Before training students for placements, we conduct diagnostic tests to understand strengths and weaknesses, says HOD

In a conversation with Shiksha.com, MCA Programme Head at School of Computer Science MIT WPU - World Peace University, Pune Dr C H Patil talks in detail about their updated curriculum that aims at keeping students at par with the current industry standards. He also elaborates about initiatives taken to make students job-ready and ensure they are provided with quality placements. Institute conducts a diagnostic test to do a SWOT analysis of every student so that they can focus on every student individually, organises regular workshops, seminars facilitated by industry experts, mock interview and group discussion sessions to help them boost their confidence.

Read the excerpts of the interview below:

Q: What are the three things that MIT World Peace University is doing that will enable it to differentiate itself from other universities? 

A: MIT WPU aims at imparting quality education to the students which can be achieved if the curriculum is updated and is delivered in the right manner. An ideal curriculum architecture is a perfect blend of both theoretical and practical sessions. Three things that differentiate us from other universities of similar race are:

• MIT WPU has signed MoUs with various companies such as Amdocs, Xpansion, Barclays, Tata, Simens and Intelliment, to bridge the gap between the industry and academia. Also, we have tie-ups with academia such as Vinsys, CDAC, Informatics, These institutions help us and our students to synchronise and be upgraded as per the industry requirements.
• Research-based learning is a unique feature of our University. The platform of Hackathon helps students to showcase their talent in the field of IT. The MIT WPU gives more emphasis on Hackathon and motivates students to participate in these competitions.
• Intending to make the students capable to have their own startup, MITWPU has established the Incubation C. Many students having the potential to be entrepreneurs get the opportunity to utilise the infrastructural platform for their setups. They are inspired to generate their business ideas and the initial support required for implementing these ideas is provided by MIT WPU.

Q: What are the key attributes that a student should have in order to qualify for the institute and score good grades?

A: To Qualify for MIT WPU, a student must have a minimum qualification as per the eligibility and skills acquired during curriculum should be adequate

1. Conducting diagnostic tests to understand the strengths and weaknesses of students and accordingly, planning for their training
2. Counselling, guiding sessions through pre-placement training
3. Taking industry feedback after every placement process
4. Monitoring students' performance in recruitment processes
5. Supporting alumni even after they pass-out till they get at least one job offer
6. Good connect with alumni and industry
7. Interactions between current students and alumni
8. Monitoring progress of internships through faculty mentors
9. Providing plenty of job opportunities to students
10. Inputs from Industry experts in designing course syllabus and making it industry-oriented
11. Making students aware of various other career avenues than campus placements

Most of the prominent jobs roles provided are in the fields on IT/Software development, testing, consulting, ITES, IT infra management, IT sales & marketing, data analysis, etc.

Some of the prominent trends witnessed for the past some time are that recruiters are actively looking for the readily-deployable workforce so as to reduce the time required for their training. A large share of companies also looks for students well-versed with latest technologies.