The recent hype in the education market is about finishing schools. Every Trust, every agency, every organization which is into education of some sort has or is planning to start a finishing school. The latest to join this is the IHRD.
What are finishing schools ?
A finishing school (in our context) is supposed to make a student ready for the industry. A student joins a finishing schools after his graduation, learns (or is supposed to learn) what he can use while working for a professional company. What a great Idea !!!!!!!
So I am supposed to spend 4 years in an engineering college (and learn stuff thats not useful), and after getting my good for nothing degree I am required to join a finishing school, pay a huge fees and then learn stuff thats useful.
Then Why TF am I wasting 4 years in a college. Why cant I simply join a finishing school after 12th and save a few years of suffering at an engineering college.
Its all about the money… honey…..
Education is a business in Kerala. The most profit making business, and the least troublesome also. I am not against running an educational institution for profit as long as the student is given primary importance. Its not about the stupid syllabus, or the crazy examination system. Its about the student.
Its high time that companies also got involved in the education scenario. The bigots who run the education scenario right now are losers and left overs. The curriculum and the examination system is controlled by a lobby of text book publishers and university staff.
The only solution – Autonomy for institutions.
Well, that is news! It royally sucks to spend 4 years in a college in ragging, projects and the placements ka chakkar. I can happily say that studying in ignou and graduating from there is the best 3 years of my life so far. I was able to make sense of my life wandering around, trying out new stuff that works and that flops over too. but at the end of my graduation, I am much better equipped to meet the corporate army than anyone of those graduates from regular college.
But unfortunately I can see myself sitting in end of the queue waiting for job offers and endless rejections just cuz I did my graduation from a open school/distance education.
Thats that way it is, unfair.
Comment by TheAnand — March 6, 2008 @ 1:50 am
Great point there Kenney.
Another thing is that if you think 4 years in graduation was wasted, YOU wasted it. Don;t blame it on anybody else.
As you said, finishing schools are not needed if the graduation does its job (or if the student does his job at the graduation).
Comment by Niyaz PK — March 6, 2008 @ 3:07 pm
Niyaz,
Do you think there is anything that the students can do ? Yes there is, be rebels like Anoop. But again how many students will be able to do that ?
We are forced to learn all sorts of stupid stuff in college, unnecessary and irrelevant.
To a computer/IT student how relevent are topics like physics, chemistry, civil, mechanical, plumping, wiring, metal work……. etc etc..
Am I supposed to ignore those ? There are so many relevant subjects that I could have studied and I was forced to study all these.
Its totally de moralising for a motivated student.
Comment by admin — March 6, 2008 @ 6:23 pm
Well Niyaz, I have to agree with Kenny here. It just doesn’t make any sense to learn useless crap at the cost of time and money. Why can’t we learn whatever is being taught at finishing in graduation?
IGNOU is a good option, but I was told that their teaching faculty sucks. So support for students!
You cannot blame the educational institutions for this! They are here to trade knowledge for money. Now, knowledge means both useful as well as useless. What do they have to loose, if it’s not useful for students?
Comment by Thilak — March 6, 2008 @ 9:08 pm
@Niyas: I don t think your view is right. When a student is made to study things which bores the hell out of him and makes him feel lousy and pathetic, then it is not his fault, which is what is happening.
As for finishing schools, Kenney, did you by chance got the inspiration to write this from the new one in Technopark with BIG names attached to it?!!!!
Comment by Leya — March 6, 2008 @ 10:38 pm
Some of your points (all those who commented before me), I do not agree with
Read My pun on the IHRD inaugurated finishing School and you will know why…
Link to my article : http://www.simplymalayalees.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=394
In my opinion V S Arunkumar must have been made the “farst Studantaa anda notta the supervisara”
Comment by SimplyMalayalee — March 6, 2008 @ 11:32 pm
“farst Studantaa anda notta the supervisara”
I still cant read it. If someone can translate, that will be great.
Leya, Its true that the recent launch of a finishing school in technopark triggered this post.
We are not looking at the fundamental problem. Instead we are patching it up.
Comment by admin — March 6, 2008 @ 11:41 pm
Improving the quality of higher education is the need of the hour.We need to emulate the successful models of IIMs and IITs where ever feasible.I have read in an article that points that the success of ISB is because they took the decision to not getting affiliated with AICTE so they need not make any compromise for compliance with AICTE rules and red tape.
I believe that our engineering colleges (& courses) should also keep up with the gobal trends.So regular updation of courses and syllabus is a must.As heard from time to time, there is a lobby in the teachers who doesn’t want this.I agree with the point that today’s education is bookish and a student get lesser chance to experiment with real life technical experiences.
Autonomy is a great thing to have and will do good if implementation goes right.Many technologies we hear today are not evolved from corporate houses.Many of them have it’s root in universities.For example google……We should give due importance to proper research in universities.
If corporates enter our educational sector, it would certainly be good.Finishing Schools are a good idea in the kerala perspective for improving soft skills.If running finishing schools teaching technical skills is a big business, then our education’s system should be blamed.You are right we are shying way from the fundamental problem and are looking for patch ups.
Comment by Maneesh J — March 7, 2008 @ 1:12 am
Hmm, IGNOU is for the motivated only. Their faculty sucks, which means you shudnt expect any motivation from them, but if you are the kind who is self motivated, its a great option.
P.S Kenney, please install the subscribe to comments plugin for wordpress. helps keeping in track of the conversation
Comment by TheAnand — March 8, 2008 @ 4:46 pm
Hello guys.
I posted a very long reply to you all here, but after I submitted , it did not appear here. I think it is a problem with the blogging software. ;(
I am too lazy to type all of it here once more. I will try to post a reply in my blog this week.
Comment by Niyaz PK — March 10, 2008 @ 12:06 pm
Kenney,
Meanwhile, please check whether my comment is in your spam box.
Comment by Niyaz PK — March 10, 2008 @ 12:07 pm
hai,
many of the above said are right and some i cant join with..
but… i am not a big scorer, though being with a dream to be n engineer, i always luvd technical stuffs,
the plumbing electrical stuffs etc, i luvd to learn the basics of all those to know the basic stuffs… all the above are required
those electrical stuff helpd me to make a twoway swith as a failover for my server,
and plumbing… i am tryin a new water cooled airconditioned system myself, u dnt belive how hot is my room havin two systems on full time with all those stuffs like stepup and other spl big powersupplies i made for my modem etc for 24/7 oprn…
actualy, i belive, everythin is needed, if u utilise it in the right way…
maybe am in a diff field, or am wrong… correct me…
Comment by LINOY — March 27, 2008 @ 12:21 am
Like I had said earlier also, knowledge is always good. But when you join a course there is a specific aim for that. Join computer science and they teach you chemistry. Knowing chemistry is good, but not at the expense of computer science.
Join BSc physics and you have 2 language papers. Thats sooo disgusting. I am interested in electricity and what they teach is Shakespearian bullshit. Thats something cannot be justified.
Comment by admin — March 27, 2008 @ 6:36 am
Unfortunately I didn’t know the difference between Computer Science and Computer Engineering when I signed up for a B.Tech in CS. I’m still suffering for my ignorance
Comment by Vimal George — June 7, 2008 @ 6:32 pm
I congratulate you for writting on finishing schools. We are conducting a National Seminar on Finishing School for Engineering Education-Concept, Design and Impact from oct, 21-22, 2008 at NITTTR, Chandigarh. The details of the Seminar is given on our Website http://www.nitttrchd.ac.in . We invite curriculum development experts and placement leaders to write papers on themes sited obove.Engineering institutions in india are in position to add non formal component in formal curriculum , if indian industry/ CII/Nasscom are able to guarntee employment to Students.
Comment by Prof. Y K Anand — September 8, 2008 @ 12:13 pm
Am no big fan of finishing schools mushrooming everywhere in every industry. But specific to bio/pharma/lifescience industry, i believe there is a specific need for such organizations. Primary reason being, existing college education dont really equip you to work in a bio or pharma manufacturing or R&D unit. Basic exposure to equipments are limited (as college cant afford such expensive equipments) and hence graduate passing out is unable to even operate most of them.
Ive seen couple of such finishing schools in B’lore and was disappointed. They were as mentioned in the article, just to make hay while sunshines. But there are a few serious players, who have invested crores of rupees into creating pilot manufacturing units with adequate infrastructure. They provide training and placement (not so sure) for the attendees. This am sure is someway helping industry too, as the amount to be spent on training these naive graduates are saved.
Comment by Startonomics — May 8, 2009 @ 5:25 am
i think finishing school provides the refinement of already attained skills sot there is no point saying that there is wastage of 4 years in engineering college morever that is the place where we study and attain skills and then as diamod needs polishing our skills are needed to be polished and improved to industry quality standards .
Comment by INDERPREET SiNGH — November 3, 2009 @ 1:08 pm
Dear Kenney,
I agree and disagree with your views regarding finishing schools!
To an extent you have answered and have the resolution to this problem -
The resolution is – “companies also should get involved in the education scenario”
Many finishing schools today are doing just that – simple reason, they are corporates with experience in various domains, understand the gaps which the industry faces when they hire fresh candidates from various colleges and institutions.
This is the GAP which the finishing schools can bridge!
Thanks, Shadab
Comment by Shadab — December 20, 2009 @ 12:10 am