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Campus roundup: How employable is the South Asian graduate?

On January 9-10, British Council organised the fourth global education dialogue on ?Higher Education and Employability

On January 9-10, British Council organised the fourth global education dialogue on ?Higher Education and Employability: A New Paradigm, A New Challenge? as part of its South Asia series in Mumbai. Centred on the findings of British Council research commissioned through the Economist Intelligence Unit on the South Asia Paradox of ?High university enrolment, low graduate employment?, the discussion highlighted how industry and higher education could collaborate to create supportive policy infrastructure to enhance employability in graduates to meet the fast-growing needs of South Asian economies. Regular revision of curriculum based on market needs, investment in training teachers, stronger accreditation frameworks, regulation and monitoring are some of the recommendations of the report. Despite increasing opportunities for higher education, levels of unemployment remain high among recent graduates. A study of 40,000 technical graduates in India found that in high growth sectors such as BPO, employability was only 38.2%. Scenarios such as this indicate a disconnect between industry expectations and what higher education institutions offer and require innovative approaches to skill development. Report findings reiterate low quality of education, lack of focus on developing English language and soft skills as some of the causes for this gap. The report recommended compulsory internships and mechanisms to facilitate transition between classroom and workplace, more focus on case studies, presentations and analytical assignments and less importance on ?final exams? and rote-learning were some of the other approaches needed for skill development to address ?employability? concerns.

Yamaha starts a safety initiative for school-kids

Last week, Yamaha Motor India Sales (YMIS) unveiled its maiden brand mascot to promote the Yamaha Children Safety Program (YCSP). The mascot has been designed to strengthen the brand connect with kids. The YCSP is a social initiative by the company to educate and influence both parents and children about vital road safety measures. The mascot has been developed to arouse interest among kids about the programme. The company will carry out safety riding activities in schools across the country. The company has plans to finalise the name of the mascot through a contest, which started on January 10 and will conclude on January 27. Only kids (5-12 year old) can participate in this by registering their name at a Yamaha dealership. The winner will be rewarded with a 1-year scholarship and other prizes.

Samsung?s Guru Shiksha plan to train ITI teachers

Samsung has announced the launch of its ?Guru Shiksha? programme, an initiative to train teachers of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) located in Delhi on troubleshooting, installation and demonstration of Samsung products. Teachers trained as part of this initiative will get an opportunity to partner with Samsung and teach Samsung?s Advanced Repair and Industrial Skills Enhancement (ARISE) programme that the company plans to run at Samsung Technical Schools being set up in ITIs in New Delhi.

Imperial College London expands scholarships

The Imperial College London and its Indian supporters association, the Imperial College India Foundation, have announced the expansion of their scholarship programme for outstanding Indian students to study at PG level at Imperial College. Launched in 2013, the Imperial College India Foundation Scholarships will be tenable from 2014 and will offer 2 fully-funded Master?s scholarships as well as one full PhD scholarship for Indians residing in India. The value of each of the full scholarships per year is ?40k.

Bharatiya Mahila Bank, ICAI to assist CA students

The Bharatiya Mahila Bank has signed an MoU with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) for financing students pursuing chartered accountancy and also another MoU with ICAI for financing members of ICAI and practising chartered accountants for setting up offices. To encourage women professionals, a concession of 1% in the rate of interest is being offered on loans to set up practice.

LIBA places 90% students in first placement round

In an economic environment where hiring is low, the placement season at the Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA) was expected to be challenging. The first round of placements took place at LIBA where the average number of offers per company stood at 3.73 and the average salary stood at a healthy R8 lakh. LIBA also attracted three global placements. Overall, 90% students from the final year batch were placed in 29 companies across industries and the BFSI sector absorbed maximum candidates.

APIM signs MoU with Power Grid Corp of India

The Asia-Pacific Institute of Management (AIM), New Delhi, recently signed an MoU with Power Grid Corporation of India. The objective of this is to start long-term collaboration between AIM and Power Grid. This will help in various areas of business and organisation development by exchanging intellectual resource and infrastructure of both the organisations.

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First published on: 13-01-2014 at 01:15 IST
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