Bridging the gap

Updated on: Monday, April 11, 2011

In education, collaborations are the way ahead. The Apparel Design and Training Centre (ATDC) has tied up with Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) to set up a network of community colleges to institutionalise design education and provide certification for the same. The certification process will be validated through the certification system of Ignou and will open up opportunities for overseas employment as well.

Talking about the need for such a tie-up , Darlie Koshy, director general and CEO, Apparel Training and Design Centre, said, "This initiative will redefine employment by giving participants a technical edge as per the international standards. Ignou is a people's university and the apparel industry is a people's industry, which is the second highest employer after the agriculture sector."

Under the ATDC-Ignou Community College tie-up six ATDC-SMART courses, which were launched in October 2010, are now affiliated by Ignou. Besides, 11 creditised programmes will be offered under the ATDC-Ignou community college scheme. The curriculum is customised as per industry needs and Ignou guidelines.

Students will get a chance for vertical mobility to enter higher-level programmes. The curriculum will be the same across all ATDC-Ignou community colleges and students will get opportunities for internships and to work on various projects.

Students start with a basic six-month course and then take a break and work. If they want to come back to the study mode, they can get lateral admission and join the one-year diploma course and add value to their skills. "Students who enrol under this scheme will be able to bridge the gap between the education sector and the industry. They will get course completion certificates from Ignou," informed CK Ghosh, director, The National Centre for Innovations in Distance Education (NCIDE), nodal officer, Community College Unit, Ignou.

Talking about the importance of collaborations, Koshy, said, "For us, it is an upscaling process. Earlier, we were just able to provide the courses in small modules but through this collaboration, we can now provide students with diploma courses. This is part of the larger system to facilitate a vertical and lateral movement for students."

Times of India

Bridging the gap

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