The University Grants Commission (UGC) has permitted select colleges to introduce a three-year Bachelor of Vocation (B.Voc.) course with multiple exit provisions — a diploma at the end of first year and an advanced diploma after two years.
Sources in the UGC said JSS College for Women, Mysore; JSS College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Mysore; Mount Carmel College, Bangalore; and Tumkur University Science College campus had been permitted to offer the course from the academic year 2014-15.
The skill-based specialised course has been conceived to meet the industry’s requirements.
The introduction of the B.Voc. course is part of the UGC’s efforts to promote skill development-based higher education, incorporating specific job roles under the National Skills Qualification Framework, which was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Skill Development at a meeting in New Delhi in December 2013.
“The higher education system has to incorporate the requirements of industries in its curriculum in an innovative and flexible manner while developing a holistic and well-groomed graduate,” sources said.
The course curriculum is so structured that students, at the end of each year, will be trained to acquire certain level of professional skill and knowledge, besides core skills and responsibilities, said Suma Singh, co-ordinator of Internal Quality Assurance Cell at Mount Carmel College, Bangalore.
“There will be an industry partner for every semester and the teaching faculty will be mostly drawn from the industry. Guest faculty payment accounts for a major share of the funding the provided to the colleges by the UGC,” Dr. Singh said.
There will be campus placement sessions for the students at the end of each year.
After UGC invited proposals from recognised universities and colleges for starting the B.Voc. course, Mount Carmel College sent proposals to start two programmes — analytics and hospital and tourism.
Students, who do not wish to pursue conventional degree programmes and seek to enter the market with the skill sets that the industry needs, can explore the option of B.Voc., said college principal Sr. Arpana adding that the course not only drew industry experts as resource people, but also offered exciting internships.
Lokesha Murthy, principal of JSS College for Women, Mysore, said it was the first time that the UGC had permitted the introduction of such a vocational degree course with exit options and added that his college would soon invite applications from students.
