Campus update

Medical Council of India (MCI) grants acceptance to CIE English examination:

New Delhi, July 2, Wednesday, 2008:  The Medical Council and CBSE today granted acceptance and equivalence to the AS Level English language advanced subsidiary course offered by University of Cambridge International Examinations (CIE).The new directive by the MCI and CBSE also stipulated that the popular AS level will now be extended to standard XII instead of standard XI and will be a part of the external examination at the end of class XII.

The move aims to streamline the procedure for admission to undergraduate medical courses. This has been communicated to CIE by a formal letter by the Medical Council of India. Speaking on the occasion Ian Cambers, CIE Regional Manager, South Asia, said, “We are delighted that CBSE now accepts the Cambridge AS level English advanced subsidiary course as an equivalent English language qualification for admission to undergraduate medical courses. This simplifies the process for students who are aspire to take up pre medical entrances in the country.”

The development will help CIE and CBSE bring uniformity to common entrance examinations. “The recognition of Cambridge GCE AS level English language by CBSE as an equivalent to class 12 standard examination is indeed an achievement. Now it will allow students who are studying CIE curriculum a fair chance to compete for medical courses in India. This is a very welcome development.” said Soumita Mukherjee, Teacher, DPS International, Delhi.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Lawrence Fray, Principal, Vidya Sanskar International School, Faridabad said, “This is the most welcome step from the CBSE for the students of CIE as they will be treated as par to their counterparts and can devote more time for other subjects like Phyics, Chemistry and Biology to clear medical entrance examinations”.

Spreading light
Career Launcher Education Foundation (CLEF) has partnered with Roshni Academy with an aim to drive deserving underprivileged girls to realise their potential and make their dreams come true. In a one-of-its-kind pilot project which began on June 17, Roshni Academy, along with the Career Launcher will train the girls in a wide range of skills that will boost their self-confidence helping them to achieve their potential as students and later as professionals.

The programme will teach English, computer literacy, communication and public speaking, leadership and teamwork, health/hygiene/nutrition and give them career advice.

The project founder, 22-year-old Saima Hasan, is a graduate from Stanford University and has worked as the director of fund raising for Steve Westly's election campaign for governor of California. The pilot programme will end on June 29. Delhi chief minister Sheila Dixit inaugurated the programme lauding the efforts of the team members.

New course
Keeping in mind the exponential rise in demand for healthcare services in India, XIM-Bhubaneswar has started a one-year full-time postgraduate programme in hospital management. The programme provides a generalist perspective, which enables students to view the hospitals in a holistic manner as well as place it in the context of the larger demand for healthcare services. It is aimed at developing competent and committed personnel who can create favorable environment in hospitals for providing quality healthcare based on ethical values with passion and compassion.

The minimum requirement for admission to the programme is postgraduate/graduate in any discipline with relevant work experience. Work experience may be relaxed in the case of postgraduate and professional degree holders (MBBS, B.Sc in Nursing, B.Pharm etc.). The programme begins on 11th August 2008. The course structure includes sector-specific modules like biostatistics, medical terminology and health economic and hospital planning, as well as soft skills modules like oral
communication.

ISME graduation
The graduation ceremony of the batch of 2007 of International School of Management Excellence (ISME), Bangalore was held at Leela Palace, Bangalore. It was a grand ceremony that initially had two panel discussions by Directors and VP’s of top companies.

Zaheer Travadi, UR talent & innovation project manager, IBM India, addressed the class on ‘Gearing Up for Service Innovation’. Lloyd Nazareth, associate VP, Worckhardt Hospitals, addressed the students on ‘Opportunities in Health Care Sector’. Other speakers included Henk Keizer, lead auditor- Management Systems & Inspections, KEMA Netherlands; Prof. David Kimber, IESEG, School of Management, Lillie, France; Dr. Mohan Sharma from Motorola India Pvt Ltd; Chandran Natarajan, President and Head of India Operations, Ion Idea; and Dr Nand Kishore Rathi, director campus Relations, Asia Pacific, Oracle.

Spreading light: Career Launcher Education Foundation (CLEF) has partnered with Roshni Academy with an aim to drive deserving underprivileged girls to realise their potential and make their dreams come true. In a one-of-its-kind pilot project which began on June 17, Roshni Academy along with the Career Launcher trained the girls in a wide range of skills to boost their self-confidence helping them to achieve their potential as students and later as professionals.

The programme taught English, computer literacy, communication and public speaking, leadership and teamwork, health/hygiene/nutrition and give them career advice.

Roshni Academy is attempting to level the playing field by improving a student’s English, communication, and writing skills, among other nonacademic skills. It also aims to help students to achieve their highest academic potential.

The project founder 22-year-old Saima Hasan is a graduate from Stanford University who has worked as the director of fund raising for Steve Westly’s election campaign for governor of California.

Thirty girls were selected for this year’s programme through a competitive application process. The criteria for applying included the following: 1) applicants must be female; 2) applicants must be pursuing 10th-11th grade; 3) applicants from government or private schools must fall into the “low income” bracket, having no higher family income than of Rs 5, 000 per month.

The final participants were chosen through a written application, an aptitude test, an interview with parents and references from principals and teachers.

During the course of the pilot programme, students were evaluated by a team of professional faculty members. At the end of the programme, the top three students were awarded full university scholarships, funded by the Nurul Hasan Education Foundation.

The pilot programme ended on June 28. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit inaugurated the programme, lauding the efforts of the team members.

XAVIER INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT BHUBANESWAR:
One-Year Full-Time Postgraduate Programme in Hospital Management: Hospitals play a critical in improving the health status of the society and they are the backbone of the healthcare delivery system. There are nearly 5500 hospitals (both in public and private sector) in India. Until the early 1980's, India's population relied heavily on the hospitals run by the government and charitable organisations for health care. This scenario, however has witnessed a major change since late 1980s as the health sector has attracted private capital and fresh investments in setting-up hospitals and nursing homes. Despite the exponential growth in the hospitals, the demands of the population are barely met. WHO estimates that India needs 80,000 hospital beds each year in the next five years to meet the demands of its population.

Increased level of awareness, growing demand for quality care and the growing interest to protect the rights of the consumers have become major challenges for the medical staff. They can no more afford to devote sufficient time to address and handle the non-medical day-to-day administrative affairs. The doctors, who are expected to manage hospitals, have not received management training. Thus, the delivery of effective health care services requires professionals trained in hospital management.

The programme provides a generalist perspective which enables students to view the hospitals in a holistic manner as well as place it in the context of the larger demand for healthcare services. While the programme is based on the standard model of management education as practiced by top ranking institutions, this programme is distinguished by its rigour and discipline and the strong emphasis on hospital based learning.

Goal:
The one-year programme is a flagship educational programme aimed at developing competent and committed personnel who can create favorable environment in hospitals for providing quality healthcare based on ethical values with passion and compassion.

Admission Procedure
Eligibility:
Selection: The minimum requirement for admission to the Programme is : Postgraduate/Graduate in any discipline with relevant work experience. Work experience may be relaxed in the case of Postgraduate and professional degree holders (MBBS, B.Sc in Nursing, B.Pharm etc.). Candidates who expect to complete the final part of their degree examinations by June 15, 2008 may also apply. Offers of admission to such candidates, if made, will be provisional and will be automatically cancelled in the event of their failing to complete all the requirements for obtaining degree before June 15, 2008. A student after joining a programme in this Institute will not be permitted to sit for any examination of any other institution or agency. Applicants upon the submission of the completed application form will be admitted on the basis of a written test, (including customer service orientation) group discussion (GD) and personal interview (PI). The written test will be conducted at XIMB followed by GD and PI.

Application:
The cost of the PGPHM prospectus is Rs.800/-. The applicant can obtain the PGPHM prospectus from the XIMB admission office by cash payment. The application can also be downloaded from XIMB website and completed applications should be submitted to XIMB with a draft of Rs. 800/- made in favour of XIMB and drawn on the State Bank of India, Bhubaneswar or on AXIS Bank, Bhubaneswar.

Admission:
Candidates who are selected for admission to the postgraduate programme must indicate their acceptance of the admission offer and all related conditions, by paying the first instalment of fees as detailed in the letter of admission before the date stipulated therein. The programme will begin on 11th of August 2008. At this time the students will be given a Manual of Policies and Regulations, which will be binding on them.

ADMISSION NOTIFICATION 2008-09

SARDAR VALLABHBHAI PATEL
INSTITUTE OF TEXTILE MANAGEMENT
An Autonomous Institute, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India

Institute of Apparel Management (IAM) under the aegis of AEPC (Apparel Export Promotion Council)

Programmes (July, 2008 onwards):-
PG Programmes

• Apparel Marketing & Merchandising (18 months full time)
• Entrepreneurship Programme for Apparel Industry (18 months full time)
• Apparel Export Merchandising (1 year full time)
• Apparel Retail Merchandising & Store Operations (1 year full time)

UG Programme in association with Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Australia

• Fashion & Textiles Merchandising-Bachelor of Applied Science (2+1 year full-time UG Programme)

Eligibility for PG Programmes:- Graduation in any discipline or 3 years recognized diploma (after 10+2)
Eligibility for UG Programme:- 10+2 in any discipline from a recognized board of education
Last date:- Monday the 30th June, 2008

Address:- INSTITUTE OF APPAREL MANAGEMENT (under the aegis of Apparel Export Promotion Council), 7th Floor, Apparel House, Institutional Area, Sector-44, Gurgaon-122 003.

Website:- www.iamindia.in
E-mail: admissions@iamindia.in          

Online education
Info Edge (India) Ltd, parent company of Naukri.com, launched Shiksha.com, an education portal recently. Shiksha.com aims to be a comprehensive one-stop resource for information on education. The company plans to invest $5- 10 million in the portal over the next three years.

According to Hitesh Oberoi, COO and director, Info Edge (India) Ltd, “The education market in India is pegged at over Rs 1,20,000 crore, with over 10 million people registering for higher education every year. Shiksha.com will provide a platform to students in the 15-24 age group to research for courses and colleges online. At the same time it will enable educational institutes to reach out to their target audience.”

Shiksha.com has over 70,000 listings on institutes, courses, events, admissions, results and scholarships. It lists information on graduate, postgraduate and vocational programmes from colleges in India and in countries like Singapore, US, UK, Australia etc. Users can find details on professional, overseas, test preparations, executive short term courses. The site allows users to interact with other Shiksha.com users, college and alumni groups. It hosts an ‘ask and answer’ section for users to get their education related queries answered by expert counsellors and other members.

Competitive exam
UEI Global School of Service Management is all slated to organise its All India Common Entrance Examination (CEE) in June 2008, for students seeking a degree in hospitality management. UEI Global School of Service Management has selected 59 locations where the CEE will be conducted in India. It is inviting students from across India to be a part of their prestigious three year degree programme in hospitality management for the batch of 2008-11.

“The service industry today is booming and it promises a bright future for anyone who wishes to take up a career in this segment. We at UEI Global have ensured that our hospitality management course has been designed to complement the needs of this ever-growing industry. We are proud to present the common entrance examination which is our medium of reaching out to maximum number of young professionals who have what it takes to make a statement,” said Praveen Roy, Managing Director, Berggruen Education Pvt. Ltd, while announcing the schedule of the exams. Top