Whilst Indira Gandhi Nationwide Open College (Ignou) has grabbed the primary place within the debut open universities rankings of the Nationwide Institutional Rating Framework (NIRF) 2024 launched in August, college students’ demand for not receiving research materials on time, delayed work assignments, and poor communications from the varsity facet stay an unresolved problem.
Ignou is a distance studying varsity that gives a number of certificates and diploma programs in any respect ranges.
Aditya Bhargav from Delhi began pursuing an MA in Historical past from Ignou in June 2020 and obtained books in April 2021.
“Other than delayed research materials supply, confusion concerning examination schedules, and issue in getting well timed assist are another points I confronted. Even after registration, I didn’t obtain any replace from my regional centre concerning assignments, exams and so forth. I additionally didn’t get any affirmation about my admission. There was no communication when making an attempt to achieve out to them; both they don’t decide up the decision or simply handed the buck on to a different officer,” he mentioned.
The demand for print research materials is a pan-India problem. Many college students residing in difficult areas battle to achieve the regional centres, and poor web connectivity provides as much as the mess.
A scholar from Ladakh, Nissa Mehrun is pursuing two programs from Ignou — a PG Diploma in Meals and Diet and an MA in English. “I’m based mostly in Ladakh and my regional centre is in Kashmir, which is not less than 400 km away. I couldn’t consider travelling as an choice for submitting assignments so I choose posting it from my place. However to look within the examination, I journey to Kashmir and stay at my relative’s home. As a consequence of this distance problem, I don’t get research supplies on time. Once you do English, a scholar has to learn novels, the college first delayed the supply of the course supplies after which once they despatched it, a novel was delivered to me 4 occasions,” she mentioned.
When requested if she had returned the books, Mehrun denied and mentioned, “Ignou has a sluggish course of. If I had communicated with them, they’d have taken just a few extra months simply to return and take the books after which extra months to ship the remainder of course supplies, so I downloaded them on-line and took assist from YouTube.”
Furthermore, she can also be vexed with the late communication by the college. “I accomplished my assignments earlier than the deadline and thru submit despatched them to the Kashmir centre in March. Nonetheless, I obtained the affirmation of my assignments in September. For just a few of my buddies, it’s nonetheless displaying processing. With Ignou, issues are sluggish,” mentioned Mehrun who can also be doing a BEd from Kashmir College. She complained concerning the sluggish web connectivity that’s including to her distress.
Ignou’s Appearing Vice-Chancellor Professor Uma Kanjilal admitted to a delay within the printing materials. “We’ve 35 lakh college students registered for all programmes throughout India and different international centres. So, it’s a job to cater to such a big scholar base. Publish-pandemic, we face a delay within the printing provide of research materials. We’ve obtained complaints and are attempting our greatest to ship books and notes on time. We’re encouraging college students to change to on-line mode and obtain the research materials from Ignou’s web site. We’re giving a 15 per cent low cost on the identical and 30 per cent of learners are actually choosing digital materials,” mentioned Kanjilal.
However isn’t delay in supply of research materials an issue that many had been going through earlier than the pandemic? “If three blocks of research materials are prepared, we dispatch it to the scholar. As quickly because the fourth or the final one is printed, we ship it. The concept is that college students’ research shouldn’t get hampered,” she defined.
One other scholar from Delhi, Iksha Tiwari, is pursuing a Grasp’s course in Journalism whereas concurrently working in an organization within the NCR. She is displeased with the poor coordination among the many college officers.
“Within the first yr, we had on-line lessons and it went easily however within the second yr, my centre was shifted from JIMS, Sector 3, Rohini to Tecnia Institute of Superior Research, Sector 14. Since then, nobody from the brand new regional workplace solutions the decision and now we have to go to the centre each time to collect even a small quantity of knowledge. The individual involved on the Ignou regional workplace is clueless. I’m not conscious whether or not they have created any official group however there are numerous student-led Ignou social media teams the place data is circulated they usually all complain concerning the callousness of the regional heads,” she mentioned.
College students additionally rue late communication from Ignou’s finish. One other scholar and Civil Companies aspirant Nitesh Kumar is pursuing an MCom from the college and has taken the first-year examinations. Nonetheless, because of the delay in registration and administrative points, he skipped showing for the second yr.
“I didn’t obtain any data on the assorted assignments that I’ve to work on, subsequently, I’ve to skip my re-registration. Now, I’ll full my second yr after taking a yr or time period hole,” he mentioned, including that he went to the regional centre for the submission of assignments and obtained no data.
In the meantime, the VC has promised that they’re “additional enhancing scholar assist companies via new technological interventions.”
Additional, college students have raised issues about whether or not these programs make them job-ready. “The research supplies they supply are sufficient to cross the examination however based on the job market traits, useful resource supplies aren’t up to date and I don’t suppose I’ll get jobs based mostly on my Ignou diploma from Historical past,” mentioned Bhargav.
Ignou conducts placement drives, nevertheless, which might be both irregular or are held yearly at their Delhi campus. “Not everyone who joins Ignou seeks employment. Our college students principally need to upskill themselves. Nonetheless, that is one space we have to concentrate on. We’ve to first create a map of what’s in demand and accordingly unfold it out to our regional centres to have the ability to attain extra college students. We would give you a placement season as per the regional demand, a brand new web site on this regard is within the pipeline,” defends VC Kanjilal.
Neeti Sharma, CEO of Workforce Lease, a recruitment and human sources companies firm mentioned the collection of Ignou college students in know-how and engineering is average.
“Though Ignou has partnered with many tech majors and about 70-80% of collaborating college students discover employment, with a mean bundle ranging between Rs 3-4 lakh every year (LPA), and Rs 15 LPA,” mentioned Sharma.
That is in distinction to conventional universities (like Delhi College) the place the pay scale usually begins with common salaries ranging between Rs 4 LPA and Rs 7 LPA, relying on the specialisation and trade,” she mentioned, additional including that any open and distance studying diploma programme must be complimented with hands-on studying to have the ability to present a holistic studying expertise to each scholar, thereby making them extra employable.
