CHENNAI: The State Higher Education Minister Govi Chezhiaan on Tuesday emphasised the importance of promoting English language proficiency among students to help them effectively express their academic knowledge.

During a review meeting here of his department, the minister has instructed officials, from the 13 state-run universities including Anna University, to give special attention to introducing new courses that meet the demands of emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning, enhancing students' language proficiency, and providing skill development training programmes aimed at improving employability among college students.

During the meeting, the performance of various academic programmes offered by the universities and their effective implementation were reviewed. Discussions were also held on the availability and quality of employment opportunities for students, as well as the standard of curricula and question papers in higher education institutions.

The minister also reviewed matters related to students' learning improvement, their participation in state-level and national-level technical competitions, the credit structure of academic programmes, and the research environment within universities.

Govi Chezhiaan also stated that the outcomes of this review meeting will be monitored and implemented comprehensively at both university and college levels through coordination with the Tamil Nadu State Council for Higher Education, the Directorate of Collegiate Education, and the Directorate of Technical Education.

"Similar subject-based academic reviews will continue to be conducted regularly at both university and college levels, to further strengthen and sustain the quality of higher education across the State," he added.