Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Why Mumbai University produces more billionaires than the IITs
Neither the Indian Institute of Technology nor Oxford or Cambridge appears in the list of top 20 colleges with largest number of billionaire alumni.
Mumbai University is the only institution outside the US and UK to feature in a top ten list of billionaire alumni compiled by the research firm Wealth-X. While Harvard topped the list with 25 former students who went on to become billionaires, Mumbai University came in at number 9, with 12 billionaire alumni.
The hyper-competitive Indian Institutes of Technology, alma mater to two generations of tech entrepreneurs, did not feature even in the top 20.
But ranked by academic excellence, the situation is reversed. While the IITs occupy the first six spots in a rating of Indian universities by the British agency Quacquarelli Symonds, Mumbai University didn't even feature in the top ten.
One explanation for the enormous affluence of the Mumbai University alumni could be sheer volume. The colleges that come under the umbrella of the premier university in India's commercial capital have 2.3 lakh students on their rolls, many of them from the country's richest families. That's approximately 23 times the number of students at all the IITs.
There are only 16 Indian Institutes of Technology, while Mumbai University has more than 500 colleges affiliated to it.
However, if the ratio of billionaires to the student body is considered, Mumbai University falls way down the list and the IITs come out tops.
Most of the colleges in the list are from the United States. One is from England, one from Russia, one from India and one from Switzerland.
We welcome your comments at letters@scroll.in.
Mumbai University is the only institution outside the US and UK to feature in a top ten list of billionaire alumni compiled by the research firm Wealth-X. While Harvard topped the list with 25 former students who went on to become billionaires, Mumbai University came in at number 9, with 12 billionaire alumni.
The hyper-competitive Indian Institutes of Technology, alma mater to two generations of tech entrepreneurs, did not feature even in the top 20.
But ranked by academic excellence, the situation is reversed. While the IITs occupy the first six spots in a rating of Indian universities by the British agency Quacquarelli Symonds, Mumbai University didn't even feature in the top ten.
One explanation for the enormous affluence of the Mumbai University alumni could be sheer volume. The colleges that come under the umbrella of the premier university in India's commercial capital have 2.3 lakh students on their rolls, many of them from the country's richest families. That's approximately 23 times the number of students at all the IITs.
There are only 16 Indian Institutes of Technology, while Mumbai University has more than 500 colleges affiliated to it.
However, if the ratio of billionaires to the student body is considered, Mumbai University falls way down the list and the IITs come out tops.
Most of the colleges in the list are from the United States. One is from England, one from Russia, one from India and one from Switzerland.
We welcome your comments at letters@scroll.in.
Monday, October 20, 2014
Mumbai University is set to issue mark sheets with photographs
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked all universities to consider issuing mark sheet with the photograph of the student to check duplication of final year marks statements.
Mumbai University is set to issue mark sheets with photographs of students on them. The document will also have a number of security features like hologram and water mark.
The higher education regulator has suggested to vice chancellors of other universities to adopt the Mumbai University model, while appreciating the initiative taken by the latter.
“The commission appreciates this initiative of the university which shall help in eliminating duplicity of mark sheets. The other universities may also consider adopting this feature along with other security features to bring about uniformity and transparency within the system,” UGC secretary Jaspal S Sandhu said in his letter to varsity heads recently.
The UGC move follows a recommendation by Shiv Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP Anil Desai.
In his letter to UGC Chairman Ved Prakash in July, Desai said: “The purpose of incorporating photograph is to bring in a transparent and foolproof system and enable easy verification by various authorities and prospective employers,” he said, suggesting that other higher educational institutions in the country could also adopt it to check duplication of mark sheets.
Mumbai University is set to issue mark sheets with photographs of students on them. The document will also have a number of security features like hologram and water mark.
The higher education regulator has suggested to vice chancellors of other universities to adopt the Mumbai University model, while appreciating the initiative taken by the latter.
“The commission appreciates this initiative of the university which shall help in eliminating duplicity of mark sheets. The other universities may also consider adopting this feature along with other security features to bring about uniformity and transparency within the system,” UGC secretary Jaspal S Sandhu said in his letter to varsity heads recently.
The UGC move follows a recommendation by Shiv Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP Anil Desai.
In his letter to UGC Chairman Ved Prakash in July, Desai said: “The purpose of incorporating photograph is to bring in a transparent and foolproof system and enable easy verification by various authorities and prospective employers,” he said, suggesting that other higher educational institutions in the country could also adopt it to check duplication of mark sheets.
Friday, October 17, 2014
Mumbai University to get GREEN LIBRARY soon....
The Mumbai University (MU) is all set to build a new library at its Vidyanagri campus in Kalina based on the concept of a ‘green’ building. According to the varsity officials, they are looking at setting up a modern library, which will be called – ‘Modern Knowledge Resource Centre’ to be able to fulfill the diverse needs of students. The library building which will come up on approximately 4500 square metre area will be varsity’s first green building. The building will be a ground plus two storey structure and will have a capacity to accommodate 300 people at one time indoors. According to the varsity’s proposed design of the building there will seating arrangements available outside the building to provide “open space learning environment” to students.
The existing library at the campus — Jawaharlal Nehru (J N) Library is in a dilapidated condition with cracks all around its walls and ceilings. On September 1 this year, a slab from a ceiling of the library’s C-wing collapsed. According to sources, this was the third such case in the past three years. Varsity has been sanctioning funds for the past few years for the repair of the library, however, nothing improved the state of the structure. Hence, the Varisity finally announced its plans to build a new library and ‘Modern Knowledge Resource Centre’.
According to the varsity officials all the books, periodicals and journals from the Old JN library will be shifted to the centre. “The resource centre’s Collection is focused on the Digital images and Print Resource (National and International Journals, eBooks) and create the learning environment in open space provided with the Wi-Fi and special kind of conference facilities and also connected to other libraries. MU is looking at phasing out the age old kind of library services to make way for modern knowledge and resource centres,” said Leeladhar Bansod, deputy registrar PR of Mumbai University.
- See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/university-to-get-green-library-soon/#sthash.1dN5OvVG.dpuf
Saturday, October 11, 2014
Best Teachers Award - 2014-15
Hearty Congratulations!
Just go to the following link:
http://just4uteachers.blogspot.in/2014/10/best-teachers-award-2014-15.html
BRAVO!!! KEEP IT UP !!!
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Mumbai University Ranked 9th in Producing Billionaires
A recent study on world's billionaires noted that University of Mumbai is the alma mater of 12 billionaires. Mumbai University has been ranked at the ninth spot in the list of top billionaire-producing institutes in the world, according to a study by Singapore-based wealth research consultancy Wealth-X and Swiss bank UBS.
This makes Mumbai University only the second institute from outside the US to find a place among the top 10 in terms of billionaire alma maters. London School of Economics (UK), ranked 10th, is the other institute outside the US to find a spot in this list. University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University and Yale University occupy the first three positions in this list, being alma maters of 25, 22 and 20 billionaires respectively. (See list below)
India's richest person Mukesh Ambani is an alumni of University of Mumbai. The chairman of Reliance Industries earned his chemical engineering degree from Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai (earlier University Department of Chemical Technology, University of Mumbai). He later pursued MBA from Stanford University, USA.
The report noted that pursuing higher education is not a prerequisite for attaining billionaire status: 35 per cent of the world's billionaires do not have a bachelor's degree and some even dropped out of high school.
Overall, India has retained its sixth position in terms of number of billionaires, with 100 such people collectively having $175 billion in networth. The report noted that the global billionaire population rose to 2,325 this year, a 7 per cent rise from 2013
.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
No new college to get affiliation next academic year, says Mumbai University
Even as the state government has been sitting on a report since 2011 recommending “sub-division” of Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur universities that are overburdened with affiliated colleges, Mumbai University has said in its perspective plan it will not grant affiliation to any new college in the 2015-16 academic year.
“Handling so many colleges is becoming difficult for the university. Hence, the perspective plan says there will be no new college in the next academic year,” said a senior university official.
Currently, there are over 700 colleges affiliated to MU. The plan document also talks about skill-based programmes in the existing colleges to make students employable. The plan, however, will need the approved of the academic council and the university senate.
“A large number of students and affiliated colleges have created a huge workload of administrative, affiliation and evaluation functions, which has resulted in lowering the level of curricula, their relevance and modern nature, and on the whole reduced…quality and standards of students…The basis of sub-division is not on numbers but the need for quality and relevance of higher education, both for PG and UG courses,” the report said.
Academicians from MU said the National Knowledge Commission had also suggested having one university for every 150 affiliated colleges and that the state government needed to seriously consider such recommendations.
While the committees had submitted their reports in 2011, a fourth group reviewed the recommendations later and submitted a report suggesting a roadmap. The state government is, however, yet to take any action on the reports.
“A new government will be elected in the state after the Assembly elections, so no one really knows the fate of these reports,” said a Mumbai University faculty member.
mihika.basu@expressindia.com
- See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/no-new-college-to-get-affiliation-next-academic-year-says-mumbai-university/#sthash.QytFF3Ep.dpuf
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