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| EDUCATION TRIBUNE |
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In
pursuit of quality “Dinosaur
tactic” in job interviews
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In
pursuit of quality THE Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has introduced the National Commission on Higher Education and Research (NCHER) Bill, 2011, in Parliament and it has now been sent to the Standing Committee of Parliament. The committee has also invited comments from the public on the Bill. The Bill has been conceived with the aim of creating the NCHER that would be an overarching regulatory body. It is expected to subsume different councils dealing with various domains and also to provide an enabling environment in place of the existing restrictive regulatory set up that has resulted in an over-regulated and under-governed higher education sector. However, the Bill has certain voids that could create an environment that is not synchronous with its objectives.
The objective of the Bill is to subsume various professional councils to provide a single window to all the stakeholders and to ensure that the current system that results in fragmentation of knowledge with different regulatory agencies taking different views on matters related to standards and promotion of higher education is replaced with a more efficient system. However, the authors of the Bill have not specified the role of many of the councils dealing with higher education. For example, the Distance Education Council (DEC) has a very important role to play in higher education. At present, the Vice-Chancellor of IGNOU is also the Chairperson of DEC who thus de facto formulates the policies of DEC. With many other universities, both public and private, venturing into the distance education mode, his role as Chairperson of DEC creates a conflict of interest. It is desirable that the regulatory framework, which is now being developed, should provide a level-playing field to all the participants. It would be more prudent to bring distance education within the ambit of NCHER, as has been done in the case of vocational training. Similarly, there are five councils/associations, each claiming to be the genuine regulatory body for physiotherapy as a profession, and have been demanding to have a say in training of physiotherapists. The First Schedule attached to the Bill, which lists various professional bodies, does not have any council dealing with physiotherapy. Similarly, the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT) wields considerable influence in the field of hospitality management. The Bill is silent on its role. This council could be included in the organisations listed in the First Schedule. Professional councils along with other professional bodies could play a major role in ushering in a culture of quality assurance and could be given licensure powers. Further, these councils could ensure that persons engaged in various professions are certified, keep their knowledge up to date and are periodically tested for the same. Another aspect ignored by the Bill is the status of deemed to be universities established under the provisions of Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956. The concept of setting up a deemed to be university is peculiar to India. It creates lot of avoidable confusion in the present era of internationalisation of higher education. Moreover, deemed to be universities do not have any Acts passed by the legislatures of their respective states or Parliament that govern their operations resulting in ambiguities. Section 17 (2) (c) of the Bill confers powers on the NCHER to specify norms and processes for setting up of universities. It implies, or it is hoped, that once the Bill comes into force, no more deemed to be universities are likely to be established. It would be prudent to include a clause in the Bill laying down the process of converting deemed to be universities to fully-fledged universities. Otherwise, this anomaly would remain with the “system” for perpetuity. The Legislative Assembly of each state or Parliament may be required to pass legislations for the deemed to be universities under their jurisdiction. The Bill further stipulates that the Chairman of the NCHER would be selected by a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Speaker of Lok Sabha, Leader of the Opposition, Minister for Higher Education and Minister for Medical Education. It is desirable that the post of Chairperson be as apolitical as possible. It would be more prudent to have a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha. Section 26 (1) of the proposed Bill lays down the composition of the General Council. Though the proposed council is quiet broad based and is representative of various segments of the higher education sector and society in general, but the private universities which play an important role in the higher education sector have been ignored. It is recommended that there should be one representative of private universities from each state. The Bill envisages the formation of a Collegium of Scholars comprising 30 fellows to advise the NCHER. The tenure of each fellow has been laid down as ten years. Such a long tenure may result in a number of highly qualified individuals from missing out on the opportunity to serve with the NCHER. Therefore, the tenure of each Fellow could be five years. The Bill also requires each university and institution of higher learning to obtain sanction from the NCHER before starting a new programme. This clause is highly restrictive in nature and militates against the concept of autonomy of universities. It also implies a lack of trust in the academic councils/senates and governing bodies of universities. Moreover, the NCHER must differentiate between an affiliated college and a university. Section 50 of the Bill lays down the composition of the Advisory Council for vocational education. A representative of trade unions is required to be nominated by the Central government. Considering the history and character of trade unions in the country, such a nomination is likely to give a political slant to the Advisory Council. It is recommended that all components of the NCHER be kept as apolitical as possible. The notice inviting comments from the public did not get wide publicity. Therefore, the MHRD and the Standing Committee of Parliament would do well to get the opinion of a large segment of society and also of the stakeholders concerned.
The writer is Vice-Chancellor, Chitkara University, Himachal Pradesh
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“Dinosaur tactic” in job interviews Employers are increasingly going for “extreme interviewing’ techniques which include questions such as, “If you were a dinosaur, what would you be?” Although they say the way a candidate handles the question is more important than the actual answer, chances are that if someone answered Tyrannosaurus rex, they won’t be getting the job. The candidate would be told, “Aha, so you are a cannibalistic predator preying on the weak, are you?' The dinosaur tactic is part of a craze for throwing bizarre questions at candidates to see how they react,” according to the Daily Mail. The technique originated in California’s Silicon Valley.
Google, which is based there, is renowned for its intense interview process, with 50-page dossiers sometimes being prepared for a potential employee. One question a recent candidate was asked was, “You are stranded on a desert island. You have 60 seconds to choose people of ten professions to come with you. Who do you choose? Go!” The idea of extreme interviewing is to see how quickly job seekers think on their feet and one of its pioneers was the late Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple, who put interviewees through their paces. — ANI
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CCS Haryana Agricultural
University, Hisar I.C. College of Home Science, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, and Technological Institute of Textile & Sciences (TITS), Bhiwani, will cooperate with each other in their academic and research pursuits. A memorandum of understanding has been signed to this effect between these institutes. According to the MoU, both these institutes will have an exchange programme of faculty and students. The institutes will also utilise each other’s infrastructural facilities including laboratories and libraries for teaching and research purposes. They would also help each other in organising seminars, conferences, workshops and providing industrial experience to the students. The major beneficiaries of the MoU will be B. Sc. students of I. C. College of Home Science. These students, after completing the degree with professional elective subject of textile and apparel designing, will be eligible to take admission in M. Tech in Fashion and Apparel Designing at TITS, Bhiwani. The MoU was signed by Dr Saroj S. Jeet Singh, Dean, I. C. College of Home Science and Dr R. Jamdagni, Director, TITS..
National conference on oilseeds
Dr Arvind Kumar, Deputy Director-General, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), has stressed the need for increasing per unit area productivity of oilseed crops of the mustard group. He also emphasised on the conservation of primary natural resources, particularly water, soil and genetic resources to meet the increasing demand for edible oils. He was speaking at inauguration of the National Conference on Production Barriers and Technological Options in oilseed Brassica at Haryana Agricultural University. It was organised in collaboration with the Society of Rapeseed Mustard Research. Scientists from across the country participated in this two-day conference. Dr Kumar said that annual compound growth rate of area, production and yield of rapeseed-mustard for the last 15 years had revealed positive trends of growth but that was not enough to meet demand for edible oils in the country. These oils had to be imported from Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil and Argentina. Lauding HAU scientists and farmers for the higher mustard productivity in Haryana, he urged other oilseeds producing states like Punjab, Rajasthan, M.P. and U.P. to emulate Haryana, which had achieved mustard productivity that was more than the average world productivity. He also called upon the scientists to accord priority to mitigating the adverse effects of high temperature as a consequence of climate change and developing alternate farming systems, disease and pest resistant varieties and hybrids along with resource conservation technologies. He said a good stock of germplasm was available that would be useful in developing new varieties and hybrids. He said the ICAR was trying hard to provide adequate funding for research on this aspect by agricultural universities. The Vice-Chancellor, Dr K.S. Khokhar, said that the population of the country was expected to grow from the present 1.21 billion to 1.32 billion by the end of 12th Five Year Plan. Therefore, to attain self-sufficiency in edible oils, an estimated 21.12 MT of edible oil equivalent to about 63.4 MT of total oilseeds would be required. This was a challenge as well as opportunity for the oilseed scientists and developmental agencies.
Agri-business camp held
The Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) and the Business Planning and Development (BPD) unit of Haryana Agricultural University and Agribusiness Incubator, ICRISAT, jointly organised a mega camp. The objective was to make the prospective entrepreneurs aware about the availability of financial support from various agencies, including SFAC to establish their own enterprises. In this camp, more than140 entrepreneurs, including the final-year MBA students of the university, participated. The camp was inaugurated by Dr Saroj Jeet Singh, Dean, College of Home Sciences. She called upon graduates and rural youth to come forward for establishing their own enterprises, based on the potential technologies developed by HAU as well as by other scientific institutions. This would help in enhancing the rural economy of the country apart from creating employment opportunities.
— Contributed by Raman Mohan
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Deadlines Column 344 Agriculture
Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly 243122 (UP) (Deemed
University) Admission to PhD Programmes 2012 Eligibility: Masters
in Veterinary Science (60% / OGPA 7.00/10.00); a good knowledge of
English Application Deadline: 20 April 2012 Art & Design
Institute of Apparel Management, 7th Floor, Apparel House,
Institutional Area, Sector 44, Gurgaon 122003 (Har) (M/o Textiles, GoI) 1) Certificate Programme
in Setting up Fashion Business Eligibility:
Bachelors Degree, 02 – 04 Years of Full time work experience. Application Deadline: 15 March 2012
Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT), B 68, Industrial Area,
Phase VII, Mohali (Punj) (M/o Textiles, GoI) 1) Diploma in Fashion
Design / Textile Design / Fashion Design Knits (3 years) Eligibility:
For 1: 10+2. Selection: Entrance Test: 28 April 2012 Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 06 April 2012
Footwear Design & Development Institute (FDDI), A 10/ A, Sector 24, Noida
201301 (UP) 1) Master Degree
Programmes (3 years) Eligibility:
For 1: Bachelors Degree; For 2: 10+2, Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 17 May 2012 Arts – Performing
National School of Drama, Bahawalpur House, Bhagwandas Road, New Delhi 110001 Diploma in Dramatic Arts (3 years, FT, Residential) Eligibility:
Bachelors degree; participation in at least 6 productions; working
knowledge of Hindi & English. Selection: Preliminary Test (Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bangalore, Guwahati); 4-5-day workshop (at NSD); Medical test for physical fitness. Scholarship: Rs 6000/- pm Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 20 April 2012 Engineering
Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad 826004 (Jhar) (Deemed Univ) 1) MTech Eligibility: For
1: Bachelors Degree (60%); Selection: For
1: GATE Scores / Written Test: 13 May 2012 + PI Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 06 April 2012 Management
Narsee Monjee Institute of Management & Higher Studies, School of Business
Management, VL Mehta Road, Vile Parle (W), Mumbai 400056 (Mah) (Deemed
University) PG Diploma in Business Management (Family Business), 2 years Eligibility: Bachelors Degree Selection: Interview Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 31 March 2012
Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Devghat, Jhalwa, Allahabad
211012 (UP) MBA (IT) (2 years) Eligibility:
Bachelors degree & valid CAT / XAT / MAT / ATMA / CMAT Score Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 30 April 2012
Administrative Staff College of India, Hinduja Block, Road No 3, Banjara Hills,
Hyderabad 500034 (AP) Post Graduate Diploma in Hospital Mgmt (2 years) Eligibility: Bachelors Degree (50%). Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 30 April 2012 Mass Communication
Asian College of Journalism, Second Main Road, Taramani, Chennai 600002 (TN) PG Diploma Programme
2012-13 (1 year) Eligibility: Bachelors degree Selection: Entrance Exam (20 May 2012); Personal Interview. Application Form & Details: Website Course Commencement: 09 July 2012 Medicine
All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Ansari Nagar, New Delhi 110608 Entrance Exam for MBBS Course – August 2012 Eligibility:
10+2 (Physics, Chemistry, Biology & English, 60%). Exam: 01 June 2012 Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 02 April 2012
CH. Brahm Prakash Ayurved Charak Sansthan, Warden Flat No.3, Near Central
Library, Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi Gate, New delhi-110002 (Govt of NCT
Delhi) Admission to
AYURVEDACHARYA (BAMS Course) (5½
years) Eligibility:
10+2 or Equivalent from any Recognized University / Board Of Indian
State with Physics / Chemistry / Biology / English, Sanskrit) Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 16 April 2012 Protective Services
Union Public Service Commission, Dholpur House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi 110069 Indian Police Service Limited Competitive Examination - 2012 Eligibility:
Indian national; 5 Years Service as Deputy Superintendent of
Police Selection: Written Test (20 May 2012), Physical Efficiency Tests; Medical Standard Test. Application Form & Details: Employment News (10 – 16 March 2012) / Website Application Deadline: 01 April 2012 Scholarships
Narotam Sekhsaria Foundation, 102, Maker Chambers III, Nariman Point, Mumbai
400021 (Mah) Narotam Sekhsaria
Scholarship Programme 2012 Eligibility: Indian nationals; Bachelors Degree with a consistently good academic background Age:
30 Years (31 January 2012) Application Deadline: 31 March 2012 School
National Institute of Open Schooling, Sub Centre, 69/106, Niranjanpur,
Saharanpur Road, Dehradun 248171 (Utt) (M/o HRD, GoI) Online Admission for
Examination in October 2012 for: Eligibility: For
1: Class 8 pass Age:
For 1: 14 years (on 31 January 2012) Application Form & Details: Website Application Deadline: 15 March 2012 University
Symbiosis International, Village-Lavale, Tal-Mulshi, Pune 411042 (Mah) Symbiosis Entrance Test
(SET) Test: SET: 05 May 2012 Details: Website. Registration closes: 14 April 2012 — Pervin Malhotra, www.careerguidanceindia.com
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