UGC issues guidelines to transform HEIs multidisciplinary

CHENNAI: As part of the National Education Policy (NEP), the University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued guidelines for transforming Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) into multidisciplinary institutions.

The commission, in its guidelines, said the main objective of the initiative is to strengthen the institutional infrastructure necessary for multidisciplinary education and research.

Stating that multidisciplinary education will help students to shape their career options, the UGC said to offer multidisciplinary programmes successfully, HEIs are expected to conduct student-induction programmes to create awareness among students about various learning pathways and career opportunities to register in the Academic Bank of Credit (ABC).

Accordingly, with the NEP 2020 bringing in a series of reforms such as multidisciplinary education, multiple entry and exit and ABC, students entering the portals of higher education need to be oriented about the available opportunities. Ensuring a well-designed induction programme with adequate exposure to all these reforms will help students to set the pace of their academic journey.

The notification further said that many industries now look for graduates with sound knowledge of different disciplines. In sync with the market demand, the majority of students aspire to acquire multiple skills.

Although there are many single-stream institutions in subjects such as Education, Engineering, Management and Law that exist in close proximity, rigid disciplinary boundaries and lack of collaboration between institutions deprive students of the opportunities for multidisciplinary learning.

The UGC said that it was, therefore, essential to capitalize on the proximity of HEIs in offering multidisciplinary programmes. Collaboration and cooperation in offering degree programmes in innovative ways is in the larger interests of aspiring students, parents, industry, government and the nation.