EDUCATION

CAMPUS
Career options: Putting the students 
on the fast track 
Smriti Kak

The need for job oriented courses has been high on the agenda. Through the introduction of vocational courses, students have been given the chance to empower themselves. In this regard, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has proposed simultaneous registration in more than one university for students to enhance their employment opportunities.

The UGC chairperson, Mr Arun Nigavekar, while delivering a lecture pointed out that there should be a change in the present system wherein a student can simultaneously register in more than one university for more than one course.

This, according to Nigavekar, would allow a student to complete another course of their choice even while finishing their basic degree course.

However, many do not agree with this proposition. “We need to redress the various problems in the system. As of now, the students can pass their examinations without attending classes and putting in the least possible efforts. The system will aid the trend that has emerged,” said Sanjay Bohidar, the treasurer of the Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA). He went on to add, “classroom teaching is vital and we must take steps that reinforce the importance of it.”

According to the plan mooted by Nigavekar, a student doing a core graduation course in one university can do a certificate course from another. The changes have been suggested in view of the expansion taking place in the service sector the world over.

Educational tie-ups

Aptech has endeavoured to provide world-class IT courseware.

Aptech Worldwide has entered into tie-ups with Siam University and the Department of Vocational Education (DOVE). The alliance with Siam University will enable students to avail of world-class courseware and move on to the best jobs in the IT industry. The organisation is continuously engaged in research and development to improve the quality of education offered to students.

The latest career course offering from Aptech is the ‘ACCP World Programme’, a comprehensive programme designed in consultation with industry leaders through the Technology and Academic Advisory Group of Aptech (TAG) and internationally renowned alliance partners like Microsoft.

The three-year programme is designed in a modular approach and enables the students to master the very latest technologies and prepare themselves to face the challenges of the future workplace.

The uniqueness of this career course is the detailed training offered in .net and J2EE frameworks. The course also incorporates additional information necessary in the form of new technologies and new tools. In addition to the ‘ACCP World Programme’, it also has a series of short-term courses.

Global options

With increasing tie-ups, Indian students can now opt for foreign degrees.

American University (AU) and the Global Education Options (GEO), a private counselling centre providing comprehensive guidance to students, have launched a one-year undergraduate ‘Capstone Programme’, paving the way for a master’s degree.

An interactive seminar to introduce the programme was conducted jointly by the director of South Asia Project, American University and Global Education Options in the Capital recently.

The seminar provided details on all programmes of American University, including a four-year undergraduate degree, a two-year master’s degree, the study abroad programmes and the Washington summer session-a special programme for high school students.

The Washington summer session introduces the possibility of high school students going to the American University for a proposed period of three weeks in which they would gain academic credits in general courses to augment their education in India while exposing them to an international experience.

Former diplomats, embassy officials, those associated with the World Bank and artists would be invited to as guest speakers. In addition, they would be linked to other institutions, provided internships and special programmes would be tailor-made for Indian students.

Seminar on economic growth

Corporate executives will take part in a two-day seminar on ‘Accelerating Growth through Acquisitions, Alliances, Joint Ventures and PSU Disinvestments’, organized by the All India Management Association here on January 31, 2003.

Mr Pradeep Baijal, Secretary, Ministry of Disinvestment will deliver the inaugural address while Dr C. Srinivasan of AT Kearney, will deliver the key note address.

Being held for the second consecutive year, this seminar aims to help identify key managerial issues while managing strategic alliances, joint ventures and their possible solutions, said the AIMA director-general, Maj-Gen D.N. Khurana.

The seminar will focus on issues like strategic dimensions for managing growth, investment, valuation issues, organisational and human dimensions, PSU disinvestment, opportunities and challenges.

Experience sharing through presentations by value driven organisations is one of the main aims of the seminar. The seminar would cover both procedural aspects and the key implementation problems encountered while using various strategies for accelerating growth.

Indian professor awarded

Prof Raghuram G Rajan, Professor of Finance at the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad and Prof. Joseph L Gidwitz, Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago have been awarded the Fisher Black Prize by the American Finance Association.

The prize is modelled along the lines of ‘Fields Medal’ in mathematics and the ‘Clark Medals’ in economics and recognises outstanding contribution to the field of finance by a person below the age of 40 years.

Set up in the memory of Fisher Black, the co-inventor of the Nobel Prize winning Black Scholes Merton options-pricing model, the prize is given biannually.

Prof Rajan’s work examines the role of institutions and their impact on economic growth.

The selection committee pointed out that he “has made path-breaking contribution to our knowledge of financial institutions, the workings of the modern corporations and the causes and consequences of the development of the financial sector across countries”.

17 students injured as bus overturns
Our Correspondent

Sonepat, January 29
At least 17 students, both boys and girls, were injured, three of them seriously when a mini bus on which they were travelling skidded the Sonepat-Gohana Road and overturned near Garhi village about 15 km from here last evening.

According to a report, the bus was on its way to Naina Tatarpur village for dropping the students of Sir Chhotu Ram Senior Secondary School. The injured students were identified as Nitesh, Nitin, Rahul, Suman and Ritu. They were admitted to the city hospital on the Gohana Road in the city whereas Sawan,

Parveen, Anu, Nitasha, Sachin, Sonu, Sahil and Pooja were admitted to another private hospital in this city, wherefrom they were taken to the local civil hospital. The condition of three students Rachna, Manjeet and Hardeep was stated to be serious.

‘Sur Puraskar’ to MDU professor
Our Correspondent

Rohtak, January 29
Dr Baij Nath Singhal, professor, Hindi Department, Maharshi Dayanand University has been awarded the highest literary award ‘Sur Puraskar’ in a state level function recently held at Panchkula.

The Human Resource Development Minister, Mr Murli Manohar Joshi, honoured Dr Singhal with the award which carries a cash amount of Rs 50,000 and a citation. The Haryana Sahitya Akadami chairman and the Haryana Chief Minister presided over the function.

COURTS

HC notice on foreign equipment
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 29
A leading dental equipment manufacturer has moved the Delhi High Court challenging the Delhi government’s decision to call for bids to supply dental equipment of foreign origin only in hospitals. The petition stated that the government should consider the equipment on merit and imported equipment would attract high custom duty, thereby make dental treatment costlier.

A division bench comprising Justices Usha Mehra and Pradeep Nandrajog today issued show cause notice, returnable on February 3, to the Delhi Government on a petition seeking to set aside the advertisement, issued in December last year that called for bids to supply dental equipment for hospitals with a condition that the equipment should be of foreign origin.

The price and technical bids submitted by the petitioner company should not be rejected due to the ‘unreasonable’ restriction imposed in the advertisement and the State Government should consider all the bids on merits, submitted senior counsel Rajiv Nayar, appearing for ‘Confident Dental Equipment’.

When the judges said that probably the authorities wanted better equipment, Mr Nayar said that in that case, all parties should be allowed to compete.

When the bench said probably the authorities did not find the company’s equipment up to the mark, he said if there was even a single complaint against the petitioner company, which had more than 70 per cent market share in the field of dental equipment in the country, it would withdraw its plea.

It was claimed that the equipment of foreign origin would make dental treatments costlier as importing such equipment attracts 39.5 per cent duty.