The changes brought about by the pandemic have significantly altered the contours of higher education. Suneel Galgotia, Chancellor, Galgotias University, shares insights on how to manage the triggers brought about by changing circumstances. Edited excerpts:
How would you describe the current status of higher education in India? What are your views on the NEP 2020?
I believe that the Indian higher education has seen a sea change with the government introducing the landmark NEP 2020. The New Education Policy, which is truly a much needed structural reform, is quiet commendable and has taken every step to achieve the holistic goal of providing quality education there by giving our country a skillful, talented, and professional youth population.
Learning systems like online learning and digital courses are also being encouraged to accentuate the digital India initiative and the concept of continuous assessments will encourage the process of learning creatively and imaginatively.
India will be promoted as a global study destination providing premium education at affordable costs which will bring a big boost to the Indian economy. The emphasis given to multi-disciplinary research will give way to high quality teaching and research along with choice to student to follow his passion in doing what he aspires and loves the most. This makes the policy is definitely student centric. One of the biggest transformational features of the new policy is the use of mother tongue as a medium of instruction at the primary level.
The top 20 countries in terms of GDP all use their mother tongue as a medium of education in imparting and dissemination of knowledge.
Another important addition is the introduction of coding from class VI onwards will develop a strong foundation and build logical and analytical skills among our students.
Tell us about the strengths of Galgotias University.
I strongly feel that the biggest strength of our Institution are our brilliant and highly innovative students who are excelling in their chosen career path. It is because of the students and faculties that any educational institution gets a name and fame. Based on the feedback received from the top corporates and recruiters in the country, we are proud to say that our students have been making accomplishments, which are truly commendable, and they have made their presence felt in the respective fields.
What are some of the innovative measures taken by the university to ensure learning in these unprecedented circumstances?
The Covid-19 pandemic has given a big and renewed push for the online education especially at Galgotia’s. According to the World Economic Forum, global edtech investments had reached US$18.66 billion in 2019 and the overall market for online education is projected to reach $350 billion by 2025.
Students at Galgotia’s University can take their pick from 50,000+ online lectures, 9,000+ e-learning resources, 3,000+ virtual classroom instances, 4,000+ online assignments, 10,000+ virtual videos, and 500+ virtual programming labs. They also have access to over 4,000 courses on industry-ready skills on the multiple MOOC platforms (for credit transfer). E-resources such as NPTEL, SWAYAM, UDEMY, COURSERA and MIT Open Course Ware links are being shared with all the students to enhance their learning curve. The pivotal role being played by our University in the student’s overall development and their accomplishments are making me feel proud about the esteemed Institution.
Considering the current economic scenario, has placement of graduating batches been a major challenge?
Galgotias University is proud to announce that Amazon has hired for intership which can be converted to full placements at a 30.25 lakhs package. We are proud of such recruiting partners and our brilliant students who have been provided this platform. Joining hands with Wipro and Adobe in terms of Academic Excellence Centre, Galgotias University established Adobe Digital Technology Academy; in which Adobe is offering two courses, which will improve the employability of the students. Galgotias University always had its focus on imparting practical knowledge to students so that they are industry-ready when they join the new age corporate world post COVID-19.
Keeping up with the current technology and market trends, Galgotias University inaugurated the Adobe Digital Technology Academy in collaboration with Wipro Technologies. The university has already associated with other corporate partners to establish employability enhancement programs in association with Infosys-Campus Connect Program, Cognizant Compe10cy, Wipro Talent Next Program, Adobe India-MoU to impart training in digital skills in data analytics, tech Mahindra – MoU to impart student training and faculty development programmes, Ericsson EMPOWER-University programme. The university is also offering certification courses to students in collaboration with NASSCOM for Cyber security and Data analytics, NIIT for Java and Python, CP CADD Centre, New Delhi for SCADA Development, ISIE India-Electrical Vehicle Design Opportunity, Electronics for you, New Delhi-IOT Development, Life Sciences Sector Skill Council – Competency certification for e-pharma.
Students of Galgotias University have also justified these efforts of the university in terms of grabbing job offers during campus placements. We proudly observed a successful placement season for 2020 passing out BTech and MBA students while the placement season is not over yet. Highlight of the placement season is that 90% of eligible students from B Tech-CSE/IT, 85% students of overall all branches in B Tech and 92% students of MBA have secured job offers. In current placement season, 38 % students have secured multiple job offers and highest salary package till date is 30.24 LPA. I believe that our success lies in our student’s success in their careers.
