Higher Education Digest – October 2020 – India Edition – Architecture Colleges Special by Connecta Innovation

INDIA EDITION Must-Watch Architecture Colleges in India

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OCTOBER 2020

Higher Education Digest October 2020

October 2020

Vol - 2 Issue - 15

Architecture Colleges Special Editor in Chief

Dr. Manoj Varghese

Managing Editor Sarath Shyam

Consultant Editors

Dr. Johny Andrews Anjana K Anna Elza

Navya Venkatesh Stanly Lui Emma James

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MANAGING EDITOR’S NOTE

Reimagining Architecture Education

eing an architecture student means spending nights and days in the design studios, looking for different design ideas through group discussions and team works. Unlike many other streams of studies, an architecture aspirant needs to attend hands-on workshops, and in-person events with professors, peers, and professional architects. However, the pandemic disrupted architectural education and other design-related fields that hugely depend on studio works by going digital. In India, it was a challenging task for architectural colleges to make a shift from the conventional learning model to online education. Although many of them quickly adapted to the changes according to the circumstances, access to a library, conducting case-studies, fabrication of workshops and many more remained as a drawback of remote learning. Now, the situation that architecture education facing

now, however, is not just a response to COVID-19. The education system, including architecture studies, needs to contemplate about a making blended learning model that can cope with an unprecedented situation. In this issue, we have come up with ‘10 MustWatch Architecture Colleges in India’ that have been able to offer quality education to the architecture aspirants by overcoming the challenges caused by the pandemic. Indeed, these colleges had already started adapting the to digital learning model, even before the pandemic hit the word. On the cover, we feature, GD Goenka University - School of Architecture and Planning (SoAP), which envisions to create an innovative platform to study human habitat through multi-dimensional lenses addressing the four pillars of our pedagogy, namely - Urbanism, Technology, History & Environment. Enjoy Reading.

Sarath Shyam

Higher Education Digest October 2020

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. Varughese K.John, PhD, MBA, MPhil, MCom, LLB. Program Director, MS in Management Program, GSATM - AU

Dr. Venus M. Alboruto, PhD, Master Teacher, Researcher, Innovator, Trainer.

6 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

Dr. Ajay Shukla, Ph.D, MBA, BE.

Mr. Sreedhar Bevara, MBA, B.Com

Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Higher Education UAE

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)

Shanthi Rajan (MSHRM, FHEA, AMCILT) Director, Institution Development, University of Stirling, RAK Campus, UAE.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Senior Director HR. Head HR group Samsung R&D Institute India,Transformative HR Leader, Change agent, Digitization facilitator, Engagement architect, Trainer and Diversity champion.

Mamta Thakur Former CEO (ASEAN), Arc Skills

Higher Education Digest October 2020

MENTORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MANTRA GLOBAL EDUCATION INSIGHTS

How will Architecture Education Change in a Post-Pandemic World?

Ar. Rajendra Kumar, Director - School of Architecture, Noida International University

What to Change in Education to Stimulate Entrepreneurship? Dr Ria Aerts, Director of International Entrepreneurship, Sustainability and Empowerment Global Opportunities Commercialisation, Cofounder - Youth Global Empowerment, Founding Partner -Migrant Women in Business

EAST WEST SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

Excelling in Shaping IndustryReady Architects

16 32

The Relevance of Proposed Changes by NEP for Teachers Dr Niranjan Hiranandani, Provost, HSNC (Hyderabad Sind National Collegiate) University

Future of Online Learning

How to Secure your Career in Web Design in the Virtual World? Aarti Uberoi, Course Leader - Communication Design, Indian Institute of Art & Design

Niru Agarwal, Trustee, Greenwood High International School

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

44 54

Sports Can Empower Young People with Intellectual Disabilities and End Discrimination Against Them Satish Pillai, Chairman, Special Olympics Bharat

Inculcating a Gurukul Methodology in the Indian Education to Improve the Employability Quotient Rajesh Panda, Founder & CEO, Corporate Gurukul

64 58 64

The Upswing of Technology in Education Navakoti Ram, Managing Director and Chairperson, Upswing Learning

Upskilling Through Online Education is the Best Way to Secure Jobs in the Future Divya Jain, Co-Founder and CEO, Safeducate

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

How will Architecture Education Change in a Post-Pandemic World? By Ar. Rajendra Kumar, Director - School of Architecture, Noida International University

How has been the impact of COVID-19 on architecture education so far? How will it affect the upcoming academic years? COVID-19 has affected all strata of life globally. None of us could imagine such a situating of global lockdown and so much of fear, uncertainty, social stigma, postpone of mega and minor events etc. At the same time, it also gave a warning alarm to all human beings about the importance of newer ways to tackle the pandemic situations. At one side, the economy, job and financial factors are affected very badly, which are still trying to come in normalcy. In contrast, academic institutions and the pedagogical system did catch up very soon by switching to digital mode. Architecture education is very much hands-on experience and depends on the mode of personal interactions of teachers-students. But still, teaching innovations and great efforts of teachers to adopt the change were commendable in this very short time. Though there are few challenges like remote areas, lower bandwidth, IT infrastructure to students from marginal society, which are a deep concern, but in my experiences, I found students are coping up with satisfactory level. Perhaps from now onwards, in my opinion, this way of teaching is going to be new normal in years to come. How has the pandemic impacted traditional end-of-theyear activities like final reviews, thesis exhibitions, and other events? It has been almost a year with the pandemic, and in this duration, Educational institutes have had one major examination. i.e. end year examinations/ reviews. Most of the institutions had an online mode of examinations under a series of guidelines and advisories by regulating authority of education like the University Grant Commission,

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Courses like Medical, Architecture, Engineering need newer ways of online teaching

Ar. Rajendra Kumar

With over 13 years of experiences, Ar. Rajendra Kumar has worked in Spain, Italy, China, and India. He is actively involved in academia and research and is an advisory member of various think tanks. Ar. Rajendra Kumar has written over 50+ Articles, published papers in reputed journals. In a conversation with Higher Education Digest, Ar. Rajendra Kumar talks about the impact of COVID-19 on architecture education, adoption of EdTech by higher education institutions, the future of architecture education post-COVID and much more.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Professional councils, education boards etc. In this whole process, many of IT companies came up with innovative software and IT platforms where examinations and reviews happened, that’s very appreciative and great work by global IT companies. There has been an increase in the adoption of EdTech by higher education institutions across the world. How do you see this trend? What are efforts from School of Architecture, Noida International University in this regard? It is true that EdTech has seen a new high in the pandemic situation and almost all level of educational institutes have adopted the change and upgraded them. Be in Nursery schools or K-12 level or Higher education institutes like us, at all level upgraded and pedagogical innovation with digital approach became part of new normal. In our school of architecture, we have also upgraded with the latest software and newer IT platform to conduct classes and reviews, which are working very smoothly and almost 100% students have very active participation with satisfactory results. While colleges have been incorporating many new tools and techniques for teaching and learning, the physical space is still essential for architecture education. What would be the future of architecture education post-COVID? Yes! While for many courses like humanities, switching to a digital mode of education is a very easy and not very major level of change in teaching are affected. But courses like Medical, Architecture, Engineering need newer ways of online teaching. There had been limitations of digital mode in such courses, but as I said earlier, change is adopted by students and faculties. As far as future as architecture education Post-COVID is a concern, there will be new normal. At what extents? It is not the right time to predict because still pandemic is not eradicated yet. Every day and every moment, new facts and figures are popping up, so it might be better to evaluate and recommend at a later stage. But yes, one fact is very much sure that all type of course at all level will see new normal.

Many academicians in architecture education across the globe believe that there would be multitudes of changes in the curriculum, as we must incorporate ‘New Norms’ in the designs. In India, what are the possible changes you would like to make in the architecture curriculum? I absolutely agree with the need for new reform in architecture education and change of curriculum. Perhaps

Higher Education Digest October 2020

this reform of online mode of teaching will accept newer ways of teaching and lectures by Industry experts and professionals across the world to be virtually available in class for students, who are unable to be in universities campus for many practical and logistic reasons. Though, it was also available in bit and pieces in many educational institutes in the form or virtual lecture as extracurricular activities. But the online mode of industry-academia connects and global experts virtual meeting should be part of the core curriculum and accepted as class hours. For this, policy level reform is needed by respective bodies. How would the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 impact architectural education? National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is going to be a big change-maker in the educational landscape of India and going to be at par with global standards. Architecture education in India is 5 Years Bachelor course, most of the world’s countries have adopted a 3+2-year system in architecture course. Many European countries have 3+2 Years system as Integrated Master course. NEP’s Steps of an early exit with another certificate/diploma for architecture students will attract more interest among students. Those students who exit with a foundation level of architecture education will be having more sensitive towards the built environment and sustainability due

to the nature of architecture education from the very beginning of the curriculum. More professionals with early education, slight exposure to architecture education will bring greater exposure to the architecture profession in India. For analogical example, I quote the example of Civil Services in India. A few decades back, most of IAS/ IPS were graduated in a humanities course, from last few years/decade many IIT, IIM graduates, MBBS are also opting for civil services and those IAS/IPS who become administrator have more understanding of engineering, the health system of their administered region. What is your advice to the students who wish to pursue a career in architecture and design? For all those students who are aiming to be an architect, he/she should be ready with challenges of hard work, hard work, hard work and no early result. Architecture is one of the professions which needs extraordinary patience and time for success. Taj Mahal is also a result of good architecture with immense hard work, vision, patience. Architects design the world which people see and appreciate or don’t appreciate. India is going to be the epicentre of global growth in a building, large infrastructure, major constructions. There is a large number of architects’ demand in India. It has great opportunities and wider possibilities of specialization in the architecture profession.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

ACADEMIC VIEW

The Relevance of Proposed Changes by NEP for Teachers Dr Niranjan Hiranandani, Provost, HSNC (Hyderabad Sind National Collegiate) University

he newly announced National Education Policy 2020 has been seen as an all glory announcement made by the Ministry of Education with a vision of Hon’ble PMO to encompass the flourishing future of Indian education system to compete with global standards. To begin with, the base of education from a tender age needs to be carved and moulded well for which role of teachers in instrumental. The NEP 2020 definitely aims at ways of Relearning for students under the modern age of education inclusive of teacher’s wellbeing by setting up the new high professional benchmark. When we talk about education at all levels with multiple entry and exit option, an added benefit is automatically applied to aspiring teachers. An individual can switch to professional experience without compromising on the academics and learn to teach in their course of interest. These help them in implementing techniques learned at work and bring that broad experience learning to the classrooms. The option to switch between profession and academics draws huge advantage of practical learning that new age teachers would impart in the classrooms making it more relevant and worthwhile for evolving generation. Thus, it brings in the scope of continuous learning and upgrades professional efficacy in teachers to deliver the required competencies in a timely manner. The new policy widens the scope of upgrading one’s competencies to stay industry-relevant by conducting workshops, seminars, online teacher development modules which keeps the learning oil burning.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

An individual can switch to professional experience without comprimising on the academics and learn to teach in their course of interest

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani

The importance of academic excellence in the making of a highly successful first-generation business entrepreneur is perhaps best personified by Dr Niranjan Hiranandani. As a student, he had the distinction of standing second during his graduation from Mumbai University in his Bachelor of Commerce Degree Hons. This was followed by completing F C A from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Adding a new dimension to his versatile personality, it truly befits the new role of academician for one who started his career as a teacher to the students learning Chartered Accountancy. Over the years, he has set up the Hiranandani Foundation School, successfully run the academic institutions of the HSNC Board - it is only in the fitness of things that his wish to go further and become an educationist comes true as Provost of the newly set up HSNC University in Mumbai. Excellence was not confined just to his studies as the ‘Developer extraordinaire’ as also ‘the one who redefined the skyline of Mumbai’, he has evolved into not only an industry leader but also an Industry Knowledge Guru.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

About

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani

Even as a top real estate developer of a global repute to being the true ‘Real Estate Moghul’ of Indian Real Estate industry, Dr Niranjan Hiranandani always had an affinity towards providing quality education to society at large. The journey towards becoming an educationist started right with setting up the Hiranandani Foundation International Schools and Hiranandani Institute of Learning in his mixed-use integrated townships. He has the privilege of being on the boards of multiple educational institutions then chaired the HSNC Board where he looked after 17 colleges and 8 schools. Adding a new feather in the cap as an educationist, he also runs vocational skill training centres and institutions for interdisciplinary learning. His ‘dream objective’ to enable an academic curriculum which would shape the young minds and transform them into an Industry Ready Profile has crystallized in the form of the HSNC University, Maharashtra’s newly set up Cluster University. As Provost of HSNC University, the journey is just a beginning.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

As we witness a revolution in education and learning methodology, the need for credible, sound and knowledgeable teachers across the industry shall amplify. It shall entice more youths to opt for teaching as a sound profession which offers growth and exposure simultaneously. The growth in demand for professional teachers will lead to an increase in the pay scale barometer. Considering the expansion of indepth learning of off-beat courses will pave the way for teachers to pursue their interest and passion that they excel at. The NEP facilitates a perfect blend of learning and practising for the teacher’s community. As the saying goes, “Practice makes a man perfect”, and NEP will actually allow the teachers to practise more and enhance their skill of teaching. With a perspective to comprehend and acquire the skills taught, teachers will then improvise to address the subject upgraded every time. The future of budding Indian minds is tread on the right path with elaborative changes that NEP has introduced in the Indian Education system. The aspiring aim to become global Education hub has permitted foreign universities collaborations to set up campuses in India, which opens up vast opportunities for teachers to get associated globally. The new national education policy proves to be a boon economically, intellectually and blending in professionally for teachers with an ambitious goal to impart Quality and Competitive Education for All. Registering the integrated and disciplinary factors via the national testing agency for specialized subjects, the national education policy will also consider aspects where the best training is provided keeping in mind the current eligibility and further capability to prosper and get ahead in a radiant manner. The National Council Teacher Education (NCTE) will basis the recommendations of the national education policy structure an upbringing National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (NCFTE) in 2021. The framework will also guide through the perquisites a teacher deserves adhering to the responsibilities they are obliged to perform. The major empowerment that NEP 2020 will give is that it will be providing multiple subject expert certification courses, a major fillip to this profession. Chances of climbing the ladder of leadership & management roles in the education system will escalate while specialization will add to the teacher’s brief introduction at that stage. The culture and community of teachers will remain upright and reputable as the commitment for professionalism, and careerfocused factors will motivate the teachers to stay updated in terms of characteristics, vocational skills, academics and personality building. The enthusiasm in teachers for learning from peer-practitioners and upskilling every learning to an innovative form of teaching with the introduction of the policy will rise. Thus, the ones who shape the path of children will with a better determination also frame their paths with an intention to leap skills and have its impression on their students’ bright future. These traits in a teacher will begin to imbibe from an early stage of training to get a qualitative stance and efficient plan of action aiding the entire system. Hence, NEP opens the door of evolution for teacher’s fraternity in India to be vocal and get global!

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani

Higher Education Digest October 2020

By Navya Venkatesh

Higher Education Digest October 2020

T 22

he case of online education is tricky for architectural training, as most design (studio) courses require some form of residency component -computing a large part of the course requirement, which is now hindering the progress of academic pursuit. Additionally, not all faculties, departments, and staff are equipped to shift to online, and most have never dealt with this. “We are integrating technology in our coursework, sensitizing urgency of working with nature to remain sustainable, acclimatize to blended learning, explore architecture as a wider field to remain viable and relevant”, says Dr. Neena Singh Zutshi, Head of Department, GD Goenka University - School of Architecture and Planning (SoAP), Haryana. Universities and colleges yet to implement changes to campuses in response to the Novel coronavirus could take cues from others who have already taken action. They should analyze the steps already taken by other educators to understand what has worked, what hasn’t worked, and how to tackle the challenges they may face. With studio interactions impacted and interactive theory classes disrupted, SoAP faced a lot of difficulties in imparting education to their students during the Pandemic Outbreak. “With limited internet coverage and access to stationary and modelmaking equipment halted, we had to take a steep learning curve to negotiate online classes,” points out Dr. Neena Zutshi. Focusing on academic rigour against all odds, Goenka University adopted software to draw on shared screens, screengrabs, stylus, and interactive

Higher Education Digest October 2020

23 About Dr Neena Singh Zutshi Dr. Zutshi has more than 25 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience in architectural practice and is an academician in the field of architecture at several institutions in India (Sushant School of Art; Architecture (Gurgaon), School of Planning & Architecture, (New Delhi) and Amity University (Noida) and at Bilkent University (Turkey). Her expertise is in the History and Theory of Architecture in India. She also has experience in Interior Architecture and Institutional Design. Dr. Zutshi started at the School of Architecture & Planning at GD Goenka University in July 2018 as a Professor of Architecture. In December 2019, she was appointed as the Head of the School of Architecture and Planning. Dr. Neena Zutshi earned a Ph.D. from the School of Architecture and Planning (New Delhi). She also has a Post Graduate Certificate in Advanced Architectural Studies from the University College London (United Kingdom) and B.Arch. from the School of Architecture and Planning (New Delhi)

Higher Education Digest October 2020

24 PDFs that were employed to discuss drawings. Sketches made on Microsoft Paint to explain conceptual ideas and Link sharing was used to explore case studies. “We inserted mentor-mentee sessions in the timetable weekly. Students left alone in online meetings for informal discussions, peer to peer learning is encouraged where students are asked to critique each other, along with virtual interactions, by inviting all students to come for open juries”, adds Dr. Neena Zutshi. SoAP was set up in 2014 as a part of the G.D.Goenka University. To develop an identity, SoAP set up it’s motto as “Empathize: Think, Learn, Share” in 2018. Now, it envisions to create an innovative platform to study human habitat through multi-dimensional lenses addressing the four pillars of our pedagogy, namely Urbanism, Technology, History & Environment. SoAP is providing opportunities to challenge students to develop their abilities in problem-solving, creative thinking, and informed decision-making as a focus of their professional education and thereby to nurture a student-centred environment for personal development and professional excellence.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Bringing Students a step closer to the industry Collaboration with industry is critical for academia to create scientific knowledge and obtain industrial data. In turn, collaboration with universities is crucial for organizations in joint, scientific-based research projects to develop solutions for production-sourced problems. With that in mind, SoAP has been hosting guest lectures by industry experts and visiting faculty from reputed universities. Along with this, SoAP hosted Chintan 2020, an annual school event that allows meetings with leading experts in the field. Apart from gaining significant knowledge of cutting-edge developments: leading software and hardware vendors showcase their products along with building products which undertake research and development to address new requirements. “ our audience comprises of architects, students, and practitioners, technical experts from computing- software and hardware, materials and other related fields as well as academicians are part of the event,” states Dr. Neena Zutshi. Hosting guest lectures from leading professionals and Visiting faculty members from senior academicians who teach at other reputed schools of architecture across India

under the aegis of the Vyakhyan Lecture Series, SoAP has been doing its best in bridging the gap between academia and industry. “We have launched the B.Sc. Building Systems as a program to address practice requirements for competent personnel well versed in all aspects of running architectural projects and offices. Also, By locating our design problems in our neighbourhood, we are engaging our students with our context effectively,” adds Dr. Neena Zutshi. The conventional view of regular work is witnessing a significant transformation. Organizations are now looking for people who are efficient in technology that is intuitive, powerful, and aligned with their needs. With approximately 50% of the students getting placed in architecture offices and others opting for higher education, the students at SoAP have been placed in organizations like Central Park, Gurugram, Par Erectors Pvt Ltd, Gurugram, Hafeez Contractor, Mumbai, and S.D. Sharma and Associates, Panchkula, Haryana. “Our students have also pursued Higher Studies in reputed colleges like RMIT, Australia, University of British Columbia, Canada, CEPT, Ahmedabad, SPA Vijayawada, NICMAR, and The Bartlett UCL”, adds Dr. Neena Zutshi. With their first batch graduating in 2019 and securing admission in leading global universities to pursue postgraduation along with securing placements in reputed architecture practices despite difficult employment conditions due to the pandemic, SoAP has negotiated the transition to online learning seamlessly in March 2020 to ensure that there was no loss in student learning outcomes, along with their young faculty imparting best practices in teaching-learning by continuously striving to upgrade their skills. Dr. Neena Zutshi adds, “Our small student body allows us to engage with each student to ensure that both slow learners and high achievers are addressed appropriately”. Another feather to their cap, An alumni of SoAP, Arushi Jain from the batch of 2015-2020, has started

Higher Education Digest October 2020

a venture ‘ArtisansLove’. According to Arushi, being in the field of architecture, she always believed that a part of her brain is still craving for real creativity and passion, which eventually came out in the face of ‘ArtisansLove’. Making Learning Fun Blended learning with Google Classroom, Gamification of learning, and construction workshops to allow handson learning and material and system explorations, SoAP is doing its best to help their students learn as they did in traditional classrooms. Revising the program structure to include courses like Art, Social Spaces, Architecture Design Theory, Building with Nature, Structural Constructs among others, SoAP is encouraging higher-order critical thinking such that their graduates are equipped to lead by experimenting with emerging paradigms as opposed to following existing trends. “This allows the graduate to create new jobs and provide leadership within the profession. Courses like Art, Design Narratives, and Architecture Design Theory cultivate the student’s creative imagination to innovate while Building with Nature, Structural Constructs, Architectural Construction trains them in understanding the practical aspects of the physical manifestation of architecture,” says Dr. Neena Zutshi. Ensuring that their current students are engaged productively in academic activities to overcome the difficult pandemic induced environment, SoAP is currently focused on the admission process that allows for a good fit and offer assistance wherever required so suitable candidates join their institute. “We are looking forward to ensuring that the academic integrity is not compromised at all during the pandemic.,” concludes Dr. Neena Zutshi.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

GLOBAL EDUCATION INSIGHTS

What to Change in Education to Stimulate Entrepreneurship? Dr Ria Aerts, Director of International Entrepreneurship, Sustainability and Empowerment - Global Opportunities Commercialisation, Co-founder - Youth Global Empowerment, Founding Partner -Migrant Women in Business

ast year, at an international conference on entrepreneurship, we as experts in the field had a lively conversation whether entrepreneurial behaviour is linked to gen and therefore, education can contribute little to entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurial parents were role models for some successful entrepreneurs like Elon Musk. Still, somehow education has a role to play. Not all famous entrepreneurs have entrepreneurial parents. Larry Page and Sergey Brin contribute their success to their Montessori education. The self-directed learning, being self-motivated, questioning what is going on in the world and doing things a little differently were essential in growing Google from an ordinary search engine company into a brand that has taken over the word â&#x20AC;&#x153;searchâ&#x20AC;? by itself and is being used as such by millions of people worldwide. And then there are the successful entrepreneurs like Mark Zuckerberg dropping out of university and Elon Musk starting his own school because traditional education is failing his standards. Some academic studies support the idea that entrepreneurship education plays an important role in increasing the entrepreneurial capacity of students. Others proof that entrepreneurship courses discourage students from starting their own business. What needs to change in traditional education systems, so they support entrepreneurship? There is no agreement in the academic world of entrepreneurship on what components education needs to focus on to create an effective entrepreneurial program. Courses helping to increase marketing skills, financial literacy, creating a business plan, project management are essential tools, but they do

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Innovativeness and creativity can only be stimulated in an environment where the student thinks for him/ herself

29 Dr Ria Aerts

Dr Ria Aerts is a specialist in Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) with special emphasis on innovation and digitalisation, globalisation, education, youth, sustainability, women entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship, and family businesses. She has experience working with companies in diverse industries and has worked both in the private and the public sector. Dr Ria Aerts has been involved in these areas as a consultant, advisor, mentor, business owner as well as an award-winning academic researcher and teacher. The ability to connect three different worlds: academic, business and government around Entrepreneurship and SMEs, makes her a real distinguished talent as a connector, catalyst, and accelerator. She is multicultural and multi-language savvy having lived and worked in several countries across 4 continents. Dr Ria Aerts belongs to extensive networks of entrepreneurs, academics, and consultants in Europe, Latin America, the USA, Africa, and Australia.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

not define entrepreneurship. Management roles also require these skills. Obtaining these skills in formal programs are not enough to start and being successful in entrepreneurial activities. Practical know-how is crucial, combined with personality factors. Several characteristics of successful entrepreneurs are mentioned in business and academic entrepreneurship literature like innovativeness and creativity, proactiveness, emotional intelligence, perseverance and determination, problem-solving, and responsibility. These personal factors are rarely focused on in traditional education systems. Even worse, sometimes the conventional education system counteracts on or suppresses some of the most important personal factors of entrepreneurship. There are solutions that can be implemented in traditional education systems. Switching from a competitive education model to a personal development model will help not only generate more entrepreneurs, but it will also increase the survival rate of their companies. It is useless to keep on mass producing the average student that fits in the assembly line of a factory or the desk seats of office cubicles. This made sense in the industrial era. Today these types of jobs are taken over by robots and other technologies. It is time to focus on the unique potential of every student and shift from a model where most students are labelled incompetent to a system where everybody is a winner. Innovativeness and creativity can only be stimulated in an environment where the student thinks for him/ herself. In a conventional education system, the teacher instructs all the students in the same way what to learn. The studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; personal interests, learning styles, and abilities are ignored. It would be better to tailor the education to the student instead of having the student to adapt to the education system. When a student gets the choice what and how to learn a subject, get to follow his/her curiosity, get to experiment hands-on, and learn from mistakes; the student learns to think independently, be responsible, and be creative to come up with innovative solutions to correct mistakes and bring solutions to problems. This type of education system is the perfect breeding ground for developing personal characteristics identified as essential for entrepreneurs. When education starts with the studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passion, there will be no boredom. There will be an eagerness to learn, not because the student wants to pass a test but because the student is curious to know and wants to find out how things work. This proactive behaviour is linked to entrepreneurship. In most education systems around the world, the evaluation system is based on testing what the student fails to know. Students are afraid of making mistakes.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Understanding that making errors is a normal part of learning is essential in being able to become an entrepreneur. To learn, you must be willing to make mistakes. Unfortunately, the traditional education system leaves little room for making mistakes and punishes students by giving them a low grade. It gets even worse when they get ranked and compared to the students that got higher grades. Almost every student feels like they are not good enough because only a few can get the highest grade. It leads to uncertainty and disbelieves in their own capabilities. It undermines their self-esteem. It discourages teamwork and collaboration. It is a system that discourages learning. When interviewing migrant women in business, it was their lack of confidence that was one of the main barriers to their success. In academic literature, self-efficacy and emotional intelligence are key elements leading to entrepreneurial success. The effort to get to a good or bad result is hardly ever applauded. Delivering results is important but being able to overcome hurdles is one of the main keys to continues entrepreneurial success. If every entrepreneur, who encountered setbacks and was not able to reach the preset goals, would be marked a failure and not given the chance and time to overcome the setback, there would be almost no successful people. Only the ones who learned to get up after defeat, shake it off and restart, will be able to let a business grow. When successful entrepreneurs tell their story, almost all of them had to overcome barriers. Perseverance leads to triumph. An evaluation system that celebrates personal successes and gives room to self-improvement will be beneficial in stimulating entrepreneurship in students. Everybody is good at something. Successful entrepreneurs are confident in their abilities, and they know their limitations. They will compensate the latter by adding a person to their team, who is an expert in that domain. In the gaming industry, they use a level-based evaluation system mirrored to the assessment method developed by dr. Maria Montessori. A student is mastering a topic when, after the initiation of the lesson and the practising period, the student can teach somebody else the topic. In a video game, a person can get from a low level to a higher level by practising. It is a fun and exciting way to be eager to want to learn more. The player believes he/she can succeed if he/she puts in the effort. There are also games that encourage teamwork in a fun and entertaining way. Every person has passions and talents that can lead to the development of innovative products and services. An education system that embraces this uniqueness stimulates entrepreneurship. Today in our society, we applaud entrepreneurship and want our students to become

There is no agreement in the academic world of entrepreneurship on what components education needs to focus on to create an effective entrepreneurial program

31 entrepreneurs. The number of university and non-university incubators are sprouting out of the ground like mushrooms. Still today, most students are moulded in this industrial age education system that clashes with entrepreneurship. Many will fail. This is also reflected in the low survival rate (5% or less) of most businesses beyond 5 years. When we give students from a young age the change to develop a curious mind open to anything instead of a mind programmed to fit in a certain subject, it will benefit future entrepreneurs and reduce business failure. Learning in a project-based way is much more useful and fun. For example, when a child wants to make a solar panel, the child learns about biology, engineering, physics, design, collaboration with others, teamwork, and more. The child learns because they want to learn. They develop a love for learning that will stay a lifetime. Students that are stuck in the traditional system can stimulate this curiosity by developing a personal project around a study topic they are really interested in. Transfer the theoretical knowledge in something practical. Students can set their own learning terms instead of waiting for the teacher or professor to tell them what to do. It will help to see connections between subjects and train the student to become a multidisciplinary thinker and doer. It will stimulate curiosity and eagerness to learn more. It is the joy of discovery that stimulates entrepreneurship.

Dr Ria Aerts

Higher Education Digest October 2020

ACADEMIC VIEW

Future of

Online Learning Niru Agarwal, Trustee, Greenwood High International School

here were times when we were made to realise that distanceeducation is not the best choice for education. In the current scenario, we are made to believe that distance or online learning will become an integral part of our education. This pandemic COVID-19 has taught us many life lessons, it has also taught us that education must change to prepare learners for an unpredictable future. Schools across the country have moved to virtual classes, and when these schools reopen, both teachers and students are going to need their digital skills to be successful in future. Students are now getting prepared to navigate the real world and the virtual world efficiently to deal with future disruptions. Depending on how long the pandemic lasts, schools may be forced to find creative ways to get children enjoy learning. Until a few years ago, the online medium was used only for entertainment content, but now it has taken over traditional classroom methods. Despite some perceived drawbacks, online learning is the need of the hour. When the storm of pandemic passes, schools may be revolutionised by this online teaching-learning experience. Instead of walking into a school, students might be turning on their laptops to see live-streaming lessons. Online learning gives learners the benefit of learning from the comfort of their homes or while travelling, providing flexibility in terms of space. In real school life, students belong to a peer group which instils a sense of competition, motivating them to excel but the forced online classes suffer from

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Learning is an ongoing process, and the vision of schools is to overcome the learning crisis

Niru Agarwal

Totally approachable and down to earth, with forever a cheerful smile; that is Niru Agarwal, Trustee, Greenwood High School. Quite early in life, her leadership qualities were there for all to see, which found their true manifestation in her emergence as an entrepreneur par excellence, with a vision for the betterment of the society. Under her stewardship & unique approach to education, Greenwood High School has reached newer heights of excellence in moulding the young minds of tomorrow. Niru Agarwal is also the interface for the Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s social commitments and welfare schemes and has been a prominent fixture in various charitable organisations.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Online medium was used only for entertainment content, but now it has taken over traditional classroom methods

Higher Education Digest October 2020

issues like attention span, as students tend to multi-task; checking emails, chatting with friends and surfing the net during online sessions. This poses questions, how do we instil discipline and develop relationships with students through a virtual environment? How do we monitor understanding? Is virtual learning truly a better alternative? Or is it better to return to a formal classroom setting? Learning is an ongoing process, and the vision of schools is to overcome the learning crisis. Digital learning enables students to take better advantage of the resources available online. Assessments might change, giving more weightage to weekly assignments and online presentations compared to final exams. Educators are teaching through video conferencing, and students participate using padlet- a virtual post-it note system that lets them share their ideas, and flipgrid, which allows students and teachers to create and share videos. Social distancing could be challenging for high school students who thrive on social connections. This crisis abruptly brought an end to their school year, taking away the quintessential traditions like graduation ceremony followed by cancelled exams which have impacted students emotionally. Apart from implementing guidelines to provide a better learning experience, caring for their physical and emotional well-being is also important. After this phase subsides, the students will be more conscious of this infectious disease when they come out of home quarantine to re-enter school. The schools will enforce social distancing by asking students to disinfect their hands before entering school while security guards will take their temperature. In the classrooms, the desks will be rearranged to increase space, group activities will be limited, the movement will be restricted within the classroom, and on the corridors, other available space in the school will be used for smaller groups, visits to the washroom will be restricted, congestion during arrival and dismissal will be reduced, recess area will be segregated according to classes, solo physical activity will be encouraged instead of games, meal times will be staggered, and events like assemblies, field trips, excursions and classes with high rates of the meeting will be cancelled. While so much remains uncertain about what the future holds, post-pandemic expectations largely depend on schoolsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; current preparedness for digital learning. This is an opportunity that reminds us of the skills students need in future, such as informed decision making, creative problemsolving, think creatively, communication, collaborative learning and adaptability. It is a good time to reflect on how this disruptive crisis can help us define what learning should look like for future generations.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Higher Education Digest October 2020 2020

n the last two decades, the world has witnessed rapid changes, both in terms of the needs of society and technology, and architecture as a profession is in the limelight now, which is quite evident from the soaring number of Architecture Institutes in India. A synthesis of all arts and sciences in the operational domain, Architecture is a unique blend of aesthetics, technology, and humanities duly supported by technical input. Architecture as a profession is now being viewed as the extension of the new construction technologies, building materials, and innovations in design and structure. Architecture institutions are now in a state of flux to find and discover new order and pattern of architecture education to meet the challenges and threats effectively and efficiently. Prevailing architectural education, which has its genesis in the old schools of western thoughts and ideas, need rationalization, review, and redefinition to make it more relevant in the Indian context, ethos, culture, ecology, and the needs of multi-layered society and communities to make it distinct and unique. With that in mind, the Higher Education Digest presents the â&#x20AC;&#x153;10 Must-Watch Architecture Colleges in Indiaâ&#x20AC;? to recognize and appreciate the efforts put by the educational institutes to keep up with the trends in the architecture industry and shape their students to be ready to face the industry.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

University Name

City

State

Noida

Uttar Pradesh

Bangalore

Karnataka

Chennai

Tamil Nadu

Pune

Maharashtra

East West School of Architecture

Bangalore

Karnataka

GD Goenka University â&#x20AC;&#x201C; School of Architecture and Planning

Sohna

Haryana

Institute of Design Education and Architectural Studies

Nagpur

Maharashtra

Bangalore

Karnataka

Sir J. J. College of Architecture

Mumbai

Maharashtra

The Manipal School of Architecture & Planning

Manipal

Karnataka

Amity School of Architecture & Planning

BMS College of Architecture

Department of Architecture and Interior Design - SRM University

Dr. D. Y. Patil College of Architectur

School of Architecture, REVA University

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Higher Education Digest December October January 2019 2020

EAST WEST SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

EXCELLING IN SHAPING INDUSTRYREADY 40

ARCHITECTS

he COVID-19 Pandemic has affected all aspects of life, whether its livelihood, mental health, education, trade, or profession. Architecture education has also faced a major brunt of the pandemic. Architectural institutions are taking their activities online as COVID-19 forces them to consider replacing real-world interactions with virtual alternatives. Being physical beings that thrive in learning spaces that are designed for moving around, exploring, and encountering, the unprecedented times have changed the paradigm of architecture education. Having a team of young and energetic faculty members, the East West School of Architecture (EWSA) moved online quite immediately. The institute has smart studios, where manual and digital education

Higher Education Digest October 2020

platforms are used to show dynamic content to the students. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had adopted a blended learning model even before the pandemic happened, which made it easy for them in the remote learning transition,â&#x20AC;? says Ar. Chandan Kumar Rajak, Dean-Academics, EWSA. Established in 2018, ESWA is a home for aspiring minds to pursue their dreams and enhance their skill sets in sustainable design where students can contribute towards a sustainable environment. The institute is embedded with committed teaching staff and venerable management to provide its students with an education that unites scrupulous educational programs integrated with co-curricular activities such as Guest lectures, sports, workshops, and cultural events

Higher Education Digest October March 2020

Architecturual studio, classrooms, workshop, and library are the most important aspect of East West School of Architecture

Rashmi Ravikiran, Chairman, East West Group of Institutions

for the holistic growth of a student. “Our mentors exercise classes using advance and smart teaching techniques to contribute much towards the holistic growth of students in honing them as unique architects,” adds Rashmi Ravikiran, Chairman, EWSA. Blending Academics with Innovation Creativity is something that cannot be developed but can be polished. At EWSA, students are given their space to explore their creative skills. Handholding every student to ensure that their weakness is covered, Ar. Chandan points out, “If a student is weak in sketching, we give him maximum assignments in sketching so that he can practice it to perfection”. Collaborating with NGOs and going to nearby villages to work on primary schools and healthcare centres that need their buildings to be repaired, EWSA not only works on making architects with academic brilliance, they also make them good citizens. Hiring faculty members having around 8-10 years of industry experience, EWSA gives equal importance

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Ar. Chandan Kumar Rajak, Dean-Academics Ar. Chandan Kumar Rajak has a Masters degree (MSc.) in Design and Digital Media from the University of Edinburgh, the UK in 2010 with a strong academic and research record.

to faculty development and student development. Ar. Chandan opines, “I believe that, if my faculty members are not updated and I can expect the same reflection on my students, which doesn’t help me fulfil my motto, i.e., bridging the gap between industry and academia”. Believing that a motivated workforce can be an important factor in the institute’s success, EWSA has set up an Industry Advisory Board with an objective to establish strong industry connects, conduct workshops; such as MDP, FDPs with collaboration with industry and provides suggestions for process improvement as well as curriculum improvement. To bridge the gap between industry and institution, the institute has introduced the latest industry trends and courses, where the students are taught and examined by experts from the industry. Also, EWSA made exposure to the industry through visits to factories, exhibitions, and worksites mandatory for all the subjects. Also, the institute conducts several workshops that help them get the skills and industry exposure, making them industry-ready. The concept of traditional education has changed radically within the last few months. Higher education is now entering a new era – the revolution of online education. Online learning is about accessibility and inclusivity. It removes the physical barriers that prevent many people from fulfilling academic or career ambitions by allowing students to work from pretty much anywhere. “We want to continue with online learning. From now on, whatever education we are giving in the physical space, we will have an online replica of it,” concludes Ar. Chandan.

He is a registered architect with COA, New Delhi. No sooner completing Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the Manipal Institute of Technology (2006), started rendering his service in an architectural firm called Sustainable Urbanism International, Bangalore (SUI) (July 2006 – August 2009). He has worked on several projects, such as exploration in the application of digital technology to the conservation of monuments in India, Archaeological Survey of India and UNESCO. He has worked on a range of architectural projects, that include modern architecture, interior design, sustainable building design, and sustainable development of heritage cities to mention a few.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Sports Can Empower Young People with Intellectual Disabilities and End Discrimination Against Them Satish Pillai, Chairman, Special Olympics Bharat

What are the advantages of sports for the development of children with Intellectual Disabilities? In India, are we using sports to motivate children with intellectual disabilities to join and remain in school? It is universally accepted that sport is a great leveller. It exhibits leadership qualities, and it encourages teamwork. It improves social skills and reduces stress. Sports also gives a lot of confidence to individuals. Moreover, the health benefits of sports are known to everybody. But most significantly, it encourages us not to discriminate based on skill, colour or religion. When we are in the sports field, we are all equal. So, the sport has many advantages for the development of children with and without intellectual disabilities. To answer the second part of your question, we are working towards it, but there is still a lot to be done. Children with intellectual disabilities are people that the mainstream of society has to accept as equals. Now, especially over the last several decades, we have been doing various programmes for children with intellectual disabilities. Recently, we have started our Champions Schools programme, where we are trying to get schools to encourage youngsters, to support and accept our children with intellectual disabilities. We have recently received a grant from the Crown Prince of UAE that will help us to expand this programme. Recently, Special Olympics Bharat received a grant from Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi to make the Indian education system more inclusive. How are you going to use it to make education more inclusive for youth with and without an intellectual disability? When we talk about inclusivity in Indian education, there are two types of schools. First, are schools who encourage children with intellectual

Higher Education Digest October 2020

One of the major concerns currently to me is that people consider children with intellectual disabilities a liability. This is a mindset we are working towards changing

Satish Pillai

Recipient of the Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award 2010 by the President of India in recognition of his exceptional contribution to the Development of Sports in the country, Mr Satish Pillai, has been elected Chairman of Special Olympics Bharat. He is a keen and well-reputed sportsperson, having represented India in International Championships. He represented India in the Asian Games 1974 (Tehran) and in the first Asian Athletic Championship in (Manila) in 1973, in the long jump, winning bronze medals on both occasions. In interaction with Higher Education Digest, Satish Pillai talks about the advantages of sports for the development of children with Intellectual Disabilities, how is Special Olympics Bharat making a difference in the lives of young people, and many more.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

About

Satish Pillai

Satish Pillaiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s association with SO Bharat goes back to over 20 yrs. He has been the Chairman of Special Olympics Bharat after being President of the Special Olympics Bharat-Jharkhand State Committee. Satish Pillai has been instrumental, not only in overseeing growth and development of the SO program in India but also in providing significant and sustained financial corporate support at both, National and International levels. Satish Pillai served Tata Steel Limited for over 40 years, having retired as Advisor to the Managing Director in 2011. During this period, he shouldered responsibilities for several projects related to the development of Sports and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). He has been a Member of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) National Committee on Sports, and on the Advisory Committee of the Naval Tata Centre of Excellence, Kolkata in Sports Management, in addition to being on the committee for several National Sports Federations. In 2009, Satish Pillai was awarded Tata Electric Companies Officersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Guild Award for the Best Gentleman Sportsperson and was presented a Special Award for his contribution to the cause of sports, by the Tata Sports Club. This included organising sports in rural areas for persons with Disabilities. With this background, Satish Pillai is well known and recognised for his management skills, sports achievements, social responsibilities, and the development of sports at the National level.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

disabilities and implement a unified sports program twice a year. These are called unified schools. And then we have the Champion Schools. Champion schools are schools which have three components that they implement unified sports, encouraging youth engagement, and the whole school is involved in engaging people with intellectual disability as part of their lifestyles. It is not something that is shown as a favour. We do not want sympathy. We want empathy from people today. One of the major concerns currently to me is that people consider children with intellectual disabilities a liability. This is a mindset we are working towards changing. WHO says there are about 2.5% to 3% of people with intellectual disabilities in any population. So, taking that into consideration, roughly there are 25 million people with intellectual disabilities in our country. SOB, directly and indirectly, touched over 1.5 million. There is a huge gap between the actual number of people with ID and the number of people we have impacted through Special Olympics. The problem with implementing any kind of program is resources - manpower and financial resources. This grant primarily focuses purely on education and schools, and that will be a big impetus to expand the program in an area that has a strong potential to realise the vision of the Special Olympics program. We have identified about 120 schools from 12 States to help convert them into Champion Schools. This is not a change that will happen overnight. So, it is going to be a gradual process. The very fact that 120 schools will really start introducing this program is a great motivation for us. It will hopefully encourage other corporates and other people to also support this. We have been organising many programmes ever since this movement started. Now with involving schools, I believe that we have moved to the next level as youths are the future of any society and they the way the youth have embraced this

initiative in the schools where we have stated the Unified schoolsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; programme is heartwarming. This grant will be a great catalyst for increasing this program further. Who are the main beneficiaries of your programs, and how have SOB made a difference in their lives? The direct beneficiaries are the Special athletes, but they are not the only beneficiaries. Their families have benefited, and the society at large has benefited. If there is a single child with intellectual disabilities who is kept isolated in the family, and suddenly that child becomes a leader, becomes somebody who succeeded in something like winning a medal for the country at the World Games. So, now the home where the child was once considered a liability is considered a hero. This benefits the whole family and the community around that family benefits as well. All these medal winners come back as champions. In some cases, there are Special Athletes who have directly won a cash reward for their performance at the World Games. One such athlete hailing from a poor family was able to pay for his fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surgery using the reward. So, these are cases where the family is benefiting from the child with intellectual disability, rather than the child benefiting from the family. In addition to this, there are children who have participated in youth leadership programs where they are representing the society, representing this movement on International forums. This all contributes towards people beginning to accept that, yes, if you have an intellectual disability and you are not a liability, you can succeed as much as anybody else can succeed. Therefore, everybody is a beneficiary, the society, the families, the country. What was the motivation behind setting up Special Olympics Bharat? Who were the people involved? And can you tell us a little about the key figures of SOB, their roles, and professional experiences?

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Special Olympics was founded by Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who had a sister, Rosemary, who had intellectual disabilities. The Special Olympics Bharat chapter was started by Air Marshal Denzil Keelor. He is the founder as well as the CEO and monitors the organisation on a day-to-day basis. The incentive for us is very simple – if any of us can do anything in society, which makes a difference in somebody’s life, that’s a great incentive. We do not need a bigger incentive, and I am glad that we’ve been able to really make this program one of the largest in the world. Special Olympics Bharat is the biggest Special Olympics programme in terms of numbers, yet we have only touched a very small percentage of the population that exists in India. So, the motivation is there to reach more people and keep expanding. Earlier, we had special sports programmes for people with intellectual disabilities that only allowed people with ID to participate. Slowly, we shifted to unified sports where we got people with and without intellectual disabilities to play together. Then we moved into education and schools. So there has been a gradual move towards inclusion in society. I am very happy that it’s progressed from individual sports, for people with intellectual disabilities to unified sports and now to education. In terms of structure, apart from Air Marshal Keelor, we have got Mr Victor Vaz, our National Sports Director. Then we have got a large network of people at the ground level who have different roles and responsibilities. Each state chapter has an Area Director, who have their own team of people who implement the programmes at the state level. What are some of the significant challenges in operations of Special Olympics Bharat? The most significant challenge is that the numbers are huge, and the resources are limited. At the outset, we are very grateful to the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Govt of India, for designating SO Bharat as the

Higher Education Digest October 2020

National Sports Federation many years back, thereby demonstrating the greatest model of inclusion. This support has enabled us to send Athletes to the world Games in large numbers. However, it also a challenge to reach the remote parts of our country. There are challenges, but I do not really consider them as challenges. It is something that gives us a lot of hope. We feel that we have got a lot more to do than what we have done. The main challenge is to sensitise more and more people and make them more accepting towards people with intellectual disabilities and view them as part of society. We want people to not treat them as people with liability but people with different ability. For this, we must reach out to more and more people, and that in itself is a challenge. Apart from Unified Champion Schools, what are the other upcoming projects and/or programmes that SOB is involved in? Coronavirus has become a big factor in shaping our upcoming plans. On the one hand, it has been a big setback for us because one of the main components in our program is interaction with people on the sports field. But, it has also proven to be an opportunity in terms of new ways to interact with our athletes and our partners. We have organised a large number of virtual webinars and interactions in the last few months, and we have realised that this is something we should continue even after the pandemic ceases to spread. We can do our outfield activities in addition to this and maximise our reach. So, there’s always learning from every difficulty in life. Meanwhile, we are waiting to see how COVID-19 is going to affect the future programme and when we will be able to come back to mainstream sports programmes. So, we will have to rewrite our plans according to the situation as it goes in the next two-three months. But I can assure you that our outreach has not stopped. We will continue our endeavours of reaching out to our Athletes, irrespective of the challenges we face.

Want to Sell or find Investor for your Business? 49

Higher Education Digest October 2020

ACADEMIC VIEW

How to Secure your Career in Web Design in the Virtual World? Aarti Uberoi, Course Leader - Communication Design, Indian Institute of Art & Design

ith the advancement of technology and deconstruction of barriers to work, there are limitless professional opportunities today that allow one to unleash oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creativity. In todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s age, with remote working becoming the norm, employers are focusing on the quality of output rather than being physically present in the workplace, and digital avenues have become increasingly popular. One of these streams, and among the most attractive, is web design. Not only is the profession at the forefront of the modern digital world, but it is also one of the fastest-growing fields at the intersection of creativity, tech, and customer experience. Every firm - big or small, and irrespective of the industry it belongs to - needs an internet presence in the form of a website to put forth its values and key propositions. With the demand for high-quality websites increasing with every passing day, the function of a web designer is sought-after increasingly. What is Web Design? Web design involves creating a website that includes the creative aspects - the content and the design. The work of a web designer is to define the appearance and layout of the website. While content is also deeply interlinked, not all web designers have control on content creation and rely on content writers for the same. This role usually refers to the user experience part of the website development rather than the software/coding. For instance, a web designer decides the colours, images, page structure and fonts used on the website to ensure the visual appeal and sleek user experience, ensuring high-impact of the content used.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

It is well-known that the techfocused roles garner bigger payouts due to higher-level skills and demand

51 Aarti Uberoi

Aarti is the Course Leader for Communication Design at IIAD. She is a multi-disciplinary design practitioner with over two decades experience in the area of product and graphic design as a consultant, academician and entrepreneur. Aarti is a postgraduate in Visual Communication Design as a Graphic Design major from Massey University, New Zealand, and an Accessory Design graduate from NIFT, Delhi. She holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Higher Education (PGCHE) from Nottingham Trent University.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

With the demand for highquality websites increasing with every passing day, the function of a web designer is sought-after increasingly

Careers in Web Design Careers in web design are not limited to simply ‘web designer’. By pursuing related programmes and gaining skills in parallel domains, you can work as a UI designer, UX designer, graphic designer, information architect, design researcher or tester, social media designer and even interaction designer, among others. While some of these are more lucrative than the others, it is well-known that the tech-focused roles garner bigger payouts due to higher-level skills and demand. Skills Needed as a Web Designer As a web designer, one needs to be as adept at tech as at the non-tech features of building a website. To understand this better, some of the most critical skills needed to become a skilled web designer. ● Visual Design: While it’s implied that a ‘designer’ has the requisite design knowledge, you need to be more skilled at visual design suited for digital products. Therefore, you should be proficient at creating moodboards, proportions, design grids, etc., and have a clear visual design foundation. ● User Experience Design: Generally known as UX, this is not the same as the customarily used phrase, ‘graphic design’. A successful web designer empathises, evaluates and comprehends the mindset of his audience and inculcates it into the design. He approaches the design from a user-first perspective, builds and tests user flows and designs wireframes to ensure the experience is seamless.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

● Client handling: One of the most crucial soft skills to possess as a web designer is proficient as client management. As a designer, you are likely to handle multiple clients and projects simultaneously. To be able to manage your clients and be conscious of the budgetary expectations and workflow will definitely build your reputation as a professional. This is in no way an exhaustive list of skills needed to pursue a career in web design. With endless technological capabilities, you can equip yourself with (think the entire Adobe suite and other multimedia editing software), there are also softer skills like time management and communication that help in advancing your career as a web designer. While there are dedicated courses on web design, both full-time and part-time, students of multidisciplinary programmes like communication design are also equipped with advanced web design skills as a part of their curriculum. The web design industry has continually seen accelerated growth in the past few years with the boom in digital penetration and demand for mobile-responsive websites. There are extensive opportunities for career advancement in the field as an independent professional as well as a part of an organisation. If you love playing with visual elements and have a creative mindset, the ability to learn technology swiftly and eagerness to work with clients from across different genres, web design is definitely a career worth exploring.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Inculcating a Gurukul Methodology in the Indian Education to Improve the Employability Quotient Rajesh Panda, Founder & CEO, Corporate Gurukul

54 Please tell us about Corporate Gurukul. Corporate Gurukul’s focus is on upskilling students through applied learning experiences, internships, and research interventions, in association with the world’s top-ranked universities and corporates. Students are already acquiring a lot of knowledge through selfpaid academic coursework online and in the classroom. The challenge is they are not able to apply it to real-world problems. However, the industry needs students who have applied their knowledge in real-world situations. So, we addressed this need with self-paid internships and applied research with the world’s best universities and corporates. How Corporate Gurukul does it? We deliver these applied learning interventions by: 1. Providing hands-on or experiential learning for students to enact authentic industry and real-world scenarios 2. Equipping students with the skills to engage in the practical application of knowledge 3. Partnering with the industry, community, institutions of higher learning, and/or professional training bodies. Our internships and research interventions are in areas of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Entrepreneurship, and Leadership. They are delivered in association with the National

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Research internships are especially useful for undergraduates focusing on higher education or taking up R&D roles is new-age tech companies

55 Rajesh Panda

With the emerging need to deal with real-time problems, challenging environment, and pressure handling ability, the students are expected to have inherited management skills at multiple levels. Inculcating a gurukul methodology in the Indian education system will help students to inherit the capabilities to understand the corporate world workings. Corporate Gurukul is a learning and development company to make young managers, globally employable via the ‘Gurukul System.’ At the helm of its affairs is Rajesh Panda, Founder & CEO of Corporate Gurukul, who is an industry veteran with an experience of 20 years and the Chairperson of the Higher Education Forum (HEF), Singapore Chapter. In an interaction with Higher Education Digest, Rajesh Panda talks about the journey of Corporate Gurukul, how can Ed-Tech platforms prepare students for the corporate world via ‘Gurukul’ approach and many more.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Hewlett Packard, Amazon, and SoftBank. Students choose their area of passion for working on. Our partners train, mentor, support, and guide the students in their journey of applied learning and research. Students take up these internships and research interventions on-campus or online. With COVID, we are also exploring the blended learning model.

In India, we work with some of the top students from IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, BITS Pilani, SRM University, VIT Vellore, Delhi Technological University (DTU), Manipal University, and KIIT University among others. Since 2015, a combination of on-campus and online delivery models has helped us scaleup in the area of academic internships, research internships, and technology boot camps.

Tell us about your journey to date. I come from a brahmin family of teachers and educators, where top priority has been to acquire and impart knowledge. Self-Respect and respect from society for what we do came above everything else. My mother retired as the Principal of a government school at a salary of Rs 12,000/- per month after 34 years of service. Her commitment and dedication were impeccable, and it had a strong influence on me personally. We are bootstrapped. So, my journey has been powered by the fuel of realizing my passion for taking every student from good to great. We have always counted our success based on the number of alumni who have excelled in their area of passion and career of choice. Some facts and figures: Our journey started in 2007, with upskilling polytechnic students in Singapore. In 2008, we started delivering employability training and assessment for the Government of India. Beginning in 2009, we also independently worked with universities to address employability gaps in their students. In 2010, we kick-started applied experiential learning interventions for students from India with Ngee Ann Polytechnic, NUS, and NTU in Singapore. And then, as they say, the rest is history. Over the last 13 years, we have imparted applied learning experiences to over 150,000 participants from 21 countries across Asia, Australia, and the Middle East. We continue to be headquartered out of Singapore.

What is the industry market size of the segment that you operate in? Who are your direct competitors? In India, our target segment is the 4.5 million engineering undergraduates who want to apply their learning to the real-world. More importantly, among these students, our target will be students who have the courage to pursue their passion. In Asia, we do not have any direct competitors in academic internships or research internships. Some of the top universities themselves offer internships and students do apply directly. However, the demand-supply gap is huge and needs to be addressed at the earliest. Can ed-tech platforms prepare students for the corporate world via ‘Gurukul’ approach? The essence of gurukul pedagogy includes: 1. Learning integrated with society and realworld challenges/needs 2. Vocational training/ applied to learn at the core 3. Learning residential on-campus The above are being attempted/ delivered in various formats for on-campus university interventions but not in the ed-tech/ online world. There is a strong need for vocational training and applied learning which is now imperative as part of National Education Policy 2020. We do have a few experiential learning edtech platforms which have come up recently, but we will have to wait and watch their success in implementing ‘gurukul’ pedagogy. Summing up, I haven’t witnessed ed-tech platforms prepare students with ‘gurukul’ pedagogy, yet. However, they are imparting knowledge through various platforms and making learning interesting through gamification, simulation, and other methods. Let us wait and watch how the ed-tech platforms and industry evolves.

How is it becoming one of the leading internship platforms in India? Research internships are especially useful for undergraduates focusing on higher education or taking up R&D roles is new-age tech companies. We are leaders in ‘research internships’ and ‘applied learning’ in Asia.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

The industry needs students who have applied their knowledge in realworld situations 57

What kind of experiential programs for students will help them to grow better? As AI takes over the planet, some of the top future skills needed are: 1. Complex Problem Solving 2. Critical Thinking 3. Creativity 4. Cognitive Flexibility 5. People Management 6. Negotiation 7. Judgment and Decision Making Experiential learning programmes designed to immerse students in communities, real-world challenges, cross-cultural business scenarios, etc. can really help them evolve critical thinking, people management, and decision-making skills. For example, Corporate Gurukul conducts one such programme on ‘Design Thinking for Business Innovation’ with Nanyang Technological University (NTU). This Bootcamp is designed for international

students who immerse in Singapore for 4 weeks, conduct primary research, understand and identify problems across industries, ideate solutions, and create prototypes. Most of them report in their final presentation that it involved a creative approach, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, and crosscultural understanding – aspects they seldom explore even in their home countries. What are your thoughts on Upskilling, should students focus on it during this pandemic? The future of learning and upskilling will be: • Learn Online • Apply on-campus or in real-world As we experience lockdown, this is the best time for students to learn as much as possible online. Personalization of learning at scale across various platforms also helps students to learn at their own level and pace. So that should be the focus in a pandemic.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

The Upswing of Technology in Education Navakoti Ram, Managing Director and Chairperson, Upswing Learning

Online education can change the educational landscape of India. What is the status of digital learning in India? The education industry as a whole in India is traditionally identified as brick and mortar centres imparting education through teachers and students coming together from a community or neighbourhood setup. With the technology and digital narrative being profound and disruptive across most of the economic sectors, education has also joined the bandwagon, albeit still nascent in its adoption, with many strides yet to be taken in this regard. According to the KPMG report on the status of Online Education in India, the online education market size would increase from 0.25 billion in 2016 to close to a 2 billion market by 2021 and an average CAGR of 52% year on year. Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic caused havoc across the country since March, forcing schools and higher education institutions to close down, technology has come to the rescue, to bridge the gap in the teaching and learning process. Hence, accentuated to an unprecedented rise in digital users both in the B2B and B2C ed-tech space. Schools and colleges were quick to switch to digital classrooms, and young professionals and school-going children enrolled to learn new skills and undergo certifications such as coding, Machine learning and AI. However, despite the rise in users of digital tools, the adoption has been more of an â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;emergency remoteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; learning approach rather than an effective teaching-learning system,

Higher Education Digest October 2020

With the current digital revolution observed in institutions, there is an apparent digital divide and inequity between urban and rural educational institutions

Navakoti Ram

Gone are the days when learning was confined to well defined physical spaces. Today, as we are still trying to protect ourselves from COVID, adoption of online classes has allowed the students to continue their education without hindrance. “Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic caused havoc across the country, forcing schools and higher education institutions to close down, technology has come to the rescue, to bridge the gap in the teaching and learning process. It accentuated to an unprecedented rise in digital users both in the B2B and B2C ed-tech space,” says Navakoti Ram, Managing Director and Chairperson, Upswing Learning. In an interaction with Higher Education Digest, Navakoti Ram talks about how learning management can work as a teacher’s aide, current and upcoming digital learning trends, the inception of Upswing Learning and the gap it wishes to fulfil, and many more.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

which in turn leads to a growing disparity between urban elite schools and rural school. Lack of IT infrastructure and Internet connectivity being the key contributors.

The nationwide lockdown and school closures have brought online learning providers into the spotlight. How is Upswing Learning responding to it? With the massive enrolment and upsurge in digital tools and technologies ever since Covid-19 took a stranglehold on Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s growth story, Redseer consulting have predicted the EdTech sector to grow into a $5bn market by 2025. As a company, we at Upswing Learning pride ourselves at being at the forefront of technology innovation and the digital revolution in Indian education. Our R&D team are continually identifying and developing the next EdTech tool to make the teaching-learning process more immersive and effective. As a B2B company and also as an educationist, we give the quality of technology in supporting teachers and education institutions the utmost importance during innovation and approach. Within ten days from the onset of lockdown 1.0, we launched our proprietary digital classroom, proctored examination, automated admissions and our LMX technologies (a significant upgrade from the LMS). Our engagements with education institutions have increased by five times as compared with pre-COVID levels. With the recently announced National Education Policy 2020, it is clear that technology will have to play a vital role, in ensuring that the vision which the policy envisages, turns into a reality. In India, how seriously are students going to be set back by not having formal instruction? What are the efforts of Upswing Learning to control the damage? During the days of lockdown 1.0, with complete restriction to movement, productivity and output, the main cog of the teaching-learning process, which is human interaction, vanished. The only way to bridge this gap was to embrace technology tools to facilitate the teaching-learning process. The rapid adoption of video conferencing technologies served as a stop-gap arrangement for a steady mode of communication between teachers and their students, albeit not wholesome as compared to a physical teaching approach. The role of teachers is not just to teach a particular subject but also to guide, mentor and build a studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s persona. The role of a teacher and an institution can and never should be undermined and underestimated. As technology players and solution providers, our role is to ably support them with resources and tools to ensure more effective, innovative and enriching teaching-learning experiences.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Upswing Learning strongly believes that our technology must provide added value to an education environment where teachers use our platforms to conduct, manage and innovate their teaching approaches. Our proprietary LMX and live classroom tools are teachercentric, allowing teachers to have complete control of their classrooms. They would be able to create their own or use our lesson plans, manage student enrolment and attendance, gain insight on gaps in student absorption and device remedial approaches. A completely transparent, insightful and action-oriented digital environment that fulfils needs of each stakeholder is our offering in ed-tech. The digital divide between students in India has become apparent as schools have increasingly turned to online instruction. What can school systems do to address that gap? How is Upswing Learning helping students with online education in Tier II and III cities? As mentioned earlier, with the current digital revolution observed in institutions, there is an apparent digital divide and inequity between urban and rural educational institutions. Despite the massive penetration of the internet and mobile phone usage in India, we still observe that bandwidths and disruptions are profound in rural areas where electricity supply itself is irregular. For a useful digital mode of conducting and consuming digital content, there is a high dependency on IT infrastructure and hardware. The gap could be considerably reduced through government spending and CSR funding towards rural internet connectivity and necessary IT infrastructure. Once the smart city initiatives are implemented, we will also have well connected, digital towns coming up. Another critical problem that lies primarily in rural areas is the lack of quality teaching content with teachers not being able to impart education as effectively as their urban counterparts. As technology players, we believe that technologyaided tools and resources have considerable capabilities in reducing this gap. From an Upswing perspective, more than 50% of our current engagements come from tier 2, tier 3 and rural towns. The reason being that all our platforms are compatible across devices, be it a laptop, desktop or any smartphone. Bandwidth requirements for our digital classroom technology are low, and hence classes can continue to function even in low bandwidth areas. Our systems allow for a seamless synchronous and asynchronous learning environment with students being able to access content and videos curated by their teachers even during times of connectivity disruption. To ensure that teachers are updated, upskilled and made aware of best practices and approaches in the industry, all our subscribers are provided

with upskilling modules to ensure their teachers are in the best position to impart knowledge to students.

About

Navakoti Ram Navakoti Ram, the Chairperson and the Managing

Director

for

Upswing

Learning

spearheads the strategic goals of the company and is instrumental in constructing the company’s future roadmap. Ram has a proven track record of working across

industries

including

hospitality,

professional services, and consulting before focusing on his ventures in the education and ed-tech spaces. Navakoti holds a bachelor’s degree in Management Studies from the University of Nottingham, United Kingdom, and a Master’s degree in International Business from the Grenoble Graduate School of Business, London.

What are the common misconceptions Indian students have about online learning programs? What kinds of technologies would you recommend school systems adopt? There are quite a few misconceptions which are specific to the various groups of users. I shall focus broadly on two issues; firstly that ed-tech is a stop-gap arrangement with teachers fearing that it would replace them and secondly the issue that content provided by ed-tech is not valid and lacks the quality as compared to traditional courses and pedagogy. Before COVID, teachers were resistant to using technology primarily, with the inhibition and fear of technology replacing their roles. We at Upswing too felt this reluctance during our initial interactions with teachers. Teachers were then made aware that in reality, technology is an enabler, allowing them to perform their tasks more efficiently, effectively and help them focus on what they love doing, which is to teach. Upswing’s unique value proposition to educators is the fact that all our platforms, such as our LMX and Upswing classroom, are teacher-centric. The teachers have controls to manage their classroom and tools to identify the skills and levels of each student to then device individual approaches for each student. Over time we were able to successfully bring teachers on board by collaborating and curating content and pedagogy unique to each institution. With regards to the assumption that content and courses provided by ed-tech players are not quality-driven and comparable to their conventional counterparts, this notion is widely misplaced. With regards to Upswing’s content for schools and higher education, the content is curated by educators and teachers across India specific to syllabi and grades. What makes the content even more insightful is the fact this it supports differentiated and personalised learning. With alliances through subject matter and domain experts, ed-tech players are in an ideal position to curate and deliver content that is relevant, dynamic and effective to changes in the real world. What are some of the most innovative technologies in EdTech right now? What are the critical trends of e-learning to follow in 2020-21. Technology in the broader sense is equipped with vast artillery for any sector to take advantage of, be it artificial

Higher Education Digest October 2020

intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, data science and gamification. Ed-tech offerings have developed using these technologies to make teaching and learning more meaningful, innovative, enriching and accountable. In the B2B segment where Upswing operates, our AIenabled tools allow conducting proctored exams without the need for human intervention in the process. Suppose any candidate attempts to conduct malpractices such as using web browsers, screen sharing software, taking assistance of others during the exam as well as identifying devices within the vicinity of the exam taker, red flags get highlighted. Machine and deep learning insights through our LMX platform help teachers to identify strengths and weaknesses of students and pave an individualised learning path for them. In-turn enuring better outcomes to the teaching-learning process and help improve structure and pedagogy. With the emphasis on project-based learning as envisaged by the NEP 2020, we see immersive technology simulations using AR and VR. Simulated labs provide students with hands-on experience to understand key concepts, resulting in a deeper and better understanding of subject matter.

What are the opportunities Upswing Learning see in the Indian education market? Also, what are the challenges for you to become a significant player here? With the education market as a whole being a $100bn ocean, ed-tech is considerably smaller in size in its current state. However, as we have observed since the onset of the COVID 19 pandemic, ed-tech has undergone a hockey stick curve with an unprecedented rise in the number of organisations, retail users and educators alike. The traditionally slow sales process in a B2B sector, Upswing has also witnessed an increased demand and awareness for robust and immersive solutions. Teachers have understood that the learning curve to use digital platforms is relatively simple, effective and enjoyable. Demand-side dynamics have changed for Upswing as we have generated many leads from across tier1, tier 2 and tier 3 cities in India with many more in the pipeline. The closely-knit and wellconnected community within the education sector have been beneficial for Upswing as pleasant experiences with our current clients have gone a long way in converting new ones. Having said this, for a smaller sized company such as ours, the awareness and recall factor is something that we are constantly putting efforts into through our media and PR channels alongside our strong network in the academic community. It is pleasing to witness clients

Higher Education Digest October 2020

getting excited once we show them what our technology has to offer. Getting their attention to lead to the demo stage is where we are maximising our efforts. What would be the future of EdTech market from now? What is some advice that you have for startups that are emerging in the EdTech space? As a market, ed-tech in India is still nascent as compared to its western counterparts; the opportunity for growth is tremendous. We will continue to witness disruption in solutions, offerings and business models whilst also observing consolidations between technology players to access new markets, technologies and unlock synergies. From a curriculum and pedagogy standpoint, we will see an active role being played by technology through personalised learning paths, simulations and gamification. The industry will continue to attract attention and investment due to its disruptive nature and growth capabilities. We will start to witness a seamless collaboration between technology and educators across processes and delivery models, leading to a more robust flip learning and blended learning approach. To fellow members of the community and startup peers, one valuable piece of advice which has also worked for me is to be passionate about what you are looking out to do. As startups, it is imperative to be agile and flexible internally to adapt to market changes. More often than not, cash flows take time to materialise with intended ROIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s do not achieve as expected. However, this should not deter or demotivate individuals. One must have the passion and belief to persevere, listen to key stakeholders, revive and re-emerge. Easier said than done, the importance of passion is often undermined. It is the founderâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s passion and belief which is what sets the vision, the path and the framework the organisation must take to be successful. What is your advice to the online learning aspirants? To our fellow students, professionals and educators, the ones who consume the content; it is a great time being on the consumer side. With the amount of innovation and accessibility to quality, user-specific content, upskilling, un-learning and re-learning has become easy and effective. With the ed-tech market looking upwards into the future, I would love to see young professionals entering the segment, playing a crucial part in the next digital revolution to come up with innovations, technologies and companies to rival global powerhouses.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

Upskilling Through Online Education is the Best Way to Secure Jobs in the Future Divya Jain, Co-Founder and CEO, Safeducate

What is the impact of COVID-19 on the job market? COVID 19 has impacted the job market significantly, it is currently highly unstable, with most workers facing unemployment across the spectrum. Low economic growth with a rise in inequality can be expected in the coming days. For knowledge workers like software engineers and data scientists whose jobs can be done remotely, the results are mixed. For many employees, work from home has become the new norm, as they have adapted to it and are now comfortable with it. However, a large part of the working class has faced unemployment and to overcome this difficult situation, I believe Upskilling has to become the need of the hour. Tell us about the importance of upskilling for graduates and working professionals in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s situation. How can they be fit for the future? We are living in a period of uncertainty. Upskilling, in any stage of your career, is the only way one can survive continuous disruption. It is no longer relevant to have a mere college degree; real-life industry skills are equally needed, which can easily be provided through online courses. This aspect is more critical for high-school pass-outs and recent graduates. They need to be industry-ready and cannot merely expect to learn on the job. How has been the response from learners since Safeducate collaborated with Seekify to make a digital job preparedness platform? Tell us about the uniqueness of the courses you offer today. As educational institutions across the country experienced a halt due to the widespread COVID-19 outbreak, Safeducate partnered with

Higher Education Digest October 2020

Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s youth has the will and capacity to drive our nation towards a beautiful future

Divya Jain

Divya Jain is the Founder and CEO of Safeducate, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest training, skilling and consulting firm that specializes in the domains of Supply Chain Management & Logistics. She spearheads the corporate training initiative by hiring and nurturing trainers, interacting with different stakeholders to design and cost-effectively impart training sessions in over 50 cities in India. In an interaction with Higher Education Digest, Divya Jain talks about the ways graduates and working professional can work to be fit for the future, Safeducateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collaboration with Seekify to make a digital job preparedness platform, business expansion plans, and many more.

Higher Education Digest October 2020

About

Divya Jain Divya holds an LLB degree from the University of London and a Master’s degree in Management Studies from the University of Cambridge, UK and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Hindu College, Delhi University. She began her professional journey in 2005 as a financial analyst in Citibank. Divya then moved on to join Ernst and Young in India, and she worked as a Consultant with several Fortune 500 client companies, creating and validating business plans, conducting competitive analysis, and designing future business strategies for them.

Seekify to build Safejob to ensure uninterrupted skillbased learning for the youth. The platform is resolving the placement challenges faced by Indian youth through live and on-demand courses that are relevant to the Indian job market. We are offering these courses in vernacular languages too at affordable prices to reach out to the maximum number of youths. Masterclass in Logistics (Tamil), Masterclass in Advance Excel in Logistics (Hindi), Masterclass in Human Resources, Masterclass in Sales, Masterclass in SCM, Certificate in Retail Management, Certificate in CRM (English) are a few of our popular masterclass and certificate courses. We have also introduced the Safejob Xceed program, which is a unique learning path consisting of defined milestones to meet one’s learning & knowledge requirements to pursue any particular career. It comprises a mix of live masterclasses and pro-certification programs in the industry, functional, professional and technical skills to prepare one for an interview. By enrolling in Xceed, individuals can upgrade their skills, gain crucial industry knowledge and also improve their personality. At the same time, we prepare them to crack job interviews and give wings to their career by getting them job interview opportunities. We believe that India’s youth has the will and capacity to drive our nation towards a

Higher Education Digest October 2020

beautiful future, and in post-COVID India, a platform like ours is the need of the hour. What are your plans on business expansion? We are just getting started, and we will grow most importantly towards helping our students with job readiness and placement support. We will be going more in-depth in local languages and across Industries. We are working towards setting up a multilingual live and ondemand platform to offer short term skilling across sectors and profiles for entry-level job positions. Safejob is also planning to roll out an online subscription-based training model for corporates like Flipkart offering customized, off-the-shelf live and on-demand training for employees. Why short – term courses (1.5 – 3 months) are helpful for professionals at any level? Short term courses are easy to learn, considering the shortage of time in a working professional’s everyday life. What is your advice to the working professionals across the sector? Online education is now the best way to upskill in relevant areas. This will ensure that your job is secure in the future, no matter what the future may hold.

Higher Education Digest October 2020