Tamil Nadu Higher Education Department tasks HoDs with student placement preparation
Education activists have demanded a rollback of the decision, arguing that department heads should not perform the duties of placement officers.
The Tamil Nadu Higher Education Department has decided to make Heads of Departments (HoDs) primarily responsible for preparing students for employment, according to The Hindu.
The department communicated this decision via a letter on Friday to the Commissioner of Collegiate Education, Director of Technical Education, and university Registrars.
Under the directive, HoDs must tie up with three to five relevant private business houses through memoranda of understanding to facilitate industry interactions and feedback.
The department has prepared a list of 173 skills for Arts and Science colleges, including digital marketing for Languages and Social Sciences.
HoDs must identify two to three skill training verticals and submit a list of five placement coordinators from each institution to TANSCHE by November 16.
The State Platform for Common School System – Tamil Nadu (SPCSS-TN) said in a statement on Saturday that the move implements components of the National Education Policy 2020.
SPCSS-TN general secretary P.B. Prince Gajendra Babu argued that professors should focus on research and academic processes rather than placement duties.
S. Suresh, General Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Government College Teachers Association, said the government should prioritise recruiting permanent faculty amid 7,000 vacancies.