Career: UGC touches the right chord
THE UNIVERSITY Grants Commission has asked all universities and the colleges of the country, including the Allahabad University, to formulate their own "need-based" and "career-oriented" courses on a priority basis. The UGC has asked the institutions to prepare the syllabi for these courses on their own by involving subject experts and has also made it clear that if a varsity fails to approve the syllabi prepared by a college within a period of two months .
Tells Allahabad University, colleges to start ‘need-based’ courses
THE UNIVERSITY Grants Commission (UGC) has asked all universities and the colleges of the country, including the Allahabad University (AU), to formulate their own "need-based" and "career-oriented" courses on a priority basis.
The UGC has asked the institutions to prepare the syllabi for these courses on their own by involving subject experts and has also made it clear that if a varsity fails to approve the syllabi prepared by a college within a period of two months, the same may be treated as approved and the courses may be started by the college concerned.
In a communiqué sent to all the 150 varsities of the country, the UGC has said that it is providing 'Seed Money' to the eligible universities and colleges under the scheme of Career-oriented Programmes at first degree level in universities and colleges. The objective is to introduce career and market-oriented, skill-enhancing add-on courses that have utility for job and self-employment of students.
"The UGC has conducted several inter-face meetings with the principals of colleges during 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 all over the country. Four seminars were also organised to popularise the scheme and also to get the new side and feedback on the scheme," the communiqué says.
During these inter-face meetings and seminars, the colleges pointed out some of the difficulties faced by them in the implementation of the scheme. Based on the feedback received from the colleges and academicians all over the country, the UGC decided to constitute an expert committee under the chairmanship of Prof BH Brij Kishore, member, UGC, to modify the guidelines of the scheme of Career-oriented Programmes. On the recommendations of the expert committee, the UGC has now partially modified the guidelines.
The UGC has said that as per the new guidelines, the assistance available in this programme is only in the form of a one-time 'seed money'. The amount is to be utilised for the purchase of books and journals, augmentation of laboratory facilities, equipment, contingency and payment of Remuneration to the guest/Internal faculty only.
The colleges/universities can opt for a maximum of three courses. The colleges/universities may opt for multiple certificates/diploma/ advanced diploma.
Assistance from the UGC will be available to the tune of Rs 5 lakh per course as one time 'seed money' for five years in the Humanities and Commerce streams and one time 'seed money' of Rs 7 lakh per course will be granted for five years for the science stream," the letter says.
The UGC has also clarified that the benefits of these career-oriented courses can be extended to regular PG students of the same college/university with priority being given to the regular UG students.
The universities should not charge any affiliation fee for the career-oriented courses sanctioned by the UGC, the letter says.
Ordering the varsities to bring these modifications to the notice of all the affiliated/constituent colleges under them, the UGC has invited the colleges to also submit fresh proposals under the scheme as per the revised guidelines and in the prescribed format for the courses to be started from the academic year 2007-08.