Monday, October 5, 2015

UGC to univs: Churn out industry-ready graduates

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked all registered varsities to set up `University-Industry Inter Linkage Centres' (UILCs) in order to launch integrated initiatives that allow colleges to produce “wellgroomed, tailor-made“ graduates for industry .

From setting up industry-academia clusters, livework-play campuses and career-oriented courses to launching startups, entrepreneurship development centres and joint research, UGC has mooted a series of other initiatives that UILCs will implement.Incentives like land and tax benefits will be part of the scheme.

An elaborate plan on what universities can offer the world of industry has been discussed in the guidelines for UILCs. It will include teacher training, fac ulty orientation and joint research programmes.

While the industry has long complained about the problem of employability , some experts point out that turning higher education institutions into finishing schools is not a solution.

Former Bangalore University VC M S Thimmappa welcomed the move, but cautioned, “We must be wary. Turning our institutions into finishing schools will be disastrous.“ UGC has argued there is a “demand-supply mismatch as the economy is in need of a more skilled workforce as well as managers andentrepreneurs.“

“Not everything can happen through control. Industry-academia interaction is welcome but there must be a limit to the government's role,“ International Institute of Information Technology's Bengaluru director S Sadagopan said.


Source | Times of India | 5 October 2015

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