An embarrassed Mumbai University refused to disclose report of pilot project.
An ambitious project carried out by the University of Mumbai to check the employability of undergraduate students studying in some of its affiliated colleges turned out to be a major embarrassment for the university. Of the 5,000 students who appeared for
the employability test conducted by the university and Delhi-based agency Aspiring Minds, only 50 could be placed.
The university and Aspiring Minds refused to divulge details of the exercise conducted between November 2011 and February 2012. However, a top university official told DNA on condition of anonymity: “The results are really bad and we do not wish to make public details of the exercise.”
Aspiring Minds which runs the Computer Adaptive Test (AMCAT) across India was assigned the task of testing final-year undergraduate students from four colleges in each of the five districts where Mumbai University has a presence. The agency was also supposed to arrange for their placements.
Mumbai’s Thakur College participated in the exercise in December 2011, but none of its 930 students belonging to various streams — BA, BCom, BSc — could be placed. The college blames the agency.
“The agency asked us to arrange a re-test in April 2012 without offering a reason. Eleven students appeared for that test again, but the agency could not arrange a job for any of them,” said Chaitaly Chakarvarty, Thakur College principal.
Sources said there could be many reasons for the students not getting placed — the job market is such, some students are not employable or the agency is at fault. University officials, however, are tight-lipped and refused to comment on the matter.
Aspiring Minds also promised to give a detailed report of the AMCAT score of each student, citing his/her strengths and weaknesses. “Neither has it given any report nor has it been able to place any student. Even placement cells of colleges do better than this,” said the principal of a city college.
Dr Mridul Nile, director of Students Welfare, University of Mumbai, who was in-charge of the programme, said the report was not bad. “This was just a pilot project mainly involving rural colleges.
We are still finalising the report,” he said. Tarun Girdhar of AMCAT refused to comment.
Pro vice-chancellor professor Naresh Chandra said he was unaware of the report. He added: “We plan to organise personality development programmes for students to enhance their employability.”
The ambitious project is supposed to be extended to all 1.5 lakh final year students studying at 400 arts, science and commerce colleges along with post-graduation students from university departments in the coming years.
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