IGNOU launches diabetes training programme

The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has launched a programme to train medical graduates in treating diabetes, it was announced today. The programme will be open to medical graduates looking to enhance their knowledge and skills in the area of medical diabetology.

IGNOU’s School of Health Sciences (SOHS) signed a memorandum of understanding with Hansa Med Cell, a company working in providing medical education, to launch a PG diploma programme for medical graduates in diabetes mellitus.

“Flexibility and outreach are the two important strengths of the university. We hope to use these strengths for improving health care, especially to the poorest sections of society,” said P.R. Ramanujam, Pro Vice-Chancellor of the university.

Srinivasan K. Swamy, group chairman of Hansa Vision, said, “Diabetes has become pandemic today. The International Diabetes Foundation estimates that the number of diabetes cases in India has doubled from 19 million in 1995 to 40.9 million in 2007. It is estimated that by 2030, every fifth person with diabetes will be an Indian. Hence we have taken up the Herculean task of improving healthcare for diabetics in collaboration with IGNOU,” he added.

The course will be launched January 2011 and will be offered through IGNOU study centers as well as the centers of Hansa Vision.

New Aus point system to weed out low quality overseas students

Australia is all set to announce its amended point system that would swap cookery and hair-dressing students with scientists, encouraging high skill professionals to settle down in the country. Immigration Minister Chris Bowen is scheduled to announce in Sydney tomorrow (November 11) the new points system that is aimed at toughening the rules of gaining permanent residency for overseas students with low quality qualifications, The Australian reported.

The new rules will encourage high skill workers and swap hair-dressing students with scientists. In China, Tertiary Education Minister Chris Evans rejected any suggestion the Commonwealth should compensate education providers for lost income. “It’s not about us making up the shortfall. I mean, universities are a business,” he was quoted as saying. Some universities have gone into the international student market in a larger way than others.

“Amending its old system that allowed easy access to PR through enrolling into courses like hairdressing and hospitality, now graduates will have to fit within July’s new skilled occupation list, which gives prominence to high-skill jobs in health and engineering, and pass a strict new points test.

“The current weighting of points test factors leads to perverse outcomes such as the situation where a Harvard qualified environmental scientist with three years’ relevant work experience would fail the points test, while an overseas student who completes a 92-week course in a 60-point occupation (such as cookery or hairdressing) would, with one year’s experience, pass,” a discussion paper issued by Department of Immigration and Citizenship said. The test gave an advantage to low-skill occupations on the Migration Occupations in Demand List, which was axed in February by Senator Evans when he was immigration minister.

Monash University researcher Bob Birrell said a reformed points test would allow the government “to apply a more discriminating filter to select the best applicants”. This was possible because earlier decisions had slashed the number of points-tested places available while the number of former students seeking those places had risen sharply. The discussion paper said in these circumstances, “Australia can, and should, select the best and brightest migrants for independent migration”.

Senator Evans said universities understood the danger of becoming too reliant on one market. “I think most of them have managed that risk quite sensibly over the years,” he said adding “They know they’re vulnerable to such movements, as other industries are, and they’ll just have to manage that as they work through the issues.”

Source: The Economic Times (Online Edition), November 10, 2010

U.S. varsities looking for India tie-ups

Partnerships between Indian colleges and American universities are likely to grow as 10 U.S. institutes are travelling across India to expand academic partnerships. The delegation, which was in Mumbai on Tuesday (November 9), visited three universities — Narsee Monjee (a deemed university), Tata Institute of Social Sciences and ICFAI University.

The delegation’s visit, funded by the U.S. Department for Education, seeks to support institutes wanting to enter into partnerships, forge academic collaboration, expand curricular offerings, advance joint research, and prepare students with the international experiences and cross-cultural tools needed in their careers. “However, many institutions face significant challenges in navigating education systems in other countries, identifying appropriate partners and developing effective institutional partnership strategies,” stated a press note from the International Institute of Education (IIE).

“The delegation’s aim is to visit higher education institutions and international organizations in select cities to observe higher education in India and learn about international partnership priorities from the Indian perspective,” the press note stated.

Rajan Saxena, Vice-Chancellor of N.M. University, who interacted with the delegation, said that his institute would be keen on joining hands with American universities interested in partnering in programmes in emerging disciplines. “There were a range of universities that visited us – from public institutions to research universities to community colleges to institutes that promote continuing education,” Saxena said. N.M. University, which already has a tie-up with Harvard University for faculty development, is interested in attracting international students and ‘bringing an international experience to its classrooms right here,’ he said.

American universities have seen a serious beating in their endowments during the financial crisis. Also, American institutes have taking serious cognizance of the fact that America slipped to the second place when fresh enrollment numbers were compiled last year. This trip could probably broaden ties with universities of a country that is projected to have the largest young population for at least another decade.

Source: The Times of India, November 9, 2010