Manav Rachna Research & Development Ecosystem launched at MREI!

Ever since its inception, Manav Rachna Educational Institutions have been striving to develop themselves into institutions of excellence in education and research in consonance with the contemporary and future needs of India through meaningful education, quality research and technological innovations for the industrial growth of the Country. In view of the contemporary trends in the world of higher education, it has been decided to institute a comprehensive and rigorous system of research & developmental activities and training for Manav Rachna Group of Institutions. The Manav Rachna Research & Development Ecosystem (MRRDE) has thus been constituted under the Chairmanship of Dr. N. K. Chadha, Professor  & Chairperson – R&D. Dr. Pradeep Varshney, FET - MRIU and Dr. B. M. Bahl, MRU will be coordinating all the activities related to the programme.

The Manav Rachna Research & Development Ecosystem (MRRDE) has the primary objective to bridge the gap between theory and practice so as to enable the students to set up their own horizons to do quality research in collaboration with industries for the benefit of society.

The basic objective of the MRRDE is to take care of the research & developmental activities in the Manav Rachna Group of Institutions (Higher Education). It seeks to undertake motivational and awareness programmes to spread a culture of research and developmental activities among faculty members as well as students.

Some of its key functions include: Planning and coordinating research and developmental activities across various departments of the Manav Rachna Group of Institutions; Developing faculty training programmes in research & development for various departments; Organizing motivational and awareness programmes for students; Promotion of Inter departmental and collaborative research; Publish research papers in high quality journals of international repute; Promoting research through incentive policy for quality research; Internal funding of research projects from respective Research Promotion Groups to be routed through Steering Committee of MRRDE; Liaising and networking with outside industry and research labs of repute; Organizing seminars and colloquium from academia, industry and research organization in the relevant field; To generate research grant from government/private agencies among others.

The MRRDE team will regularly interact and engage with the various departments of Manav Rachna Higher Education Institutions for conducting the above functions.

The Advisory Board will have as its members senior dignitaries of MREI such as Dr. Prashant Bhalla, President, MREI; Dr. Amit Bhalla, Vice President, MREI; Dr. N.C Wadhwa, Vice Chancellor, MRIU; Dr. Sanjay Srivastav, Vice Chancellor, MRU; Prof. V.K. Mahna, Pro Vice Chancellor, MRIU; Dr. N.K. Chadha, Professor Chair, MRIU; Dr. Ajay Mathur, Director General –TERI; Dr. R.K. Malhotra, External Expert; among others.

There will be two mid-term reviews (October and February) and an annual review (June) of the progress of the activities of both Departmental Research Labs (DRLs) and Centre for Excellence (CFE) for continuous improvement in the quality of performance.

FACULTY OF MEDIA STUDIES AND HUMANITIES

Faculty of Media Studies and Humanities aims at imparting quality education to young aspirants, desiring to work for media, Public relations, Advertising, Photo Journalism, Radio Journalism and other allied fields of Mass Communication. The faculty started in 2007 with a meager strength but today it is running graduate, post graduate, and Ph.D. programme in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Introduction of a "Integrated Learning" methodology for all our programs, combining all the forms of learning, namely, Published / Printed Self-Learning Material / Books, Digital e-learning, and Faculty Interaction with industry experts, exposure to actual radio/TV operations etc, has been the key to our highly interactive Learning content leading to understanding of concepts thereby bridging the gap between the book, classroom and the workplace.

Emphasis  althrough the academic session is on on-hand training and actual field/work exposure by way of organizing mock events, media interactions, actual reporting of events etc. Reputed media persons like news readers, news anchors and PR professionals, corporate communication experts share their experiences with students so that there is no transitional stress when a student shifts from campus to workplace. We take pride in having a highly conducive, healthy safe, protective and student friendly campus with all modern facilities and amenities and resources for acquisition of practical skills.

For success in communication fields, our special emphasis is on improving the communication skills in a big way as we believe that communication and multi disciplinary approach in learning is the basis of Journalism and mass communication. We also endeavor to evolve our students as informed and engaged citizens and also as independent and creative thinkers. It is our firm faith that value based learning can transform a student into good professional and a responsible citizen. It is in this backdrop that we strive to develop the all round personality of our students so that they can claim their right place in the world of communication.

Tie-Up with NDTV

To facilitate on hand training FMeH has collaborated with NDTV Worldwide, Broadcast Media Consultants as Knowledge Partners for workshops on various aspects of broadcast journalism for both Programmes of B.A and M.A - Journalism and Mass Communication keeping in view the current technology trends, innovations in journalism and up to date workflows for news television. These workshops cover reporting, anchoring, breaking news, news production and the role of a producer, different departments of a news channel, writing for television news, the newsroom scenario, operations - live PCR / camera/ editing / technical overview of modern television newsrooms and Digital Media.

FACULTY

FMeH employs regular as well as part time faculty. Apart from these, visiting faculty from the industry are invited periodically to ensure requisite connect between the students and industry. All such visiting faculty is associated with leading media houses (both print and audio visual media), radio and also corporate communication experts from Public Sector Undertakings.

Unique Teaching Methodology

• Classroom lectures by faculty

• News, Content, Media Analysis classes

• Practical classes in studio by faculty

• Lab work by students

• Independent work by students guided by faculty

• Self-initiated and directed study by students

• Assignments, Class tests and Presentations by students

• Evaluation by self and peers under faculty guidance

• Practical training in Radio Jockeying facilitated by Radio Manav Rachna

•    TV documentary, News bulletins by students under faculty guidance & industry experts

• Research: Surveys, Case Method Projects and media studies.

Research at Undergraduate Level

Students are familiarized with basic research tools through case studies.

A Media Tracking Unit is being started from this academic session so as to encourage students to track media coverage on topical issues, analyze coverage and draw inferences regarding the impact on perceptions, public opinions and society. This will encourage students to develop a habit of analyzing and perspective thinking and also develop their own research papers.

Internship/ Placement Assistance

In addition to placement services provided by the Corporate Resource Centre (CRC) at the university level, FMeH provides training & placement opportunities to all its students right from the beginning. No wonder  even 1st year students get work-opportunities in national and multinational  organizations such as NDTV, CNN-IBN, Sahara TV, Asia News International, The  Hindustan Times, The Indian Express, The Statesman, Tata Tea Jago Re!, Corvo,  and, Weber Schandwick. Students of last semester were placed for internship with reputed companies and media houses.

Achievements & Milestones

·        Faculty in collaboration with NDTV Worldwide organized workshops for BJMC students on topics such as Newsroom Scenario, Reporting, Anchoring, Breaking News, News production and Role of Producer, Channel management, writing for TV, news, Operations, Live PCR etc. Speakers were Mr. Sanjay Ahirwal, Managing Editor, NDTV World Wide, Ms Nidhi Kulpati, Sr. Anchor NDTV India, Ms. Sonal Mehrotra, Chief Corrp. NDTV, Ms. Manika Raikar, Managing Editor, NDTV Issues, Mr. Ajmal Jami, HOD, Camera Dept, NDTV.

·        Visit to Rajya Sabha TV: As many as 35 students of BA-JMC were assigned to maintain and update the result of 16th Lok Sabha Elections on Rajya Sabha TV Channel. Each student was deployed to contact with the stringer of a particular constituency and keep updating with the poll trends/results.

·        Students invited by India TV to attend talk show with the film stars of Happy New Year: Around thirty students from all semesters were taken to the studio of India TV. It was a thrilling experience especially for the first year students who were eager to talk to Shahrukh Khan, Sonu Sood and Bomman Irani, Deepika Padukone and Farah Khan.

·        Visit to ZEE NEWS to attend the Dr. Subhash Chandra Show: Twenty one students of BA-JMC participated in the show along with students from leading institutions. The topic of the Programme was 'Negativity'. Dr. Subhash Chandra shared his experience and enlightened the students.

·        FMeH organised a seminar on Media Ethics in 2015.

·        BOOK LAUNCH: 'NEWS ANCHORS… THE FACE OF THE NEWS’: A book written by well-known News Anchors Dr. Praveen Tiwari & Ms. Archana Tiwari has been brought out in association with the Faculty of Media Studies and Humanities (FMeH), Manav Rachna International University and was launched on 13 February 2016. This was a historical and a rare moment when news anchors from all the leading channels of India congregated at one place. Mr. Umesh Upadhyay, President Reliance Jionet & Editor ZEE News was the Chief Guest on the occasion.

·        A National Conference was organized by Faculty of media Studies on 8^th march, 2016 on “Women and Media: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” on the occasion of International Women’s Day.

PRODUCTION WORK

·         Short duration quickies on various issues.

·         Documentaries on Internal Marketing & Surajkund International Handicrafts Fair.

·         Radio features  for Radio Manav Rachna 107.8

·         Talent hunt shows organized by FMeH in collaboration with FM Radio Channel.

·         Documentaries on Mohna Village adopted by Dr. O.P. Bhalla Foundation.

·         Produced Lab newspaper and magazines.

·         Regular contribution of students in the in-house publications of MRIU like “Campus Buzz” and “Reporter”.

RADIO MANAV RACHNA

A full fledged community radio station ‘RADIO MANAV RACHNA 107.8’ located right in the campus and a source of information and entertainment, also serves as  a platform for discussions and debates on various topical issues, be it educational, social, demographic or political. It also serves as a laboratory and training ground for our mass communication students desiring to excel in radio journalism.

Quote:

“We strive to develop the ‘potential and ‘passion’ of our students through emphasis on multidisciplinary approach, integrated learning, effective communication and value based learning so that they can claim their right place in the world of communication.”

Manav Rachna Educational Institutions have been aggressively supporting the Smart Faridabad campaign

With better profiling, ensuring consistency between citizens' aspirations and action plans, more feasible resource mobilization plans and presenting a more coordinated and integrated picture of how individual projects will contribute to the area level changes; the city of Faridabad now holds a place of prominence in the list of Smart Cities announced by the Government yesterday. It is noteworthy that this has been only possible because of the contributions of the citizens and corporate houses of Faridabad.

Manav Rachna Educational Institutions (MREI) have been dedicatedly working with the Faridabad Municipal Corporation to make this happen. In its effort to transform from an industrial hub to a Smart City, students and faculty members from all schools and higher institutions of MREI generously made their contributions in the various competitions under the Smart Faridabad campaign.

MREI had also adopted the Old Faridabad Railway Station for its upkeep and maintenance under the aegis of Dr. O P Bhalla Foundation. This is the most important station on the Faridabad-Agra chord. Recently, top officials from Northern Railways visited the Old Faridabad railway station and put on record their appreciation for the support of Dr O.P. Bhalla Foundation. The Faridabad railway station is going to be a model railway station for other stations to emulate its path.

Badkhal Lake is one of the most prominent water bodies in Faridabad. The declining level of water bodies and seepage losses are responsible for deterioration of water level of Badkhal Lake which has shrunken about 25-30% of its original volume. Considering the historical factor and the tourism, revitalization of Badkhal Lake is very essential and is being treated as National Development Activity.

In this regard, a taskforce comprising officials from Manav Rachna International University (MRIU) and Global Hydrogeological Solutions (GHS) with the support of the District Administration had been constituted. MRIU and GHS worked on the pre-feasibility study for the revival of the Badhkal Lake. The findings of this pre-feasibility study were presented to the District Administration. The hydrogeological and geophysical survey has provided the information on the extensiveness of the different aquifer zones and the thickness of the overburden, overlying the alluvial sediments.

“The above options for water resources to revive the lake also meets the requirements of the smart city which provides for the recycling of the waste-water and water conservation practices”, informed Dr. Prashant Bhalla, President, MREI. 

Manav Rachna Educational Institutions have also been instrumental in the constitution of the ‘Haryana Water Council or Forum’ — a road map for Haryana to conserve its water resources with recommendations for efficient utilization of water in cities and towns across Haryana.

Manav Rachna Educational Institutions believe that the genesis of a smart city is to provide the highest quality of human life. And all these endeavors are just a step in this direction. 

A leap to career, SAP, the Global ERP now at Manav Rachna

Over 1500 students of Manav Rachna International University (MRIU) and Manav Rachna University (MRU) will enroll for SAP Student Academy program over the next coming years. This will aid students to enhance their career prospects as well as synergize with the shared vision of “Make in India” and “Skill India”.

The tie up of Manav Rachna with SAP would be meaning a lot more than just a business tie up. Industries are adopting the automation in every field to enhance their productivity and capacity.  ERP being the latest development globally that has helped in multiple times to the business fraternity by not only reducing the recording time of each transaction but has also provided platform for seamless transformation of the inputs to the output in the system gradually syncing each and every action of the different departments and individuals on the same platform leaving no chance of error. However, the problem at the end of the Industry is that once they get the software installed, the training of the existing users is yet another matter of concern. Since, none of the students coming out of different streams of academics know anything about ERP, arranging for training of them is still a matter of trying the luck. Identifying this problem of the ERP users, Manav Rachna Educational Institutions (MREI), collaborated with SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) to offer extensive range of courses to all its students. SAP Student Academy is designed to provide cutting-edge and effective SAP training to aspiring students. This will enable them to bridge the industry-academia gap and enhance their employability and entrepreneurship opportunities. This would also relieve the industry with the worry of training the users for using SAP, on the one hand while on the other; the students would be having more of professional opportunities as their acceptability would certainly be increased with having knowledge of SAP, being used by a large number of corporate.

SAP, one of the global giants in the ERP industry, probably the top one in the industry of ERP, would certainly be getting an edge over others in the industry with this collaboration, as none of the players other than SAP has entered in any collaboration with such a university of global repute.

MREI envisages this development as a quantum leap in the right direction for the students. Dr. Prashant Bhalla, President Manav Rachna Educational Institution expressed “SAP courses will make our students industry ready to face the challenges of the corporate world. MREI has ventured on an academic collaboration with SAP to herald a training culture and address the much lamented industry-academia gap.”

Skilling India

By 2020, India will be the youngest country in the world with an estimated 64 percent of the population in the employable age range. While the economic potential of this is great, unless many changes are made – from education to mindsets – many youth will remain unemployable.

India is a country of contrasts created by rapid growth, where slums rub shoulders with luxury hotels, where there’s a dearth of skilled workers to fill up rapidly growing job openings.

Despite having more post-secondary institutions – and people graduating from there – than ever before, Indian businesses are unable to find qualified workers.

HERE IS STILL A GREAT NEED FOR MORE COLLABORATION BETWEEN A GREATER NUMBERS OF STAKEHOLDERS.

In the present scenario although the requirement of engineers in the industries has increased tremendously, yet the suitable employment for the fresh graduates especially in the core sector has eluded them to a very large extent. The challenges that lead to this dichotomy are as under:

There indispensible need to integrate the carefully designed and closely monitored, tailor made professional courses to upgrade the students so that they are fit enough to meet the challenges.

It is the need of the hour to take up this matter on priority basis because despite being no shortage of technical hands, the big question mark on their skills remains an evident factor. "We need to look into this problem as deeply as possible because from the last many decades there has not been any aggressive and comprehensive action plan exercised to improve the dire situation. Both Industry and Institute are equal stake holders in nurturing required level of skills

Furthering the requirement of engineers in the industries has increased tremendously, yet the suitable employment for the fresh graduates especially in the core sector has eluded them to a very large extent. The challenges that lead to this dichotomy are as under:

Challenges faced :

By the Technical Institutes :

Indispensible need to integrate the carefully designed and closely monitored, tailor made professional courses to upgrade the students so that they are fit enough to meet the challenges.

By the Industries :

Skilled human resource plays a crucial role in developing efficient man power as our country is reeling under paucity of technical hands.The engineering professionals recruited through the process need to be trained for almost a year to be suitable for the industry thus Industry incurs huge expense for their training.

Bridging gap between Industry & Institutions is the need of the hour. The Institution imparting technical education needs to be flexible with the changing dynamics of the Industry. With the growing need to develop parallel and newer technologies , the student should be made abreast with emerging trends and their creative instincts be nurtured.

Indians have a fantastic ability to work around constraints to make things happen. If the private, public and civil sectors are able to effectively join together and match skills to workers to jobs, they can create massive social and economic impact – with lessons applicable to policies and programs around the world.

1. Meet a huge unmet need of industry and the society at large that can be met through capacity and capability development
2. Nurture experts who are skilled and trained on state of art technologies
3. Have a long term focus in building competitiveness in the centre and in their stakeholders.
4. Create engineering professionals trained as per the need of the industry so as to be utilized in the industry right from day one resulting in the saving of a huge man year and the expense incurred as well.

Like raising the benchmark, Manav Rachna International University is dedicated to the highest realization of human powers. It commands a remarkable inter face between teaching methodology and industry oriented research activities. We nurture students to don the mantle of corporate leadership at the same time fostering humaneness. We corroborate with the vision of Industry as the synergy between the Industry and Institute to spearhead a new era towards achieving excellence.

At Manav Rachna we have integrated the carefully designed and closely monitored, tailor made professional courses to upgrade the students so that they are fit enough to meet the challenges.

The Mission has been to provide students with innovative, state of art training solutions in all the core branches of engineering, to develop their engineering skills and build the requisite communication and personality traits in order to enhance their ability/prospects of employment and a subsequent successful career and to relish the thrill of participation towards economic ,social and environmental development of our Nation.

References

http://forbesindia.com/blog/the-good-company/developing-skills-in-a-developing-world/

http://forbesindia.com/blog/the-good-company/developing-skills-in-a-developing-world/

https://www.msdf.org/blog/2015/03/skill-development-future/

Manav Rachna University offers the globally acclaimed Purdue Next programs in Management and Engineering

Wiley, the leading publishing house of the world has joined hands with Purdue University, USA to usher a new movement in professional education in India. Wiley India offers a bouquet of courses of Purdue Next, an online program that emphasizes on interactive learning for advanced under-graduate and post-graduate level courses. Manav Rachna University (MRU) and Wiley have entered into a professional arrangement for its engineering and management programs.

Under the agreement with Wiley for offering Purdue Next courses, the students learn and interact online on cloud-based platform and have access to elite courses focusing on applied professional development.

Purdue Next offers an interactive learning environment through online courses taught by Purdue faculty and provides skills to keep pace with the latest industry trends and technological innovations. Students at MRU will also be provided exposure to online/open source content Incubation & Innovation Centre & Mentorship by renowned entrepreneurs.

Highlights of the programs offered under Purdue Next at Manav Rachna University:

·    Flipped Classroom pedagogy
·    Course content designed and delivered by Purdue faculty in the form of videos, virtual labs with access to latest simulation platform and online examinations
·   Virtual mentoring by Purdue professors
·   Purdue Next digital badge/certificate on successful completion of course work. 
   The tie-up helps bring the latest Industry practices and technology to the class room, giving an edge to MRU graduates and is based on strong foundation of industrial collaboration and global best academic practices.