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Are you a working professional with no time to pursue a Master’s degree at the Indian Institute of Technology?
Don’t worry, the institute will reach out to you, virtually.
In a bid to attract executives from the corporate world to pursue higher studies, IIT Madras will soon launch a live online classroom-based course, the first such initiative from the IITs.
Students will log on to the virtual classroom to attend the two-hour classes, which is scheduled to take place at the campus starting 5 pm, said Bhaskar Ramamurthi, Director, IIT Madras.
“We have made a list of courses to offer, beginning with automobiles. The institute will get the industry’s feedback before launching the courses,” he told Business Line . A task force has finalised the report.
Some logistics needed to be worked out before launch, he said, without giving any timeframe.
The length of the programmes and the certificates to be awarded will be finalised soon. Those who already hold M.Tech degrees may even be able to pursue a PhD.
What industry wants
“Officials of automobile companies want something like this very badly. They encourage their employees to purse higher studies and research. Sectors like automobile, construction, telecom and networking have shown a lot of interest,” he said.
Many companies have tied up with large private institutions to enable their employees to go for higher studies.
For instance, Cognizant Technology Solutions has tied up with BITS Pilani and VIT University for post graduate courses.
Employees access the course content online within the company, and visit the VIT campus in Chennai during weekends.
Each industry wants specific courses. “The initiative from IIT Madras is interesting. However, they need to customise the courses for each industry,” said a Cognizant official.
Other IITs to join
IIT Madras will launch the online initiative but eventually others will join the network.
If the expertise is in Mumbai or Delhi, they will also join the programme. IIT Madras will conduct regular exams and give certificates.
Ramamurthi said the initiative would also help in spotting potential Ph.D candidates.
Every year, around 15 ‘sponsored’ candidates from the industry join the institute to do M.Tech.The Anil Kakodkar Committee, in its report on `Taking IITs to Excellence and Greater Relevance’, had recommended an Executive M.Tech programme for about 10,000 working professionals through live video classes to enhance the knowledge base in the industry.
The National Programme on Technology Enabled Learning — a joint initiative between the IITs and the Indian Institute of Science — provides free lectures online and video courses in engineering, science and humanities under a distance education programme.
While they are recorded, the new initiative is going to be live streaming of classes, Ramamurthi said.
raja.simhan@thehindu.co.in
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