-By ArdorComm News Network
June 15, 2022
“If you have a good network you have an excellent net worth,” says Dr Sachin S Vernekar, Dean, FMS; Director, IMED, Bharati Vidyapeeth (Deemed to be University) in an interview with Chandan Anand, Founding Editor, ArdorComm Media Group at the ‘ArdorComm – Higher Education and Edtech Conclave & Awards 2022’ #HEETPune
Under your leadership how IMED has diversified in overall development in teaching and learning process?
At the very outset let me congratulate ArdorComm Media for the excellent job you have done because today network is net worth and you have brought the academicians, the corporates almost all the stakeholders on the same platform that’s a great job you have done I would say. As far as I’m concerned, I have joined Bharati Vidyapeeth in 1985 and for the last 37 years I’m working for Bharati Vidyapeeth. From a faculty to director, to team, campus in charge, so I have played different roles in Bharati Vidyapeeth. Like Indra Nooyi always says we are all students, throughout our life we have to be students even today I am a student so I have tried my best to ensure that our students get the right input because through seven tire feedback system the fire time counselling system, industry institute partnership summit, 80-20 pattern that we have, 80 percent of the syllabus covered by the regular faculty, 20 percent by the corporates, the different events then support of the digital media the online programs the MOOCs, 20 to 40 percent is the digital media, the online courses that we have and more than 60 percent it is offline. So, these are the various things that we do, international conferences, national conferences, IMED gems i.e. inter class competition. We have expressions where we give an opportunity to the student not only from IMED, we give opportunities from 40 to 50 colleges across India to unfold their hidden qualities. Best manager, best entrepreneur, Elocutions, there are so many events that we organize and what I believe in is, we being the teachers we have to ensure that the students are exposed to fine aspects of management, holistic development of the students is very important, their physical features their mental faculties their mannerisms, their etiquettes all are very important. We want the students to be best citizens, very good citizens of this country. They should be proud of their country, their organization, their parents and I want these students to be very honest, committed and with lot of integrity and this is our focus and accordingly we are shaping and reshaping and organizing various events.
What should be the criteria or what assessment a student should do before finalizing any admission in any institute?
What I would say is the very important thing for any student is not just the package the institute gives, generally what happens the students are looking for the placements, what is the highest package, they directly come and ask also what I feel the students need to be knowledge oriented not just the exam or placement oriented. The students will have to see, they have to find out who are the alumni, who are the alumnus of this particular institution what they are, what contributions are they making to the society, what kind of faculty they have, what is the curriculum and overall culture in the organization. What matters is the culture in that organization, whether it is society oriented or it is commercial and frankly speaking Bharati Vidyapeeth is social organization where we see the interest of every stakeholder in the society so they should look for the institutions where better citizens are prepared, where proud feeling is developed, where they think global, but act local.
When we witness the forum and conclaves like this where we see the exhibition also where ed-tech companies, start-ups and MNC’s are displaying the product and services lots of academicians and educators and even the government involvement, how does it overall help?
Greatly helps, I interacted with SAS people, I interacted with Coursera, I interacted with many directors, the corporates it really helps because there are many things that are happening in the world unless we join such a network unless we attend participate in such panel discussions we will not know what’s happening around the world. We are the students and we should keep learning what was there yesterday is not today and it will not be tomorrow. The test preferences are changing technology is changing now today it’s all digital but to what extents we should go digital that’s again an important question. So, we have to have an excellent balance and such forums are very important after two years I think this is the first offline forum where vice chancellors, the corporates, the directors, the deans have been invited and excellent, I would say the session that I attended just now, excellent speakers, your choice is really good they have the experience to speak about, it was really great.
Any message would you like to give to ArdorComm Media?
Yeah definitely you have been doing great, I can see that one question everybody has to ask to himself and the organization, is my organization growing or growing old, am I growing or I am growing old and I must say your organization, ArdorComm Media is growing, not growing old it is growing and it has a great future. The way networking has been done today, if you have a good network you have an excellent net worth.