jangveer Singh

THE horizon is getting wider for budding professionals with Punjabi University introducing new profession-oriented courses keeping in view emerging needs in the fields of pharmaceutical science, sociology and psychology.

These courses have been tailored in such a manner that youngsters opting for them are able to create openings for themselves in their fields of study. The courses are of one and two years’ duration.

The university’s Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences has started two new courses, Pharmacy Practice and Pharmacognosi, from this year. Students opting for these courses will get a M Pharmacy degree. Both the courses are of a two-year period.

Giving details of the courses, the Head of Department, Dr Manjit Singh, said the Pharmacy Practice course was aimed at promoting rational use of drugs. Physicians after diagnosing a disease needed medicine in tailor-made proportions according to the individual need of the patient. “This is when a professional trained in Pharmacy Practice will step in,” he said, adding that the department hoped that openings in the field were likely to be created in important cities.

The department is starting another course, Postgraduate Degree in Pharmacognosi, from this year. Dr Manjit Singh said students opting for this degree would be trained in the use of herbal drugs. Though the use and manufacture of herbal drugs had increased all over the country, the requisite number of professionals to recommend dosage and use were not in place. He said students could opt for both the courses after their B Pharmacy degree and would have to pay around Rs 60,000 annually.

The Department of Sociology is also starting a one-year Diploma in Sociology of Mass Communication and Media Research. The course will involve study of theoretical approaches to mass communication and methodology of media research besides other issues. The Head of Department, Dr Manjit Singh, said the course was aimed at preparing professionals who could get jobs in media as experts who could conduct surveys on various issues as per requirements. Fifteen seats are in the offing in this course, which will cost around Rs 25,000 per annum.

The Department of Psychology also took a lead in creating more avenues for students by starting a one-year Diploma Course in Counselling Psychology last year. The course is expected to generate a number of jobs in the near future. The Head of Department, Dr Baldev Singh Sandhu, said students would be trained in education counselling during the course besides being given training in counselling for specific health and mental problems.

These, Dr Sandhu said, could include patients suffering from mental retardation, AIDS and epilepsy besides behavioural problems. Students going for the course can choose private practice and will also be eligible for posts of school counsellor, which has been made mandatory by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), he added. Twelve seats are being offered in this diploma course.

Packaging ordinary courses to sell
Dinesh K. Gupta

EDUCATION system has become highly competitive and demanding. Students evaluate different courses based on the quality of placement they are likely to get after the completion of their studies. That is why one finds that the students aspire to join those courses which ensure gainful employment.

In universities, for example, courses like business management dominate social science stream and computer applications attract the students of physical science stream. Those courses which do not promise good placement draw students who cannot make it to the placement-oriented prestigious courses. As a result, educational administrators have expressed serious concerns over the low quality of talent that is getting attracted to certain streams of basic science courses like physics and chemistry. If placement is provided to students joining traditional courses, good students will show keen interest in such courses.

For instance, a placement system for students pursing a postgraduate course in Sanskrit can be evolved that can position this course as one of the most prestigious courses having the capacity to act as a springboard of endless revenue for cash-strapped universities.

After completing MA (Sanskrit) students go in for either a research degree like MPhil/PhD or B.Ed. The focus of these students is to find a teaching job either in a school, college, or university. However, every corporate house needs a person who can provide relaxation to its employees. Companies spend heavily and send their employees to attend expensive training programmes to learn the art of maintaining their cool in difficult times and resolving organizational conflicts. With a reorientation of teachers, course curriculum and attitudes of the students, any institution can globally sell a course like MA (Sanskrit).

Teaching of semantics, grammar and translation of “Shiv Darshana” is one part to which most of the courses are currently focused. To empower the student to practically use the dictates of “Shiv Darshana” is another part. It is this part which is primarily lacking in the current context of teaching. If “Shiv Darshana” is taught with an aim to equip a student with the competence to guide the way one should lead one’s life in a stress-free and fulfilling manner, floodgates of queries will open to seek the services of such a student. So educational institutions will have to come out of the traditional straight-jacketed mindset and allow the strengths of a discipline bloom fully. Other university departments, eg history, anthropology, Hindi, Punjabi, can think on these lines in order to make themselves more useful.

In case of a course on acting or theatre, there are many universities running such courses successfully. Why can’t a Department of Theatre think of providing with skills that may be of use in home or at office? Prof Dwight Owsen of East Tennessee State University (USA), recently floated a global workshop to teach how to use the right-brain intuitive thinking that actors use to get into character to make one a better teacher. In order to be an effective teacher, acting can be of immense help. If this dimension is focused upon, one can find innumerable users of this unexplored service to be offered by a Department of Theatre.

Once one is clear about the requirements of the market, one can plan to equip the students with requisite skills. This requires total recasting and restructuring of the existing course curriculum. Aggressive marketing, another important aspect, requires creation of a database of prospective employers. The database should carry information regarding the contact person, his phone, fax numbers, email ID and the type and quantum of requirement which that organisation may have. Further, continuous feedback has to be sought from the recruiters. Finally, the success of any placement initiative depends upon the vision of top management, long-term commitment of the students and unstinting support of the administrative functionaries. One must listen to the voice of the students.

The writer is a Professor in the University Business School of Panjab University, Chandigarh. Email: dkgupta@pu.ac.in

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