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MAHATMA GANDHI INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCE

DECEMBER 2019

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

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December 2019

Vol - 1 Issue - 12

Colleges and Institutions in Maharashtra Special (India Edition) Editor in Chief

Dr. Manoj Varghese

Managing Editor Sarath Shyam

Consultant Editors

Dr. Johny Andrews Anjana K Shyam S

Jessica Jo Stanly Lui Emma James

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Art and Design Ajay K Das

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Higher Education Digest December March 2019 2019

MANAGING EDITOR’S NOTE

Education for a Change

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s we say goodbye to 2019 and enter 2020, the education world is filled with discussions about various technologies making inroads in the education sector across the world. However, in a place called Sevagram, where Ghandhiji lived from 1936 to his death in 1948, Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Science continues its age-old tradition of adopting a village for each new batch of its medical students. Students of the first MBBS spend a fortnight in their adopted village, where each student is allotted 4-5 families for their camp activities. They live with the villagers, visit their adopted families daily and interact with them.

The institute strongly believes that the community immersion experience is essential to make an impact on the malleable minds of undergraduates. For most students, this experience comes as an eye-opener as it is often their first exposure to the woes of rural

India. As one student put it, “We are taught a lot of statistical facts about health, disparity, and inequity.

But nothing prepares you enough when you land in the village and see how people actually live. It comes as a cultural shock at first. And then slowly you learn to see how people find happiness in less. It is an experience that changes you for life.”

In this issue, we celebrate the success of MGIMS by identifying 10 Must-Watch Institutes and Colleges in Maharashtra that are performing exceptionally well to create socially responsible graduates who can meet the challenges of tomorrow. We hope that the hard work we have done to feature the premier institutions in Maharashtra will help students and faculty members from all over the country in their journey.

Enjoy Reading.

Sarath Shyam

Higher Education Digest December 2019

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ADVISORY BOARD

Dr. Kuldeep Nagi, Ph.D, MBA, BSc. Program Director of Ph.D, Recipient of Fulbright Fellowship Award & Dan Evans Award for Excellence and Writer columnist.

Dr. Ajay Shukla, Ph.D, MBA, BE. Dr.Varughese K.John, PhD, MBA, MPhil, MCom, LLB.

Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Higher Education UAE

Program Director, MS in Management Program, GSATM - AU

6 Mr. Sreedhar Bevara, MBA, B.Com Senior General Manager: Panasonic Middle East & Africa, Thought Leader, Speaker & Author of ‘Moment of Signal’ (Amazon’s International Bestseller)

Mr. Amulya Sah, PGD PM & IR, PG Diploma in PM&IR (XISS Ranchi) Senior Director HR. Head HR group Samsung R&D Institute India,Transformative HR Leader, Change agent, Digitization facilitator, Engagement architect, Trainer and Diversity champion.

Major General (Rtd.) Dr. Sunil Chandra, VSM (Vishishta Seva Medal), Ph.D, M. Phil, MA, M.Ed, PGBDA Ex-M D Army Welfare Education Society, ExCOO GEMS Education - India, Ex- Addl Dir Gen - Army Education, Mentor - Adventure-Pulse

Asst. Prof. Dr. Suramya Mathai, Ph.D,M.Ed,MA,BA. Teachers Training Expert, Writer, Author, Speaker & Social Worker

Higher Education Digest December 2019

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

COVER STORY

SERVING

RURAL INDIA SINCE 1969

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MAHATMA GANDHI INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCE MENTOR’S MANTRA

ACADEMIC VIEW

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Take Full Advantage of the Digital Era

The Process of Making ‘New Engineers’

Radhika Zahedi, Executive Director of Curriculum and Teaching, The Acres Foundation

Dr. Yajulu Medury, Director, Mahindra Ecole Centrale

Higher Education Digest December 2019

32 - 36 D.K.T.E. SOCIETY’S TEXTILE AND ENGINEERING INSTITUTE

Knitting the Future Talents

38 - 42 DEVIPRASAD GOENKA MANAGEMENT COLLEGE OF MEDIA STUDIES

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Facilitating the Rise of New Age Media

44 - 48 INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH (ISMR)

Making Global Thinkers

54 - 58 SYMBIOSIS SCHOOL OF BANKING AND FINANCE

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Presenting Game-Changing Avenues In BFSI Education

INDUSTRY PERCPECTIVE

26 - 27

50 - 52

Leveraging Digital Marketing to Break into World Rankings

Edtech Leading to Transparency in the Education System

Bejoy Suri, Co-Founder, E-Squared

Beas Dev Ralhan, CEO & Co-Founder, Next Education India Higher Education Digest December 2019

MENTOR’S MANTRA

Take Full Advantage of the Digital Era Radhika Zahedi currently serves as the Executive Director of Curriculum and Teaching at the Acres Foundation.

She has a Master’s (MA) Degree in Mathematics Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, USA and Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering from Mumbai University. Radhika has been working in the field of education for the past 14 years. She has experience as a school Principal at the Gateway School of Mumbai and also in other roles as teacher-coach, teacher and curriculum designer in a variety of settings including IB, IGCSE, Special Needs and Municipal schools in Mumbai, Public schools in New York City, and a rural school in the north east of India. In an exclusive interaction with the Higher Education Digest, Radhika talks about the challenges for academicians in the digital era and many more.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

• What according to you is at the core of industry 4.0?

What should industry leaders and academicians need to know before embarking on this journey.

As an educator I think that Industry leaders - who are most likely to be experts in their respective domains, are the best people to identify the changes that automation and availability of data demand from their industries. I should be asking them what we need to know instead of offering advice. For academicians, I think we need to make a very deliberate effort to understand from leaders and people in industries what the demands of industry 4.0 are and design our programs and research backwards from there.

The nature of work and problems that need to be solved are complex in this age and googleable information will not be enough to come up with effective solutions to these complex problems

• Despite being a developing nation with a promising number of young talents, do we have appropriate skilling infrastructure in our country?

Also, please elaborate on the employability status of young Indian students.

Many reports in recent years have indicated that we may have an education-to-job skills gap on our hands. For example, a World Economic Forum report in 2016 estimated that only 53 percent of industry leaders today are confident in the potential and capacity of incoming employees.

Another recent educational research report from The Brookings Universal Centre for Education projected that by the year 2030 more than half of the world’s 2 billion children will not be on track to achieve basic skills at the secondary level, including literacy, numeracy, and problem solving. In India, the same trend is reflected - a report from the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship in 2015 indicated that a large portion of Indian youth do not possess employability skills.

• As the country progresses into a knowledge and digital economy, what are the major challenges for academicians in India?

Everyone talks about the importance of 21st Century skills like the 4Cs - Collaboration, Critical thinking, Creativity, Communication. Yes, they are important. But I think one of the most overlooked realities that this new knowledge/digital economy has created is need for deep domain knowledge or expertise. The nature of work and problems that need to be solved are complex in this age and googleable information will not be enough to come up with effective solutions to these complex problems. There seems to be a misconception that deep industry/domain specific expertise is not as valuable today as it may have

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One of the best things about the digital era is that because a lot of the menial tasks can be automated, work can become more purposeful and fulfilling for more people

been in the past. It is still very valuable, and if anything, today’s world requires even deeper domain specific knowledge than before.

So, the challenge for academicians is to figure out how to ensure that learning is focused on depth - where deep domain knowledge and skills are taught rather than breadth - just coverage of a lot of information.

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• Experts in education and industry say that many of the present jobs and skill sets will soon become redundant.

What are the major changes that we can expect in future jobs?

The nature of work will definitely evolve at a fast pace and we need to look towards leaders in various industries for insight on this evolution.

• In this era, what are the major challenges companies face while recruiting Indian talent Companies often recognize the skills gap that exists when fresh graduates are employed.

• What are the key skills that today’s recruiters consider when hiring fresh graduates?

Recruiters look for an open-minded and learning mindset, knowledge or competency relevant to their industry and also commitment and resilience. In addition to educational qualifications, employers value Internships and other relevant experiences.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

• How do you keep employees motivated and engaged in this digital era?

One of the best things about the digital era is that because a lot of the menial tasks can be automated, work can become more purposeful and fulfilling for more people. Research on motivation indicates that if organizations and leaders want motivated individuals, they need to provide opportunities for the following: Purposeful Work: People need to know why they are doing the work and what impact it has on the company/ customers and beyond.

Autonomy: People like to have autonomy so that they can use their creativity instead of being micro-managed.

Competence: People need to have the necessary skills to carry out the work that is assigned to them. If the challenge presented to them is not matched with their skillset, they are more likely to be unsuccessful and lose motivation.

• What is your advice to the students?

Take full advantage of the digital era - use the information and tools available to you to further your learning the fullest extent possible. At the same time, recognize the value of expertise and seek mentors in your area of interest who will help you build this deep, industry-specific knowledge.

And of course, as it has been since the beginning of time - all great achievements cannot happen without hard work and commitment!

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COVER STORY

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MAHATMA GANDHI INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCE

By Sarath Shyam

Higher Education Digest December 2019

L Dr. Sushila Nayar, Founder President

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

ike any other teaching public hospital, Kasturba Hospital at Sevagram, located near Nagpur in Maharashtra State, is perpetually in motion. On a typical Monday, the hospital receives over 1700 patients in its outpatient care unit, its pharmacies deal with 1800 prescriptions, 140 patients seek admission to the hospital wards, 14 patients undergo major surgeries, 12 babies are delivered, and 20 units of blood are transfused. In addition, 270 patients undergo radiography, 65 ultrasound examinations, 14 computed tomography, and seven patients have a magnetic resonance imaging scan. The laboratories report 750 biochemical tests, 510 complete blood counts, 100 serologic tests, 20 cytology samples and 15 biopsy specimens. A team of a little over 100 consultants, 120 residents, 60 interns, and 250 nurses - all staying on campus – works 24x7 to provide affordable and appropriate care to the population it serves.

Kasturba Hospital is a part of Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Science (MGIMS), an institution consistently being ranked among the top medical schools in the country. Indeed, the name of the institute itself speaks of its historical roots. These roots go back to the time of Indian Independence Movement, and to a place originally called Shegaon, now known as Sevagram.

A Glorious Chapter of History When the first batch of 60 students was enrolled in the year 1969, MGIMS came up as independent India’s first attempt to give a new direction to rural health. Today it boasts of having groomed more than 2300 doctors.

After more than five decades of its birth, MGIMS has come a long way. From a mere 15-bedded hospital to its 972 beds and a hospital with state-of-the-art facilities, MGIMS has created its own small history. The roots of the institute go back the time when Mahatma Gandhi left Sabarmati ashram and set up his ashram in Sevagram, a small village in Wardha town in Maharashtra. Gandhi directed the independence movement of the country from here. This has immortalized Sevagram in the history of the Nation.

In 1938, Dr. Sushila Nayar, then a young medical graduate, came to Sevagram to meet her brother Pyarelal who was Gandhi’s secretary and later became a link to Dr. Nayar’s association with the Mahatma. During her stay in Sevagram, she was highly influenced by Gandhi’s ideology. She also had her first encounter with community medicine in this village. “When cholera broke out in Sevagram, Gandhi nudged Dr. Nayar to tackle it. With no other medical practitioners to help her, she fought the disease almost singlehandedly. It was an experience that would continue into several such experiences which were to chisel her into a hero of public health,” recounts Dr. BS Garg, Secretary,

Shri Dhirubhai Mehta, Current President

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Kasturba Health Society. Dr. Nayar continued to stay for a year at Sevagram as Gandhi’s personal physician. This was a time when she learnt and imbibed the lessons of austerity and abstinence from Gandhi’s teachings.

In 1944, she started a small dispensary in the premises of the ashram at Sevagram. Her next step was going to be a leap for the village. The small clinic formed outside the ashram, in a guesthouse donated by G.D Birla, was to become a seed of a hospital in Sevagram. And duly in 1945, Kasturba Hospital was born. With its 15 beds, it began its service as maternity and children hospital. The hospital continued to grow under the care of the ashram from 1948 to 1954. Thereafter it was taken over by the Gandhi Smarak Nidhi (Mahatma Gandhi National Memorial Trust). On September 11, 1964, an independent registered society to manage the hospital was formed. This was Kasturba Health Society.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

In return for their hospitality, MGIMS extends its health care services free of cost to the adopted village for the duration of the social service camp

After Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, Dr. Nayar had joined Johns Hopkins University, USA. Returning in 1950, she set up a tuberculosis sanitarium in Faridabad.

Dr Nayar also headed the Gandhi Memorial Leprosy Foundation. In 1952, when the first election took place in our country, she entered politics. From 1952 to 1955, she served as Health Minister of Delhi State.

Subsequently, she became Speaker of the Delhi Vidhan Sabha. She was Union Health Minister again from 1962 to 1967. Dr. Garg remembers, “During her tenure as Health Minister, Dr. Nayar realized the difficulty of finding qualified doctors for posting in rural areas. Even though Primary Health Centres had been set up more villagers, there hardly were any doctors in these centres.” At this point of time Lal Bahadur Shastri while addressing Central Council of Health, suggested her to start medical colleges in rural areas. This would give budding doctors an insight into the health problems in rural areas and they would be less hesitant to serve in the villages.

In line with Lal Bahadur Shastri’s foresight, in 1969, and as a part of Gandhi Centenary Program, Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences was proposed to be set up on the soil of Sevagram. After the approval of the Planning Commission and with the blessings of the President

and the Prime Minister of the country the institute was formed. It was decided that the Government of India, the Maharashtra Government and the Kasturba Health society would share the expenditure on it in the proportion of 50:25:25. The rest is history.

In 2018-2019, a little over a million patients attended the outpatient department of the institute. More than 52,000 patients were admitted, and 5300 women were delivered during this period. Close to 115000 patients were examined in the diagnostic camps in the communities.

The department of Community Medicine monitors the activities of women’s self-help groups; Kisan Vikas Manch; Adolescent girls’ groups (Kishori Panchayat) and also participates in National health programs.

MGIMS also runs a 50-bed hospital in a tribal area 250 north west of Sevagramthis region has the highest rates of nutrition and maternal morbidity and mortality in Maharashtra.

Led by Dhirubhai Mehta, President of Kasturba Health Society, MGIMS has grown into an institute nursing the rural community with nominal fees.

Since 1991, the institute had asked all its graduates to work in rural areas and 80 non-governmental organizations have joined hand with MGIMS to fulfill

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this dream. “The Report of the Task Force on Medical Education of the National Rural Health Mission spells out the need to draw upon MGIMS Sevagram’s initiatives and experience in curriculum innovation and rural placement of its graduates. It suggests launching a participatory exercise with MGIMS and other like-minded institutions, so that national guidelines can be formulated. Several such visionary and innovative education strategies which started from the Institute have now been adopted by the government,” pinpoints Dr. Garg.

Today, MGIMS offers MCI recognized degrees and diplomas in 20 postgraduate disciplines and PhDs in nine

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Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Library at MGIMS is spread over 16000 sqft and stocks 18000 hardbound journals 26000 books and the library subscribes to 136 medical journals; 63 of them, international

Higher Education Digest December 2019

departments. It boasts of a well-equipped library which is a recognized resource library for HELLIS network in Western India. Two of its present faculty members, Dr. BC Harinath (1992), and Dr. (Mrs) P Narang (2002) are recipients of the National BC Roy Award.

Challenging the Odds Medical research in India is often critiqued for being poor in quality, and largely irrelevant. Priority areas are often neglected. An analysis of the research output from 20052014 from 579 Indian medical institutions and hospitals showed that the distribution of published research was

Dr. BS Garg, Secretary, Kasturba Health Society

highly skewed: only 25 (4.3 percent) institutions produced more than 100 papers annually, and their contribution comprised 40 percent of the country’s total research output. A little over half the medical colleges did not have a single publication during this period. Here too, MGIMS remains an exception.

“Beginning 1971 and until October 2019, MGIMS faculty and residents have published a total of 4038 research papers, 1370 (32 percent) of which are PubMed listed. The focus firmly remains on themes relevant to the local community such as tuberculosis, filariasis, coronary heart disease, cancers, diagnostic tests, immunology, medical education, and community-based issues. These papers have found their way into prestigious journals with high impact factors. Several papers have been cited more than 200 times and have been accorded high ranks on citation indices,” shares, Dr. Nitin Gangane, Dean of MGIMS. MGIMS exemplifies that even in a resource-limited setting, a teaching hospital can produce high-quality research. Being in a village has never been a hurdle in acquiring either funds or facilities. MGIMS has consistently received funding from the Indian Council of Medical Research, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Biotechnology, University Grants Commission, WHO, UNICEF, PATH, Fogarty AIDS Research and Training Program, Canadian Institute of Health Research, Population Health Research Institute, Canada, National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Heart Lung Blood Institute (NHLBI) and several such organizations. With the support from extramural funding agencies, some of the para-clinical

Dr. BS Garg MD & Ph D is secretary, Kasturba Health Society.

He is also Director, Dr. Sushila Nayar School of Public Health and Director- Professor of Community Medicine, MGIMS. He is also In-charge of WHO Collaborative Centre for Research & Training in Community Based Maternal, Newborn & Child Health. He has been awarded more than 60 research projects and has served as consultant to WHO (SEARO), DFID, CRS, USAID and various International and National Agencies on issues of public health concern. He has more than 130 publications to his credit.

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Dr. SP Kalantri, Director Professor of Medicine at MGIMS and Medical Superintendent of Kasturba Hospital Dr. SP Kalantri, MD, MPH is director professor of Medicine at MGIMS and Medical Superintendent of Kasturba Hospital. He obtained MD from Government Medical College in 1981 and joined MGIMS immediately. In 2004, he won Fogarty AIDS International research scholarship, and obtained MPH (Epidemiology) from the School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley. At MGIMS, Dr Kalantri heads an internal medicine unit, teaches medical students and residents, conducts clinical research and manages the hospital.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

departments have developed good research laboratories with sophisticated instruments and infrastructure, including a CPCSEA registered animal house, to conduct studies on applied immunology, cellular and molecular biology.

Dr. Gangane adds, “International editors often lament that medical research in our country not only lacks quality, but we are even headed in the wrong direction. The research is often “me too”, and largely irrelevant - it is not done in areas in which it is ‘needed’ in India (according to distribution, determinants and outcomes of diseases) like infectious diseases and mother and child health.”

MGIMS is an exception. Right from its inception, MGIMS has accorded the highest importance to medical research. Several disorders - tuberculosis, filariasis, and leprosy, for example - are prevalent in this area as are snake bites, strokes and heart attacks. MGIMS faculty have focused on these areas and have shown that they can ask the right questions and use appropriate study designs to find out answers to the problems they encounter every day.

“Worldwide, in medical schools, the phrase ‘Publish or Perish’ keeps on reminding young doctors and scientists that the ladder of academic success is best climbed by stepping on the rungs of publications. Despite its cynicism, the phrase makes an important point- if science is to grow, research and publications are important. Researchers at MGIMS- young and old- are conscious of this adage and strive hard to generate highquality research, year after year,” opines Dr. Gangane. At MGIMS, efforts have been made to build research aptitude of undergraduate students through provision of a capacity building workshops followed by participation in community-based groups projects under problem solving for better health initiative.

Students apply for the research studentship offered by the Indian Council of Medical Research short term studentship and the state medical university. The institute has a committee for the promotion of UG research as well.

Making Compassionate Medical Practitioners “At MGIMS, we are conscious that medical education needs to maintain the right balance in the eternal triangle of ‘quality, relevance and equity’. Our faculty and health professionals strive to ensure that their students adhere to professional norms which include altruism, compassion, empathy, accountability, honesty and integrity,” says Dr. SP Kalantri, Director Professor of Medicine at MGIMS and Medical Superintendent of Kasturba Hospital. Over the last five decades, the MGIMS faculty has been striving hard to imbibe the philosophy which makes it pursue excellence in academics, healthcare and research, more than mundane needs and money; and to maintain excellence in quality.

“All through their graduation and post-graduation, students are constantly exposed to the healthcare problems that the poor and villagers have to face. A stint in Gandhiji’s ashram; a fortnight in a village and another one in one of the peripheral healthcare centres sensitizes them to the healthcare problems of the rural communities,” pinpoints Dr. Kalantri. Each student is assigned five families of a village and they act as friends, philosophers and guides to these families. They learn the determinants of health and disease; how inequality and poverty shape the medical illnesses and the difficulties the students face to obtain affordable health care.

In 2004, MGIMS decided that the drug and device industry could no longer sponsor or support any conference, seminar or workshop in Sevagram. The organizers do not accept advertisements or money from drug companies for publishing the proceedings, souvenirs and flyers. MGIMS underwrites a substantial proportion

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Dr. Nitin Gangane, Dean Dr. Nitin Gangane is an alumnus of MGIMS. He passed his MBBS and MD (Pathology) from this institute and later completed DNB in Pathology and also Postgraduate diploma in hospital and health management. He is also PhD in Medical Sciences with orientation to epidemiology and public health from University of Umea, Sweden. He has been awarded YamagiwaYoshida Memorial International Cancer Study Grant by UICC to work at International agency for research on cancer (WHO), Lyon, France and NIDCR/NIH, Bethesda, USA.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

MGIMS believes that Gandhian values are relevant even today and it displays a fierce commitment to the advancement of medical education without losing the humane touch

of conference expenses. MGIMS has also banned medical representatives from marketing their products to the interns, residents and faculty. By insisting on highquality low-cost branded generic drugs, MGIMS has significantly cut down the cost of healthcare. The medical students thus learn the impact of the drug industry on the current medical practice and learn ethical ways to practice medicine that is affordable and appropriate. “We an advanced hospital information system that uses a network of 450 computers and helps healthcare professionals use digital information for patient care.

This strong emphasis on and exposure to digital technology helps young students and doctors use the electronic system for efficient patient care,� explains Dr. Kalantri. MGIMS students are also taught how to do health research, by a series of lectures, workshops and face-to-face mentorship programs. They apply for the short-term studentship offered by ICMR and wet their feet in the medical research. By getting a feel of medical research early on, these students learn how to critically appraise research papers and use them for the benefits of the individual patients and the community.

The Road Ahead In the 50 years of its existence, MGIMS has enrolled over 3600 students, and of them 3100 doctors have graduated from the hallowed premises of MGIMS. Several MGIMS alumni have won accolades for excellence in professional

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

The passion that the medial trainees imbibe at MGIMS makes them disciplined and willing to sacrifice other opportunities to better their career

and community leadership and service; many are known for their exemplary contributions to the academics and research or to humankind and have received national and international recognition.

Today, MGIMS is building a 30-bed palliative care centre that focuses on improving the quality of life of patients and caregivers and restore the dignity of death of patients fighting with end of life issues and struggling with pains and maladies that chronic diseases breed. By engaging local communities with the hospital, the institute shall ensure that care reaches people ‘where they are and when they need it’ and that healthcare for all has to be healthcare with all. MGIMS is also teaming with Pallium India to integrate the hospital-initiated home-based program and hope to improve patient functional status, patient and caregiver health-related quality-of-life, satisfaction with care, decrease hospital readmissions and total health care costs in the rural communities around Sevagram.

MGIMS has many more ambitious plans like providing advanced cancer care to rural patients, establishing outpatient Department complex that offers all outpatient services to patients under a common roof, launching MGIMS Health and Demographic Surveillance System, starting District early Intervention Center and Skills training at National Emergency Life support (NELS).

Higher Education Digest December 2019

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INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Leveraging Digital Marketing to Break into World Rankings

By Bejoy Suri, Co-Founder, E-Squared Bejoy Suri is the co-founder of E-squared LLP (www.esquared. in), an award-winning digital marketing firm focusing on the higher-education sector. E-squared works with leading Universities in India and globally helping them get maximum impact from their digital marketing efforts.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

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erhaps a less-understood criterion for the world’s major University Rankings is ‘Perception Score Weightage’, that is, how the academic and corporate worlds view a particular University. In the QS World Rankings and TIMES Higher Ed Rankings, the magnitude of institute reputation could be 3080%, depending on the type of ranking. The moot question is how Indian Universities can improve their Perception Score. The straight answer: Perceptions amongst academia and corporate will be built on how often and in what context they have heard about the University.

This is where digital marketing comes into the picture.

If University wants to significantly improve ‘perception’ with a three-year horizon, here is a list of five strategic things it should try to focus on: 1. Performance Recognition 2. Branding 3. Advertising 4. Social Media 5. Reputation Management Performance Recognition: A University needs to look at how it creates a regular flow of ‘positive news’ for its ‘Perception Stakeholders’, that is, members of academia and corporate world. Some interesting research work has been done in this context, like the one

by Reputation 100 Network on the type of news that can create maximum impact on academia globally. Based on this, an institute can design its content strategy for ‘positive news’.

A good example is the relatively new SRM-AP University. The University’s communication page regularly shares a wide variety of content covering the work of faculty members, the institute-industry interface, and many more. The key is to create a regular flow of relevant information.

Branding: To build maximum brand recall, a University needs to have a branding theme that brings out the institute’s USP. The branding theme should also be consistent across

stakeholders and platforms. For example, in 2019, Shiv Nadar University launched the campaign ‘Change the Course’. The campaign brought out how students and faculty members are benefitting from Shiv Nadar University’s focus on multidisciplinary education and research work. To know more, use the hashtag #ChangeTheCourse on social media platforms.

Advertising: Most of the Advertising money spent by institutes today is directed at lead generation, with very little earmarked for branding and influencer marketing. A University should try to set aside 5-15% of the total advertising budget for pure online branding campaigns. For instance, boosting faculty posts on LinkedIn to reach out to an audience of relevant academics around the world. Interesting research work has been done on advertising that can positively impact perception.

Social Media: Several institutes are now able to do a good job of bringing out basic posts on their Facebook pages. However, a lot more can be done to strategize campaigns across social media properties that can become branded properties.

For instance, some time back FLAME University launched an engaging campaign – #FLAMEInfluencerSeries – on LinkedIn to highlight faculty research and thought leadership.

Reputation Management: At the end of the day, the content being created, the campaigns being carried out, and related initiatives should come up on search results. When a stakeholder searches the name of the institute on Google, is the page full of links to education portals or the institute’s properties on Facebook, Wikipedia, blogs, etc.? Focused SEO activities can ensure that the institute gets precedence when search results get displayed.

These set of five activities, in totality that can help an institute in creating a high brand recall amongst academia and corporate and positively influence perception rankings.

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ndia in its near future would be a nation with the largest youth workforce surpassing China and the Indian ruling classes are quite upbeat about it. Representing over 9 percent of the population, Maharashtra will be a major beneficiary of this young workforce. As per the reports from the industry, the endeavors in the State, driven by the vision of equipping 45 million people with employable skills by 2022, Maharashtra is marching on the path of convergence of human capital and employment opportunities.

Indeed, Maharashtra has always been at the forefront of evolving new paradigms, which involve new thought processes. Existence of the largest youth force, rapidly growing economy, the emergence of knowledge as a key driver for the economy and the need to quickly bridge the aspiration gaps are all very compelling reasons for accelerating pointers to urgent actions in respect of allencompassing quality higher education in India. Today, Maharashtra is well-positioned to offer both access and better employability with this very strong infrastructure

when compared to some other states of India. The key is to invest in making the entire infrastructure work together as a single eco-system that can bring aspirations of youth and ambitions of business and industry together, to use knowledge, research and development are needed. This maybe done with strong government support through adequate funding, positive regulation, reforms through legislative intervention, investments in ICT, well-articulated and controlled private participation initiatives.

In this issue, we celebrate the success of Maharashtra’s higher education system by identifying ‘10 Must -Watch Colleges and Institutions in Maharashtra’ that are reinventing various disciplines of education to prepare the young generation to be the leaders of the 21st century.

We sincerely hope that our efforts to feature the premier institutions imparting the best facilities for research, innovation, placements, and entrepreneurship will help students and faculty members from all over the country in their educational journey.

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Institute Name Deviprasad Goenka Management College Of Media Studies

City

Specialization

Mumbai

Mass Media

DKTE Society’s Textile & Engineering Institute

Ichalkaranji

Engineering

H.R. College of Commerce and Economics

Mumbai

Commerce and Economics

International School of Management and Research

Pune

Management

Mumbai

Engineering

Sevagram

Medicine

S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research

Mumbai

Management

Sir J. J. College of Architecture

Mumbai

Architecture

Pune

Management

Mumbai

Management

K. J. Somaiya College of Engineering Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Science

Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance

WE School

Higher Education Digest December 2019

D.K.T.E. SOCIETY’S TEXTILE AND ENGINEERING INSTITUTE

Knitting the Future Talents 32

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he history of Ichalkaranji, a small town located about 45 kms south of Kolhapur in the state of Maharashtra, is a fascinating one.

Known as the ‘Manchester of Maharashtra,’ Ichalkaranji could be deemed as one of the premier textile hubs in the country, knitting the fabric not the just for the domestic market, but for Italian and French companies. The textile industry in Ichalkaranji was started with a mere single unit in 1904 and today the city hosts over one lakh power looms, giving employment opportunities to around 1.2 lakhs people directly and another one lakh in ancillary industries.

However, till 1980, Ichalkaranji lacked educational institutes that can produce technically trained manpower, despite the phenomenal growth of its textile industry.

That was the time when different co-operation organizations from Ichalkaranji decided to collaborate under the leadership of Mr. K.B. Awade (Ex. M.P.) to form an educational society with a view to start colleges to cater to education in the field of Textiles, Engineering, Management, Medicines and others so as to provide education facilities in various fields to students of this rural area and also to support the growth of industry by providing technically qualified professionals.

The education society thus formed was named after Late Shri. Dattajirao Kadam, an ardent social worker and veteran co-operator of this town. The Dattajirao Kadam Education society as its first step established the Textile

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Dr. P.V. Kadole, Director Joined in 1990 as the Professor of Textile Technologies, Dr. Kadole has been working

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with D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute for the past 29 years. Strong information technology professional with a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) focused in Engineering from Shivaji University, Dr. Kadole became the Director of D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute in 2011. A skilled professional in Academic Administration, Negotiation, Planning & Execution, Analytical Skills, and Textiles, Dr. Kadole holds Fellowship Member of The Textile Institute, UK and is also a member of the Global Engineering Deans Council (GEBC), USA.

and Engineering Institute in 1982, which now known as D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute.

“Since its humble inception, the institute has grown multi-folds and has branched into various disciplines.

Now, we offer 11 Degree Programs namely Textile Technology, Man Made Textile Technology, Textile Plant Engineering, Textile Chemistry, Fashion Technology, Electronics Engineering, Mechanical engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Electronics and Telecommunication, Civil Engineering and Electrical Engineering. We also offer six Post Graduate programmers in Textile Engineering, Textile Chemistry, Technical textiles, Electronics Engineering, Mechanical engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Master of Business Administration (MBA) in general and in Textiles,” shares Dr. P.V. Kadole, Director, D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and

Higher Education Digest December 2019

Engineering Institute. Today, the institute is a recognized research center for Ph.D. in Textile Engineering, Electronics Engineering and Mechanical engineering and Computer Science & Engineering. It has over 3700 students studying in various courses and about 215 highly qualified and experienced faculty members and 13000 alumni are the strength of the institute.

An ‘Autonomous Institution’ since the academic year 2016-2017, D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute has accredited with A+ Grade (3.53 CGPA)

by National Assessment and Accreditation Council.

The Institute is also holding a prestigious ISO 90012015 certification and has emerged as the Winner of ‘Best Industry-Linked Engineering Institute’ for the year 2015 and 2017 in a nation-wide survey conducted jointly by All India Council for Technical Education and

Confederation of Indian Industries. “Our institute has been identified to act as “Mentor Institution” under AICTE’s Margdarshak Scheme and as a “Potential Mentor” by UGC under PARAMARSH scheme to promote Quality and Accreditation. We have also been honored as ‘The Best Educational Institute for Textile Engineering’ by Ministry of Textiles, GoI, in 2013,” proudly shares Dr. Kadole.

An Institute of Difference D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute may not be a metro-based college, but it has managed to collaborate with 21 Foreign Universities from the US, Germany, Italy, China, Czech Republic, South Korea, Africa, Bangladesh and many more. These MoUs help the institute to carry out activities like Student Exchange programs, Faculty

Exchange Programs and Joint Researches. As a result, the institute conducts many prestigious R&D projects worth Rs.55 crores and it is equipped with excellent infrastructure in terms of spacious buildings, ultra-modern machinery and equipment in laboratories, cozy and library. “The philosophy of our institute is teaching and learning through research. Therefore, since the inception of this institute, research is strongly encouraged,” opines Dr. Kadole.

The institute has been deputing its faculty members to reputed institutes to pursue higher qualification. So far, 40 faculty members have completed their Ph.D and rest of the faculty are pursuing their Ph.D. “Our faculty members have filed many patents and regularly publishing their research in reputed journals. State-of-the-art equipment,

MREC Final Year U.G engineering students group winning ‘Gold Trophy’ of the ‘Mitsubishi Electric Cup2019’ Competition conducted by Mitsubishi Electric, Japan held at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies (MRIIRS) at Faridabad campus from 14th to 16th February 2019.

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The institute has strong linkages with industries and this is acknowledged by both AICTE and CII by awarding prestigious award” Best Industry Linked Engineering Institute” two times

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centre of excellence in Nonwovens, funded projects from government and industry, and industry supported laboratories are available here for undertaking research,” shares Dr. Kadole. At D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute, faculty members and students are closely working together on many projects. They also regularly participate in the national and international seminars/conferences to understand the latest happenings.

Dr. Kadole pinpoints, “An institute cannot separate itself from research, as the teaching and research go hand-in-hand. We always support the students’ activities leading to innovation and creativity.”

D.K.T.E. Society’s Textile and Engineering Institute encourages students to participate in all the cocurricular and extracurricular events in the institute and outside the institute. Students have bagged numerous prizes and awards in these events and are felicitated by the management. Recently, final year U.G engineering students group won ‘Gold Trophy’ of the ‘Mitsubishi Electric Cup-2019’ Competition. “It was euphoric moment for our students who grabbed first prize which includes a cash prize of Rs.1,00,000 along with fully sponsored Plant Visit to Mitsubishi Electric, Japan for the team of students and faculty members,” proudly shares Dr. Kadole.

Today, a significant number of D.K.T.E alumni are entrepreneurs and are also successful in their ventures. To promote entrepreneurship skills in students, the institute has established a separate Entrepreneurship Development cell, organizes expert lectures/seminars and workshops for students.

The institute also has a Technology Business incubation center with all the facilities to support students to start their ventures. “Our curriculum has entrepreneurship component and imparts necessary knowledge required for entrepreneurship,” states Dr. Kadole. Khator Technical Textiles, Mumbai, S.K. Fabrics, Ahmedabad, U.P Processors, Malegaon, Jain Textiles, Bhiwandi, Tara Rani Processors, Ichalkaranji and Sangamesh Exports, Erode are some of the ventures started by the D.K.T.E. students. “Lifelong learning ability, Self-motivated, Analytical and problemsolving skills, Leader and team member and Societal responsibility are the qualities of our graduates. In the coming years, we would like to strengthen partnership with premier national and global universities. We would also be working on to strengthen research and development in our institute,” conclude Dr. Kadole.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

DEVIPRASAD GOENKA MANAGEMENT COLLEGE OF MEDIA STUDIES

Facilitating the Rise of

New Age Media 38

Higher Education Digest December 2019

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report titled “Fueling India’s Skill Revolution” published by Accenture says that India may have to forgo as much as $1.97 trillion in gross domestic product (GDP) growth promised by investment in intelligent technologies over the next decade if the country fails to bridge the skill gap. Industry raising its concern about the prevailing skill gap in the country is not a prime-time news anymore. Dr. Mukesh Sharma, Dean of Deviprasad Goenka Management College of Media Studies (DGMC) opines, “Good education in India comes with a price tag. Majority of Indians are rural based. They cannot afford to spend on expensive education. So, when they get educated, they are hardly skilled in any sense. According to a survey conducted by the Nasscom, of all the graduates who pass through universities each year, only 26 percent are suitable to seek employment.”

As per the government reports published in the public domains, around 119 million additional skilled work forces will be required by 24 sectors such as construction, retail, transportation logistics, automobile and handloom by 2022. Out of this, nearly one million skilled workers will be needed for the Media and Entertainment industry. “Academia and industry are two important columns of a robust economy. A healthy collaboration between the two will enable innovation, growth in the education system and generate an employment-ready workforce,” says Dr. Sharma. While, the corporate companies in the developed countries reach out to academic institutions to innovate their work, Indian industry relies mostly on its own R&D. In order to bridge this gap, DGMC is tying up with media houses to provide them a feeder which is abreast and in tune with the needs of Media & Entertainment sector.

“Program design development based on the industry expectations, customer requirements, technology and

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DGMC has Colour Grading Studio to give students the practical realworld training on workflows, basic color theory, grading approaches and techniques.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

value-added essentials is an ongoing activity at DGMC. Our flagship program, PGDM, is designed and developed taking into consideration the changing global scenario, industry essentials as well as regular suggestions from the Board of Studies and Academic Council,” explains Dr. Sharma. DGMC’s Board of Studies is comprised of experts from industry and academia and meets on regular basis. Suggestions of the Board for Studies are taken to next level, the Academic Council. Dr. Sharma adds, “In the Academic Council the program architecture, evaluation and assessment pattern, addition / modification/deletion of courses are discussed. Since the curriculum is evolving, it is possible that the program architecture may undergo change from time to time.”

As an institution that prepares young talents for the new age media, DGMC has been very careful and creative in the process of structuring its curricula. “All work and no play make jack a dull boy. The entire

academic calendar of all our courses at DGMC is intersperse with M & E related events, seminars, workshops & industry visits to TV stations, Production houses & Ad agencies.

All these visits enrich them with new ideas & learning,” shares Dr. Sharma.

Though the college is proud to be associated with several media and Entertainment related activities, the students of DGMC have excelled themselves in intercollegiate theatre activities. This year, the DGMC students won more than 25 awards in various categories of theatre art.

“Unlike most of the media colleges, DGMC has a wonderful studio set with ultra-modern post production facilities. Regular Master classes by the film makers are organized,” says Dr. Sharma. DGMC organize an annual media festival called Mumbai Media Champs, which is purely a student driven initiative.

Nearly 50 colleges participate in MMC, which gives them a platform to show case their creative talent.

Another student driven initiative,

Cinevoyage Film festival, is an annual competitive feature, wherein the students make short films on socially relevant issues to display their strength vis-à-vis understanding of CSR, which can bring about a positive change in the society. Their work is judged by the who’s who of cinema, media stalwarts and people who have created an impact socially and brought about a constructive change in society

Today, most of the DGCM graduates are film makers with a large chunk aspires to be entrepreneurs. “To achieve this, they need to do freelancing work on different projects at a time.

This year most of our PGDM students got paid internship as well some of them were full time recruited by the media industry,” states Dr. Sharma. The reputed corporate houses visiting DGMC with offer letters are BBC Studio, Epic Channel, Contiole pictures,

Dr. Mukesh Sharma, Dean of Academics Armed with a Ph.D. degree in Journalism & Mass Communication, and a master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism, Dr. Mukesh Sharma spearheaded the Cinema & Broadcast Industry as administrator, programmer and marketing expert as a Civil

The proximity of the DGMC campus to the hub of film and television production activity makes it a preferred choice among the student community.

Servant for over 30 years. He has produced & directed feature films and numerous TV programmes, live and recorded, and received multiple National Awards.

Dr. Mukesh Sharma also conceptualized, produced & directed successful socially empowering Television events for Doordarshan over a period of 17 years. Currently, Dr. Mukesh Sharma is engaged as the Dean of Deviprasad Goenka Management College of Media Studies, Mumbai and Expert Member at the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited.

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The shooting studio in DGMC is a hub of activity where students explore their creative potential, learn and experiment with newer methods of film making.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

Dream Valt Media, Essel Vision production, UBS forums, Victor Tango Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. and Alt Balaji to name a few.

Since the Media & Entertainment industry is all about story telling by using different aids of Film, TV and digital mediums, the students of DGCM have the opportunity to become well verse in Cinematography, Editing, Direction, script writing, Sound design, color correction, shooting ads & programs and other facets of media production. The PGDM students of DGCM get well verse in the art of media buying, media selling, media branding, media measuring, and media planning and so on. “We are a young and growing media academy. To ensure that we do not lose out, our paramount endeavour is to provide excellent all-round support to our students and to consolidate our position. It is easier to climb on the top it’s difficult to stay there. Finally, as the Dean (academics) of DGMC, my motto is to work with the students, work for the students and work on the students,” concludes Dr. Sharma.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT & RESEARCH (ISMR)

Making Global Thinkers 44

Higher Education Digest December 2019

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une, the second-largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai, offers a lower cost of living and easy access to talented employees compared to other tech centers like Bangalore or Delhi. Over the past few years, the city’s tech ecosystem has gained increasing interest and developing a solid network of mentors, investors, and other supporting organizations.

International School of Management & Research (ISMR), one of the premier business schools in Pune, has been an excellent contributor to the thriving business environment of the city. ISMR emphasizes collaboration over competition, resulting in a supportive environment that encourages students to forge close friendships and extend their learning beyond the classroom. This unique atmosphere develops thoughtful leaders who strive not only to succeed in business but also to have a positive impact on the community.

“I believe that certain underlying principles are the core of ISMR which will make sure its continuing pole position. In an attempt to educate leaders of tomorrow, we draw upon reserves of goodwill among the diaspora of our alumni, network among recruiters and potential students and we proudly flaunt the commitment of our faculty and staff,” says Jaikishan Bhutada, Founder President, International School of Management & Research. Promoted

by Shri Vighneshwara Education Society, an Indian rooted cluster committed to innovative growth, ISMR B-School team speaks the new language of success in the field of management education, leadership and entrepreneurship.

It is anchored by an extraordinary force of dedicated and eminent leadership belonging to various sectors of corporate and academics. Being an emerging leader in management education, ISMR continues to search for opportunities to expand in the various landscapes to empower the youth.

Bhutada shares, “We have introduced an exemplar mentoring and tutoring system about a decade ago. It created new waves in the educational field with its radical and ground-breaking methodologies and became an intellectual destination drawing inspired students.” Today,

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46 Jaikishan Bhutada, Founder President

Higher Education Digest December 2019

ISMR represents a constellation of academicians, mentors, trainers, corporate partners, alumni and the young students, becoming a center of excellence. “We strive to nurture potential business managers on three pillars; skills that should match Data-Driven approach, decision-making skills with a data-driven and logical approach, and ability to enhance continuous learning,” adds Bhutada.

ISMR provides students with the real-life situations to apply management principles and guide them throughout the learning journey to become professionals in a particular skill set. “The skillset identification is the most crucial element of this method and that is made easy during their internships and live projects. We build their approach in understanding business problems with entrepreneurs’ vision,” pinpoints Bhutada. ISMR enables students to face these well-defined problems with long-term strategic decisions by applying scientific data-driven approach.

For instance, ISMR provides handholding support to the students in analyzing industry through case studies, organization study programs and direct interaction with industry stalwarts. “We believe that education and learning are more important at the time of application of knowledge. Thus, we reinforce student’s capability in increasing grasping of new business terminologies with curious mindsets. This is in accordance with the third pillar as mentioned above to inculcate life-long learning,” explains Bhutada.

47 Dr. Nilesh Bhutada, Managing Trustee

In Tune with the Industry Bhutada and his team at ISMR consider industry and academic collaboration as the essence of management learning. He opines, “It is the soul of management education. Industry tie ups enable predication of current trends in management practice and enable help us to give a demonstration of industry practices, which supports student learning.” ISMR approaches industry tie-ups not only to secure placements but to expand the area of live learning experience for the students. The institute has fully-fledged resources completely dedicated to enabling industry tie-ups and interaction. In building corporate relations, ISMR puts its efforts for long-term mutual collaborations.

“We organize guest lectures of prominent industry practitioners and also provide memberships

of the various management associations to the students with an objective to streamline students in management arena,” shares Bhutada.

With an active industry-industry interface, ISM has been able to offer excellent placement opportunities to its students. Augmenting the placement opportunities at ISMR is its dynamic Corporate Relations Department (CRD) that works with the primary objective of sharpening student’s skills in opportunity evaluation and helping them to understand the task, decisions and knowledge that are required to turn job opportunity into steppingstone. The CRD is responsible for industry interface, Summer Internship and Final Placements activities at ISMR. “We have developed a rigorous structured training on enhancing on employability skills to ensure high-end best MBA placements in

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Dr. Nilesh Bhutada receiving best PGDM College Award from Dheeshjith Vattaparambil, Chief Information Officer, Infosys, during 2017 National Education Awards conducted by 24MRC Network.

different industry verticals,” pinpoints Bhutada. ISMR has been able to fetch more than 90 percent placement over the past few years. The prominent recruitment partners are; Allstate, Eclerx, Bajaj, IDFC First Bank, Indusind Bank, Kingfish Consultants, Jaro Education, CCD, MRCC Software and Justdial.

On the other side, ISMR gives special emphasis to the startup movement and entrepreneurship environment. Bhutada says, “We have created an ecosystem of entrepreneurship by having an Incubation Centre at the campus. Entrepreneurship subjects have been given full credits. We also host the journeys of various entrepreneurs at the campus. We are a member of TIE Pune, Kirloskar Incubation Centre, Ecoexist India.” NSDM India is one of the successful ventures started by the students of ISMR. NSDM now provides classroom training and online digital marketing courses to impart practical internet marketing skills.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

Today, ISMR is on a mission to be recognized as one of the premier management schools in India. To reach that stage, the institute is following a three-pronged approach: ASPIRE, ACQUIRE and ACHIEVE. Bhutada explains, “We will ASPIRE to grow our capacity, but do so in a thoughtful and strategic manner. ACQUIRE an unshakeable commitment to foster a diverse and inclusive community of learners, driven by values and energized by the meritocracy that should mark our institute. ACHIEVE a high-performance work environment by emphasizing and supporting a climate of autonomy, stretch, and teamwork.” While the world is witnessing global churn and unrest, a new hope is rising in India. “We are embarked on a fresh round of liberalization one that will take our economy to a higher peak. Let’s join hands to leverage this fresh liberalization. Join ISMR, where the sun never sets,” concludes Bhutada.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Edtech Leading to Transparency in the Education System

By Beas Dev Ralhan, CEO & Co-Founder, Next Education India Beas Dev Ralhan is the Chief Executive Officer of Next Education India Private Limited, a technology-driven education enterprise, headquartered in Hyderabad.

Beas co-founded this educational organization in 2007 along with Raveendranath Kamath, an IIT Kharagpur alumnus. Prior to Next Education, Beas worked as an entrepreneur, investment manager and consultant for around a decade in firms such as FreshPixel India Pvt Ltd, Retort Software India Pvt Ltd, PartyGaming LLC, and Infosys. In recognition of his immense contribution to the K–12 education segment, CII (Southern Regional) bestowed upon him the ‘Emerging Entrepreneur’ award in 2015. He also received the Indian Education Leader award at the 7th World Education Summit, 2016. Under Beas’ leadership, Next Education has also begun to secure a foothold in Bangladesh and Middle East and is now looking at expansions in Africa.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

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s offline academic operations are giving way to online methods of managing the day-to-day academic affairs, schools are being transformed by a series of developments in educational technology. Often, the latest innovations are hailed as milestones by beneficiaries who foresee the advantages offered by the digital age. Amidst these new developments, the issue of transparency has become the main concern of administrators, parents, students and teachers across the globe.

In the broadest sense of the word, transparency entails not only the critical disclosure of information via different media but also places

to keep them posted about the academic and administrative needs of a school. ● Data accessibility becomes cumbersome for different stakeholders with manual procedures in place. ● Principals can’t monitor teacher effectiveness in the absence of real-time indicators. As such, they rely on student outcomes to measure it. ● It becomes an exacting task for teachers and principals to assess the performance of students throughout an academic year and ascertain their learning gaps without real-time analytic tools.

When academic operations are maintained offline in a school, there occurs a multitude of problems that can disrupt the normal functioning of its day-to-day operations

a premium on honest and open communication between the various stakeholders of a school.

Along with transparency comes the issue of accountability, which makes each stakeholder take individual responsibility for their actions.

Problems faced in the context of offline academic operations When academic operations are maintained offline in a school, there occurs a multitude of problems that can disrupt the normal functioning of its day-to-day operations.

Let’s take a look at some of these problems: ● Communication between different stakeholders becomes extremely difficult when there is no online integrated platform

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● Teachers can’t share educational resources with students and track their usage in various stages of teaching and learning on a single platform. ● Parents lack real-time information about what is being taught in the class on a day-today basis and the homework assigned to their wards.

Such problems call for the implementation of robust technological measures which can warrant transparency in the education system. Instituting long-term and sustainable technological solutions not only streamlines the myriad operations of a school but also facilitates transparency in most of the work done in schools.

Higher Education Digest December 2019

Today, transparency has become one of the key factors for parents in determining a good school for their wards

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How edtech products are promoting transparency With the growing acceptance of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and learning management systems (LMS), the barriers in the way of promoting openness and transparency within the school ecosystem have been broken down to a large extent. Solutions such as NextERP and NextLMS designed by Next Education merit attention due to the range of functionalities offered by them. ERP is an administrative tool that provides accurate, real-time electronic data on systems and processes integral to the day-to-day running of a school. On the other hand, LMS is an academic management tool for the creation, delivery, documentation, reporting and tracking of educational resources. Both these solutions allow for transparent communication between the various stakeholders, viz. principals, parents, students and teachers, by keeping each of them in a common communication loop.

Let’s take a look at some of the advantages offered by ERP and LMS related to transparency. ● ERP has a security enhancement feature which maps the entire layout of a school, plans visitor entry and tracks personnel via CCTV. ● ERP’s data protection feature allows the encryption of all personal and confidential files and documents of different stakeholders. ● ERP’s strong access control policies avert risks of identity thefts. For instance, if a parent wants to access any information concerning their child’s academic

Higher Education Digest December 2019

performance, they have to verify their identity by either entering their child’s date of birth or any other specific information the system asks for. ● LMS provides an online integrated platform wherein teachers can view their lesson plans and effectively track students’ consumption of educational resources; parents can get timely updates on course progress and homework; principals can monitor course progress and teacher effectiveness, and students can get instantaneous feedback on assessments and their learning progress. ● LMS lets principals and teachers track the learning cycle of students for an entire academic year. This helps them identify their learning gaps and propose corrective measures. ● LMS provides accurate, detailed, real-time reports on the academic performance of students. Its predictive analytics helps parents, principles and teachers identify students who are at risk of underperforming. ● LMS lets parents, principals, students and teachers be part of an online community of learners and educators wherein they can exchange ideas and opinions on different matters.

Today, transparency has become one of the key factors for parents in determining a good school for their wards. With concerns over safety rising, parents expect schools to maintain transparency in most of its operations.

Schools, too, have started taking initiatives to adopt a transparent system to foster accountability and weed out malpractices likely to occur in a technology-driven age.

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Higher Education Digest December 2019

SYMBIOSIS SCHOOL OF BANKING AND FINANCE

Presenting Game-Changing Avenues In BFSI Education

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n the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0, those working in the banking and finance world have realized that they need to reach the balance of providing customers the technology needed to stay competitive without losing that “personal touch”. Banks and other financial institutions are looking for eligible graduates who can achieve this balance and sync with the rapidly changing industry requirements with ease. To materialize such exceptional professionals, educational institutions must ensure a robust curriculum that caters to the “now” requirements of the industry. The students must be provided with an avenue to imbibe qualities that can reflect well in a professional setting. This could be one reason why industrial giants like Axis Bank, JP Morgan Chase, ICICI Bank and Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, HDFC Bank, Capital First, Federal Bank and Aeon Credit Services flock towards Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance (SSBF), offering SSBF graduates with profiles like Global Finance and Business Management Analyst, Relationship Manager, Wealth Manager, Credit Manager, Operation, Sales MSE, Channel Officer, Retail Branch Banking, etc.

If this does not prove that SSBF is a game-changer in its domain, then maybe this will: Mr. Hardik Mehta, an SSBF alumni, is now holding a managerial position in the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Established in 2010, SSBF caters exclusively to the needs of the Banking, Finance and Insurance (BFSI) sector for the students aspiring to make a high-flying career in this domain. Always mindful of the industry requirements, SSBF was, till 2013, centered around shaping reliable professionals by offering full-fledged residential MBA in Banking and Finance to cater to the Public sector banks.

After 2013, according to directions of honorable Bombay High Court, SSBF shifted its focus from public sector banks to private sector companies in the BFSI domain.

Around-The-Year Updated Curriculum A constituent of Symbiosis International (Deemed University) (SIU), SSBF offers a full time, two-year residential MBA program in Banking and Finance that focuses on preparing students to be industry-ready professionals who stand out in the BFSI sector. Understanding that there are various roles in the BFSI industry like Financial and Business Analytics to Credit Management and Asset and Wealth Management, SSBF changes its program structure yearly, thus making

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Dr. Manisha Ketkar, PhD, FCMA, MBS, Director and Professor, Symbiosis School of Banking and Finance (SSBF), Pune A Commerce graduate and a Fellow Cost Accountant (FCMA), Dr. Manisha Ketkar has completed her Master’s in Business Studies (MBS) from the University of Pune.

She has done her PhD in ‘Study of supply risk management practices’ with Symbiosis International (Deemed University) under the guidance of Dr. O. S. Vaidya from IIM Lucknow.

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An expert in arenas like Cost & Management Accounting and Supply Chain Management, Dr. Ketkar brings to the table over 29 years of experience. She has presented papers in International Conferences and to her credit has published several papers.

Having handled the operations of a business unit of a pharmaceutical multinational for over 16 years, she joined the Symbiosis family in 2006. Her passion for education can be seen in her interactive teaching approach. She is well-known for her innovative approach to improvements, from student related matters to process reengineering.

it in students and professionals of the BFSI Sector by developing their competencies, skills, and values by offering an environment conducive to research and innovation, internationalization, and fostering sustainable business strategy. It also intends to provide a teaching-learning environment that appreciates and encourages socio-cultural diversity amongst students, faculty, and staff. Aiming to contribute to community development by spreading financial awareness and education to the economically deprived section of the society, SSBF also works towards ensuring the holistic development of students. Preparing students to confidently face the conundrums that Industry revolution will bring, SSBF has a trusted team of faculty experts who have not only served in the industry but are

Higher Education Digest December 2019

also committed to excellence in teaching and research.

These experts ensure that the classroom environment is interactive where participative learning permits a free flow of ideas between faculty and students.

Since Banking and Finance is a specialized domain, the role of faculty member does not limit to taking classes but one that of a facilitator, imparting and building the theoretical foundation of the field and stimulating learners to think critically in practice. Given the number of qualified and experienced academicians that SSBF has appointed as its teachers, there exists a healthy faculty-student ratio. The focus of mentoring at SSBF is on psychological support, advancement in the academic career and professional development of the mentee.

Established in 2010, SSBF caters exclusively to the needs of the Banking, Finance and Insurance (BFSI) sector for the students aspiring to make a high-flying career in this domain

Impelling Student Exchange Programs Along the same lines, SSBF has in place student exchange programs with international universities like Berlin School of Economics and Law (BSEL), Germany; Macquarie University, Australia; Leibniz University, Hannover; University of Bremen, Germany; Steinbeis University, Germany; and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. SSBF’s semester exchange programs expose students to multifaceted learning approaches and generate interest in crosscultural and global issues unleashing them to new knowledge horizons. Besides, SSBF’s student organization, Corporate Interface Team, invites industry experts to deliver guest lectures to share their knowledge and experience on varied topics such as Data Analytics, Growth and prospects in the banking industry, Cryptocurrency, Financial Journalism, and Budget Analysis, etc. which helps students to keep themselves updated.

Similarly, SSBF also has signed an MoU with BAIF for the field visit where students interact with the community in the rural areas and understand ongoing projects, facets of microfinance and their business model for livelihood. SSBF has also partnered with the Association of International Wealth Management of India (AIWMI) to offer the prestigious global certification- Certified Credit Research Analyst (CCRA). The tie-ups maintained by SSBF further help in facilitating the teaching. “We are an educational partner to Bajaj Finserv, as a part of which, they offer a certification program in Banking, Finance, Insurance and Business Communication for fresh graduates and final year students who are seeking jobs after their graduation. SSBF has

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developed content for all the modules and conducts Train The Trainer programs to run this certification program PAN India. SSBF has designed the curriculum and deliver the program in batches. We have developed training and student manuals for Certificate Program in Banking, Finance, and Insurance (CPBFI). SSBF runs this program along with Bajaj Finserv under their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) head,” says Dr. Manisha.

Likewise, SSBF has also collaborated with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to develop content for National University Student’s Skill development, a project initiated by TISS to increase the employability of the university students by imparting knowledge and skills. SSBF has also conducted training programs for Bank of Maharashtra, Union Bank of India, Dena Bank, Bank of Baroda and Yes Bank Recognizing And Empowering The Deserving Providing avenues for underprivileged students to pursue their career, SSBF has signed an MoU with CRIF High Mark for giving scholarships worth Rs. 1,00,000 to deserving students based on their academic

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performance and the family’s financial condition. SSBF also recognizes outstanding students and award them with trophies for their achievements.

Moving forward, SSBF plans to provide more industry-relevant certifications to the students, upgradation of program structure based on technological changes and industry needs and will continue to organize sessions of industry experts. “We are in the process of designing Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) for effective dissemination of finance knowledge across varied segments. SSBF also would like to establish itself as a distinct training provider for conducting various domain, managerial and leadership programs for corporates in the BFSI sector. SSBF is in the process of signing an MoU with the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF) and other corporates for conducting training programs for aspiring minds and upskilling existing human capital in the BFSI industry,” says Dr. Manisha. Soon, SSBF would also be seen organizing BFSI Leadership Summit to showcase the capabilities and training infrastructure to the top leadership in the BFSI sector.

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ACADEMIC VIEW

The Process of Making ‘New Engineers’ Dr. Yajulu Medury, Director, Mahindra Ecole Centrale Dr. Yajulu Medury is an acclaimed academician and a seasoned professional with more than three decades of opulent Academic and Administrative experience. Before joining MEC, Dr. Medury was the Vice Chancellor of Bennett University at Greater Noida, U.P. While in Bennett University, Dr. Medury developed academic partnerships with Georgia Tech for Engineering, Johnson Business Cornell University for Management, Cornell Law School for Law, Babson College USA for Entrepreneurship and others. Dr. Medury has a BTech Honours degree from IIT, Kharagpur and did his MS as well as PhD in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA.

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R

Global collaborations, Research, Faculty focus and Industry connect will help the educators to bring in Industry ready curriculum and lead to up-skilling the engineering students.

esearch is a focus area across the globe, but not so much in India. It is not because institutions do not want to, but because of archaic government regulations that require a large number of courses that engineering students need to take to graduate. This leaves very little time to focus on research.

However, things are changing and most private institutions, including Mahindra Ecole Centrale. We are paying due regard to including research as a part of the curriculum itself.

To ensure that we do not lag behind, we need to be innovative in our curriculum, focus on research and incentivize learning. Once we can do these - which hopefully the new Higher Education Bill will look at - I see no reason why we will not witness a much larger focus on research. When your focus is research, the issue of lack of quality faculty does not arise. Naturally, as a head start, you need to recruit faculty with excellent background and proven track record in research at reputed institutions – both in India and abroad.

Faculty development is an integral part of any education system and we firmly believe that the quality of education can only improve if more faculty are encouraged to pursue research besides teaching through the likes of modest seed research funding and help in their applying for research funding from external funding agencies. We at MEC have this system already in place and since we want only the best. We continue to periodically review their progress in research. Our students are encouraged even at the undergraduate level to participate in the research projects that our faculty pursues. We are looking at possibility of setting up MTech and PhD programs soon to enable the goal to focus on research and high-quality training therein. This should hopefully also add to the available talent pool.

Our research focus ensures that we have live projects for the faculty and students to work on and therefore handson experience is a given. With the large number of research projects come along a larger number of research scholars who grow from subject matter experts, to researchers and transform to specialists in academics. In addition, industry-connect helps in getting the best practitioners together who can teach, mentor and guide. Faculty grants and a mandatory focus on producing quality research papers in peer reviewed journals also help.

Getting good quality research projects to work on can be a deterrent for other institutions to focus on research. We have been lucky that our constant focused approach to research and putting in place the requisite infrastructure and labs have reaped us great dividends. We are proud to be working with local and global Government and Corporate Research projects.

Participation in local and global seminars, research papers and events can also help in building a marketable and visible brand.

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Once the institutions are a brand, their intellectual capital will obviously be sought after and can prove to be an asset to brand building exercises as well.

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Addressing the Wave of Industry 4.0 Deep Industry connections and outreach on reporting quality research are the key elements to become a recognizable entity. Industry connect can be deepened only when you have a proven track record of delivering on your promises within a given defined time period.

Academic institutions need to have more industry events across themes that bring in global peers, specialists and corporates to the same platform. The key takeaways need to be implemented to ensure that this becomes not just a one-off event, but an ongoing activity.

Now, the core of Industry 4.0 is automation and digital technology. This is evolving rapidly and we at Mahindra Ecole Centrale have been focusing on this for quite some time by now. Most quality educational institutes have also started to focus on developing new skill sets in emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Virtual and Augmented Reality, Machine and Deep Learning, Robotics, Automation, Cloud Computing, Block Chain & IoT and so on for students and engaging with industry experts for teaching and research.

Global collaborations, Research, Faculty focus and Industry connect will help the educators to bring in Industry ready curriculum and lead to up-skilling the engineering students. However, a major issue is lack of flexibility in setting up curriculum that is vibrant and topical. I believe this is the major challenge faced by most academic institutions. We need to have an industry ready curriculum and focus on research and collaborations amongst students. In our move towards a high level of digitalization and automation, we need to create virtual learning environments for our students and develop competencies in them to help them in their professional lives.

The biggest challenge for academicians in India is to keep themselves abreast of the rapidly evolving ecosystem. Global collaborations and close connections with the industry can help in this. The traditional method of teaching is no longer relevant. The academicians need to constantly innovate to keep the students engaged. We at Mahindra Ecole Centrale focus on flip education, where our pedagogy is more discussion oriented than discourse

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oriented. The focus must be on providing collaborative learning to the students.

For Students Subject matter focus, hard work, excellent communication skills and willingness to learn are the key skill sets that every student should have to get a job of their choice.

Since change is the new constant, what we as academics can do is to arm students with the relevant skillsets to help them keep learning through their career.

We focus on a well-designed blend of Basic and Engineering Sciences and Social Sciences to provide holistic education and create a well-rounded professional.

Development of creative and critical thinking skills and applying these to complex engineering problems is also something that we focus on. At MEC, we are committed to making the “New Engineer”. Our Vision is to train engineers, both men and women, to be entrepreneurial and innovative as well as technically trained, so that they can meet the greatest challenges of their era, globally.

No man is an island. I firmly believe that the millennial generation knows this better than anyone else. And, they are “connected” more than ever before. They are also aware of what they want and what is happening around them. My only advice to them would be to be responsible citizens, both of the country and Mother Earth, and excel in whatever their chosen field is. And, they just need to remember, collaboration is the key. (As told to the Editor) More about the Author Between 2001 and 2003, Dr. Medury successfully established 3 Universities (2 State and 1 Deemed). Prior to that, Dr. Medury was the Vice Chancellor of Jaypee University of IT, Himachal Pradesh and Founding Vice Chancellor of VIT University, Vellore. Immediately before that, he was the Chairman & Managing Director of Educational Consultants of India Limited, a Public Sector Undertaking of the Government of India. He has proficiently held many senior positions in varied Companies/Institutes besides being Member of several Academic Committees/Governing Councils throughout his distinguished career.

His contributions to the field of academics have been widely acknowledged. He has more than 40 publications to his credit which have been extensively circulated in national and international journals and conferences.

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