Employability of students in degree colleges to be mapped

HYDERABAD: With increasing focus on employability of students, Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) is mulling changes in curriculum for undergraduate courses like BA, BSc and BCom from 2019-20 academic year, following a push from the (UGC. This will be followed by the mapping of employability of students enrolled in different undergraduate courses.  

Speaking to Express, along the sidelines of a roundtable conference on Employment and Employability Skills in Higher Education, jointly organised by the TSCHE and British Council, Prof S Ramchandram, vice chancellor of Osmania University said that the University will be taking a lead in this endeavour.
With only 10 per cent of UG students and 25 per cent of BTech students estimated as employable, the VC said it is imperative on institutions to integrate academics with skill development.

The mapping will help in locating the missing link between education and employment, he said and added that despite having so many combinations in the UG courses, there is no scope for employment after a BA, BSc or BCom.

“Last year itself we had decided to revamp the syllabus but UGC had asked us to go for it the next academic year (2019-20). The idea is to add an element of harmony among various disciples and make the curriculum skill-oriented,” said Prof Ramchandram.

Navin Mittal, commissioner of Collegiate Education and Technical Education, emphasised on pushing curriculum towards encouraging critical and logical thinking, with a focus on extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. He highlighted the use of technology in education and use of a flexible ‘Choice Based Credit System’ which would allow students to take courses through MOOCs.

Delivering the keynote address, Jayesh Ranjan principal secretary IT department stressed on the activities of TASK.

Ajay Mishra, special chief secretary, said the focus should be on employability and the skills that a student needs to secure a job. “Academic excellence should be a product of curriculum in universities. Application of knowledge should be a life long process,” he added.