Stress on skill development

NEW DELHI: After realising that education should, besides broadening one’s horizon, help improve the quality of life, the government in the Tenth Plan, has proposed to promote the concept of skill-oriented add-on courses at the undergraduate level.
Employers often prefer graduates equipped with certain basic skills. The government can devise ways so that a student could get a degree as well diploma at the undergraduate level. While the degree would be awarded in the core subject, the diploma would be skill-based.
Another idea that is being considered is the dual degree. Under this system, students can go ahead with their basic three-year degree programme without compromising the basic course. After which the students will spend a year in which they will have to opt for an applied course.
This proposal is an outcome of the government’s understanding that the service industry has a preference for graduates who have a sound base in their core disciplines as well as a mastery over relevant skills. For example it is believed that for jobs in areas such as refrigeration, biotechnology, employers would prefer science graduates with information and communication technology skills.
Areas that would be opened up for graduates to acquire skills in would be insurance, foreign exchange regulations, translation proficiency, tourism, business processes outsourcing, bio-informatics.
Industry watchers, however, have a slightly different view. They too agree that the education system needs to be much more in tune with the demands of the industry or job market. However, they feel that often in jobs like those of insurance agents, financial services or other emerging areas such as biotechnology, business process outsourcing, there is no pressing requirement for graduates.
Experts feel that greater purpose would be served if those with a school education were trained in these emerging areas instead training graduates. To begin with it would open up the job market for a larger number. It would also reduce unnecessary pressure on the university system, where often students are enrolled for the lack of alternative opportunities.
According to the industry, often a graduate or management student is overqualified for the job, but are hired simply because there is no other source of qualified personnel.