Gateway to a university focused on entrepreneurship
About UGC:
- It was established in 1956 as a statutory authority.
- It is in charge of organising, deciding upon, and upholding higher education standards.
- It grants recognition to Indian universities and distributes funding to these accredited colleges and universities.
Universities that foster entrepreneurship:
- This collaborative effort between academics and business to develop breakthroughs has produced new goods, services, platforms, and patents.
- This notion is thought-provoking.
- Universities should serve as the primary source of fresh information and research; attempts to commercialise this goal should be discouraged.
- The goal of modern universities and “educational entrepreneurs” is to strike a delicate balance between education and business so that students pay the best possible price for learning new information, developing employable skills, or engaging in meaningful research.
The pressure from UGC:
- The University Grants Commission’s (UGC) move to formalise the idea of the “Professor of Practice” is a good first step towards creating an entrepreneurial university.
- It demonstrates how colleges are in the best position to support innovation because of the constant influx of creative individuals looking to expand the boundaries of knowledge.
Practice-Based Professor:
- By including practitioners, legislators, trained professionals, etc. in the higher education system, it aims to improve the calibre of education.
- By creating a new category of positions, the programme seeks to introduce industry and other professional knowledge into academic institutions.
- This will improve faculty resources in higher education institutions and help incorporate real-world experiences and techniques into the classroom.
- Graduates with the necessary training and skills will be beneficial to both industry and society.
- A person assigned to a faculty post at a university with considerable experience in their profession, known as a PoP, does so in order to impart practical knowledge and skills to students.
- PoPs are frequently employed from outside of academia and may not be needed to hold a PhD or other advanced research degree, in contrast to regular academic professors.
- They are expected to contribute real-world viewpoints and insights to the classroom because of their training and experience in a particular field or sector.
- PoPs work in a variety of industries, including journalism, engineering, business, and the arts.
- For instance, a PoP in engineering can share their knowledge of applied learning and teach courses that emphasise real-world, practical applications.
- They could act as project mentors for students.
- Provide new courses that are more in line with current business trends.
- Work together on research projects with other faculty members and provide guidance on how to turn patents into commercial products—a process that is routinely carried out in the industry.
- As brand ambassadors for their colleges, PoPs can cultivate connections with business associates and assist in putting students in touch with internship and employment opportunities.
- In order to remain current with industry developments and best practices, they can take part in conferences and professional organisations.
- PoPs have the power to transform an institution’s commercial mindset and rekindle the initiatives that give its culture life.
Education-related provisions found in the Constitution:
- Education was transferred from the State to the Concurrent List in 1976 by the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution.
- Article 21A: It states that all children between the ages of six and fourteen have the fundamental right to free and compulsory education.
- Article 39(f) stipulates that children must be provided with the means and chances to grow up in a healthy way, with freedom and dignity.
- Article 45: The State shall make every effort to offer free and compulsory education for all children until they reach the age of fourteen within ten years of the adoption of this Constitution.
- Article 46: The State shall provide special attention to advancing the economic and educational interests of the most vulnerable groups within society.
The Way Ahead:
- Globally, the development of new specialties has accelerated due to the modern university system.
- Universities are gaining intellectual and financial value from innovations that combine research from academia and industry.
- It is unquestionably necessary to develop tools and avenues that support research and culminate in the commercialization of research results in order for the university system to profit from the intellectual property of novel products or procedures.
- In the industrial era, teaching and research served as a university’s cornerstones.
- Innovation is the third pillar of higher education in the post-knowledge cultures of today. Additionally, this ought to be an ongoing endeavour.
- Every professor will be able to combine ideas and launch start-up businesses once this innovative culture takes hold.
- These academic start-ups would not only nurture concepts but also turn concepts into patents and then turn patents into products that could be sold.
- A new wave of “entrepreneurs in residence” will be ushered in by PoPs, paving the opportunity for talented students to found the next Google on campus.
