a Archives - IDEGRAAF

UGC allows all higher edu institutes to offer online courses: Is this a good move when classroom education is still filled with problems?

February 2, 2019 Loknath Das

The UGC decision allowing higher education institutes to offer online courses could have many pros and cons. Check out the most common questions about the decision. The University Grants Commission (UGC) released a circular on January 4 inviting online applications from all from all eligible Higher Educational Institutions (HEls) to grant courses/programmes in online mode from 2019-20 academic session. This move takes forward the decision taken last year to open up HEIs to online courses to enhance access to higher education in India. But when even regular education mode with classroom teaching is…

A new study says an overwhelming majority of millennials want to be homeowners, but student loans are holding them back

December 9, 2018 Loknath Das

For many millennials, the idea of homeownership is still a big picture dream, with a new study saying 89 percent plan to purchase a home in the future — but simply can’t because of student debt. According to a recent study released by Apartment List, 6,400 millennial renters nationwide were surveyed in regards to their plan for owning a home. Despite the majority of young people wanting to migrate away from renting, 48 percent have nothing saved for a down payment. One of the leading reasons, according to Apartment List,…

Procrastinators can rig a makeshift greenhouse

November 25, 2018 Loknath Das

Growing bromeliads, orchids, and other tropical plants in north Florida is easy during the warmer months. In fact, most tropical plants do well right into fall. Many gardeners think about building a greenhouse to protect their precious tropical plants, but often put it off. Now, it is nearly December and the chance of a hard freeze in the weather forecast is increasing. A sense of dread falls over us as we start to haul our tender plants into the garage and then back out once it warms up, only to…

Making the Change: EY Takes a Popular In-Person Course Online

October 12, 2018 Loknath Das

EY’s “Facilitator Skills Development” was its most popular nontechnical course; then EY’s new CLO was challenged to do it all online. Intrepid and EY rose to it and created “Teach With Charisma,” an online course that is now showing better results than the in-person version for a tough-to-teach soft skill. I spoke with EY’s director of talent management for the Americas, David Bruesehoff, about the course and got his advice for anyone else looking to move soft skills training online. NB: Can you describe the culture of “reaching down the…

Decoding the future of edtech, one learning at a time

October 8, 2018 Loknath Das

“These days students prefer online learning as they can’t wait to gain knowledge through multiple channels. That’s where education is changing; edtech is redefining that,” said Mohan Lakhamraju, the Founder and CEO of Great Learning. He was speaking at a panel discussion on the Future of Edtech at the 9th edition of TechSparks, YourStory’s flagship event and India’s top startup conference. He was joined by Dr Carsten Schröder, Co-Founder and CEO, DADB; Parul Gupta, Co-founder, Springboard; Ishan Gupta, MD India, Udacity; and Pulkit Jain, Co-founder and Product Head, Vedantu at the…

SBI PO Prelims result 2018 expected in a few days, here’s how to check

July 11, 2018 Loknath Das

The State Bank of India (SBI) is expected to declare the results of the preliminary examination for the recruitment of 2,000 probationary officers (PO) in the state-run bank on its official website on July 15. Category-wise merit list will be drawn on the basis of the aggregate marks scored in the preliminary exam, which were held on July 1, 7 and 8, to shortlist candidates for the main exam. Here’s how to check SBI PO Prelims result 2018 after it is declared: 1) Visit the career section of SBI’s official website…

These 6 online-courses will make you a cybersecurity expert

June 30, 2018 Loknath Das

Growing dependency on computer systems and Internet has made almost everyone vulnerable to cyber attacks. From home users to companies, hospitals, banks, governments, everyone is at risk. While organizations need cybersecurity professionals to protect against these attacks, there’s an acute shortage of such experts. So, cybersecurity has become an important tech skill to possess. Here are 6 online courses to help you learn cybersecurity. This will help you understand what cybersecurity is all about Heimdal Security, a software company specializing in information security tools and systems, offers a five-week “Cyber Security for Beginners”…

An Event Pro’s Guide to Navigating a Career Change

June 26, 2018 Loknath Das

Career changes are scary. They signal a time in your life that is marked by both excitement and uncertainty. Even when you aren’t completely satisfied with what you are doing, you grow comfortable with your routines. However, you wouldn’t still be reading if there wasn’t a part of you that was intrigued by the possibilities that a career change might bring. Change is hard, but there are ways to prepare and manage transitions that can help you adjust well and enjoy the fulfillment and new challenges that lie ahead. Related: Using…

A life-changing scholarship for self-taught scholar

June 18, 2018 Loknath Das

Ranjan, the only one of his siblings to be educated, grew up with his fathFrom struggling to get education to making it to Stanford Graduate School of Business on a full scholarship, Sangeet Ranjan’s career journey has come full circle. Ranjan, a 26-year-old ITC employee, is one of the three recipients of the Stanford Reliance Dhirubhai Fellowship this year. The scholarship, more than $1,80,000 each (Rs 1.21 crore), covers the tuition and living costs at GSB and is offered to up to five students every year since 2009. The fellowship, created by Reliance…

Preparing Financially For A Career Change

June 15, 2018 Loknath Das

In my last article, I discussed the emotions of making a career change, specifically the guilt and pushback you may receive from others. In this article, I discuss what I consider to be the scarier part of a career change – how to prepare financially for the leap. Understanding the cost of your needs and wants I cannot state emphatically enough that the biggest component of financial freedom, successful life transitions, and getting through financial emergencies is knowing how much you spend and breaking it down into things you absolutely need…