ASHWAMEDHA ‟09 : IGNITE

AHVAN

Higher Education in India

Abhishek Lohia
IIFT Delhi
The problem
 India has talented resources and infrastructure but students
remain unemployable.
 Hon‟ble PM commented “Even if we meet our targets of
higher access and enrolment, even if we spend huge amounts
on higher education and even if we open a large number of
new institutions, this issue of quality will not get addressed
by itself ” during his visit to PU.
 Problem lies in the wide disconnect between industry
requirement and the academic input.
 Funding from Govt. alone is not sufficient. The industry
involvement in both funding and support has been very low.
 Industry participation in higher
education
 High talent pool, if supported, is to the benefit of Indian companies
who currently find educated youth unemployable.
 It is but right that industry should “invest” in capacity building through
supporting new institutions (industry sponsored) by creating a separate
fund for the same.
 Curriculum has to be developed by the industry experts too, and not
academicians. Course content can then be provided by academicians.
 This will ensure that right set of talent and knowledge is imparted to
the candidates, while also getting the company CSR mileage.
 This is co‟s HRD investment. Major IT cos. which spend millions on
post-recruitment training can save this expenditure.
 What should be the focus?
 Indian institutes are supposed to have best knowledge resources, and its
curriculum is internationally renowned (eg. DU, CU).Then why is
employability still a concern?
 Personality Development is always neglected. Knowledge alone
wouldn‟t suffice. Success requires much more.
 The model suggested by me should equally focus on the aspects of
personality, mannerisms, grooming, CV Building.
 Creativity sessions, Lateral Thinking sessions.
 Compulsory tour around the whole of India to study the business
scenario and cultural aspect. This could be part sponsored, part
subsidized by Govt. It will help in opening up the minds of the fresh
graduates and sensitizing them to practical aspects of learning,
 Attracting faculty: where is the money
 Quality deficiency in higher education remains because of lack of top
class faculty.
 Progressive pay package for attracting world-class talented professors.
Benchmarked with Industry.
 Involvement of industry experts and guest faculties in imparting practical
knowledge.
 Faculty Rotation programmes wherein some faculties sent to
international institutes for training and upgradation every year.
 Faculties sent to foreign universities for teaching assignments. Sent
to neighboring countries and other underdeveloped countries (in
Africa, Asia).These can be additional sources of income for the
faculties, and also help attract talented pool.
 Faculty-Industry Collaboration
 Industry association of faculties wherein they provide research and
consultancy to companies.
 This practice is prevalent in Business schools but not in engineering
colleges and other institutes of higher education.
 Vast opportunities in civil, mechanical, software engineering and
others in Govt. and corporate projects.
 While adding to domain of practical knowledge, can serve as
additional source of revenue for them and economical for companies.
 Making Professors a partner in
students’ career
 Elite higher education institutes offer lucrative career
opportunities to their students but the professors who shape their
minds are given meager salaries, consequently attracting low talent
pool.
 Make the professors a stakeholder in the students‟ careers by
linking the students‟ salaries to their bonus.
 Compulsory contribution of one months‟ salary to the special
fund, from which yearly bonuses (additional remuneration) can be
awarded to all faculties.
 This could attract talented specialists who don‟t want to join the
industry and yet get returns linked to the industry as well as the
work done on the student.
 Financing through University Bonds
 Financing a major concern for infrastructure development and
equipments in institutes.
 Raise additional money from public issue of „University Bonds‟ –
long-dated discount bonds or Zero-coupons.

Quality Better Prospects

ZC Bond Issue for employment
Improvement
Quality Improvement

Service Bond Increase Fees/ other Better opportunities

Issue contributions for student loans

A sustainable model for additional self- financing

 Industry Association for Engineering
PHDs and Masters
 Masters and PHDs in engineering are dwindling because of low industry
involvement in them and lack of funds.
 Why do engineering students get attracted to B-schools?
 With international and Indian companies setting up R&D facilities in
India, they can be targeted to collaborate with these institutes.
 Students can be attached with these companies as research trainees and
perform basic research and applied research for them.
 Companies sponsoring the same will get rights to the technology
developed, patents etc. This can be cost-effective alternative to performing
all activities in-house.
 Research faculties can also be involved in the same.
 Provide Better Opportunities
 Better pay packages for candidates doing PHDs in
engineering.
 Showcase their output through publicized worldwide
exhibitions organized by all technical institutes in
collaboration (like IITs do in India) with Govt.
 Collaborations with international universities for Masters and
PHD training.
 The research developments can be marketed to companies
under licensing agreements, patents etc.