Education Headlines - 16th December, 2010
MCI Gets SC Nod To Conduct Common Entrance Test For Medical Courses Across India
In a historic verdict, the Supreme Court (SC) ruled that the Medical Council of India (MCI) can conduct a common entrance test (CET) for admission to undergraduate medical courses in colleges across the country to reduce stress level among students. MCI is free to frame rules of the test too. Currently, 17 entrance tests are held across India (including different state entrance tests). Until now, students have been taking a minimum of seven tests on an average for the 32,000 available seats in undergraduate medical courses pan-India. MCI source says that the CET will be conducted from next academic session itself and will cover all government, private and even minority institutions.
Source: 13th December, 2010, DNA India
University Of Petroleum And Energy Launches New Exclusive B.Tech + LLB Programmes
University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES) - Dehradun has come up with two unique first-of-their-kinds specialized integrated degree programmes in South Asia. They are - (a) B.Tech in Energy Technology + LLB with emphasis on Intellectual Property Rights, and (b) B.Tech in Computer Science + LLB with emphasis on Cyber Laws. The duration of both these programmes is six years. The programmes are approved by the Bar Council of India (BCI) and aim to develop legal professionals with technical acumen to guide corporate clients through the intricacies of regulatory framework, joint ventures, mergers & acquisitions and cyber laws.
Source: 10th December, 2010, Edu-Leaders.com
IIM Ahmedabad and IIM Bangalore in World's Top 100 B-Schools Again!
IIM Bangalore and IIM Ahmedabad have once again made it the top 100 of the ‘Eduniversal Worldwide Business Schools Ranking 2010' Survey conducted by a French consulting firm - SMBG. Both the management institutes have been awarded ‘5 Palms' - highest recognition for ‘Universal Business Schools with major international influence'. IIMB has been ranked at #24 while IIMA has been ranked at #52.
Source: 11th December, 2010, DNA India
IISc Launched A New UG Programme For Future Researchers
Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore is all set to launch a new four-year undergraduate (UG) Bachelor of Science (BS) programme in the coming academic session in 2011. The main aim of the course is to prepare young minds for research and doctoral studies in the upcoming areas of science and technology. Besides motivating students to take up higher research, mentoring and tutorials, the programme will introduce rigorous specializations in fourth, fifth, and sixth semesters. The students will be allowed to choose electives from other streams as well during this period. In the seventh and eighth semesters, students will work on a research-oriented project supervised by a faculty. Admissions to the programme will be based on national entrance examinations like IIT JEE, AIEEE, AIPMT, and Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana.
Source: 12th December, 2010, DNA India
Indian Medical Association Planning To Establish Central University
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) is planning to set up a central university to offer postgraduate courses, including ones in family medicine and emergency medicine. However, IMA's National President G. Samaram is opposing the three-and-a-half year course of Bachelor of Rural Healthcare, as proposed by the government. The dialogue between IMA and the government is on for awarding accreditation to the medical education programmes currently being offered through the Tamil Nadu Medical Council.
Source: 13th December, 2010, C2clive.com
Himachal Private University Bill Passed As A Landmark Education Legislation
Himachal Pradesh became the first Indian state to enact a law to regulate its private universities to maintain the quality and standards of the education programmes offered by them. The bill also seeks to control the power of existing universities to set up off-campus study centers and control corruption in their admission processes. Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said, "The law would show the way to the rest of the country as it's a landmark legislation to maintain the quality and standard of education in private institutions".
Source: 10th December, 2010, Edu-Leaders.com
Spanish varsities partner Indian counterparts, offer scholarships
Spain's Alliance 4 Universities (A-4U), a partnership between four leading Spanish public universities, announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with six leading Indian educational institutions to collaborate on higher education and develop programmes, as well as for faculty exchange.
A-4U member institutes are going to offer undergraduate, graduate and PhD programmes in engineering, social sciences, arts, humanities, sciences, and information technology taught in English and/or Spanish.
Some of the Spanish institutions include Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona, Barcelona and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid.
The Indian side was represented by Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore; National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur and Birla Institute of Management & Technology; Greater Noida, among others.
Taking the courses taught in Spanish will give students an edge, say A-4U officials, as this can open up placement opportunities in the huge Spanish-speaking global market. The fees for the courses are low as compared to institutes in the United Kingdom or the United States (the estimated fee for a 10-month course is about €8,600 or Rs 5.13 lakh).
There would be scholarships for the students too. "We will offer scholarships and fee waivers worth over € 9 million in total for postgraduate study and research to non-EU student," says Professor Ana Ripoll Aracil, president, A-4U.
Source: 16th December, 2010, HT Horizons
TA Pai Management Institute (TAPMI) sets up a new campus
TAPMI (TA Pai Management Institute), inaugurated its 42-acre campus which is equipped with state of the art facilities and has a built up area of over 1.2 lakh sq ft covering the residential facility for over 600 students and faculty.
The campus is Wi-Fi enabled and has a most modern computer centre. The campus library is open 24/7 and has 33,000 books, 285 journals and 17 online databases in addition to Harvard publications (HBS). The campus will be used for PGDM programmes in management and new programmes such as the two-year residential PGDM in Healthcare Management and e-Governance Program for executives (e-GPX).
Source: 16th December, 2010, HT Horizons
