RBU: At least 20 professors to be recruited in distance education mode

Kolkata: Encouraged by the rising number of students in its distance education mode, the Rabindra Bharati University (RBU) has decided to recruit as many as twenty professors and some administrative officers who will work exclusively for this mode.

RBU offers distance education mode in as many as 10 subjects and nearly one lakh students across the state study in the distance education mode of the university including foreign students.

"Most of the teachers imparting education in the regular mode double up as teachers in the distance education mode. However, the demand for distance education is increasing by leaps and bounds each year. So we have decided to recruit 20 professors- 10 associate professors and the same number of assistant professors. We want to have two professors -one associate and one assistant in each of the ten subjects," a senior official of RBU said.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) is also laying a lot of emphasis on distance education and has formed Distance Education Bureau. As per the standards of UGC, if an institution has 5,000 students in its distance education mode, there should be an assistant Registrar, a section officer and computer operator for monitoring distance education separately. "So we will also recruit administrative officers," the official said.

The university is also planning to introduce Journalism & Mass Communication in distance study mode considering the demand in this subject. The university has a building adjacent to the School Service Commission office in Salt Lake where distance education classes are held.

"We have procured a land of 7.9 acre at Action Area II in New Town from the state government where we are coming up with a new administrative building. Distance education classes will also be held in this new building," the official said.

In Bengal apart from RBU, Kalyani University, Burdwan University and Netaji Subhas Open University offers courses in distance education.