AUTONOMOUS COLLEGES AND THEIR FUNCTIONS:-

INTRODUCTION:-
An Autonomous college is a self – governing institution that has the
freedom to make its own decisions regarding its curriculum, courses
and academic standards. They are recognized by the UGC, but are
not required to follow all government rules and regulations.
The UGC was established in 1953 and became a statutory
organization in 1956. The UGC is under the Ministry of Education.
Developing and promoting the National Education Policy. It is rightly
remarked by the Kothari Commission that development of
intellectual climate of India is not possible if any restriction is
imposed to exercise academic freedom by the teachers.

 FEATURES OF AUTONOMOUS COLLEGE:-

i. Course design:-
Autonomous colleges can create their own courses, syllabus,
and degree programs.
ii. Curriculum:-
Autonomous college can design and modify their own
courses and restriction them to meet local needs.
iii. Educational technology:-
Autonomous colleges can use modern educational
technology to improve standards and creativity.
iv. Short- term courses:-
Autonomous colleges can offer short- term courses
to meet students needs.
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 v. Communityservice:-
Autonomous colleges can promote community
service and other activities that benefit society.
vi. Make-up exams:-
Autonomous colleges may allow students to take
makeup exams to clear backlogs immediately after semester
results.
vii. Environment :-
Autonomous colleges can adopt environmentally friendly
practices, such as energy conservation and waste recycling.

 Objectives of Autonomous college:-

I. Quality education:-
Autonomous colleges aim to improve the quality of
education through a variety of initiatives.
II. Employability:-
Autonomous colleges offer skill- oriented courses to make
students employable.
III. Research:-
Autonomous colleges promote research culture among
students and teachers, and strive for quality in research.
IV. Modern technology:-
Autonomous colleges use modern technology in
teaching and learning.
V. Local needs:-
Autonomous colleges design courses to suit local
needs and job requirements.

VI. New courses:- Page-2

 Autonomous colleges can start new degree or postgraduate
courses with the approvalof thecolleges academic council.
VII. Choice based credit system:-
Autonomous colleges use the choicebased credit system (CBCS)
to evaluate student performance.

 Criteria to be fulfilled of Autonomous college:-

1. Academic reputation:-
The colleges academic reputation and performance in
university examinations.
2. Facultyachievements:-
The academicextension, and research achievements
of the faculty.
3. Student and teacher selection:-
The quality and merit of student and teacher
selection.
4. Infrastructure:-
The adequacy of the colleges infrastructure, including
classrooms, library, laboratories, sports facilities, and residential
accommodation.
5. Institutional Management:-
The quality of the colleges institutional management.
6. Financial strength:-
The colleges financial strength.

7. Administrative structure:-
The responsiveness of the colleges administrative structure.
8. Faculty motivation:- Page-3
 The motivation and involvement of the faculty in
promoting innovative reforms.

 Functions of Autonomouscollege:-
1) Autonomous colleges can design their own courses of study and
syllabi, and can restructure them to meet local needs.
2) To develop new courses or programmes within the
nomenclaturespecified by UGC and amended from time to
time.
3) To conduct examinations and notify results.
4) To follow the reservation policy and rules for admission as
prescribed by the state government.
5) To decide fee structure through a committee.
6) Autonomous colleges can promote research in relevant fields.
7) Autonomous colleges can rename existing courses after
restructuring or designing them. They must inform the
university of these proceedings.

 Conclusion:-
In the above analysis autonomous colleges can improve
the quality of education by creating syllabus that meet industry
needs and the evolving needs of students.Autonomous collegesmake
a significant contribution to the field of education and help in the
development of society.

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 A SEMINAR ON
HIGHER EDUCATION AND THEIR PROBLEMS AND
ISSUES.

SESSION 2024-25
Submitted to Govt. Auto. College, Rourkela in partial fulfilment of the
requirement for the +3 Arts 5th Semester in education(Hons)

GUIDED BY- SUMBITTED BY-

Miss Subhasmita Swain Anita Munda
Lecturer in Education Dept. +3 Arts 5thSemester
Education (Hons)
Core – 11
Roll no- 22EDN224

Department Of Education
Govt. Autonomous college,Panposh, Rourkela,
Sundargarh, Odisha.
 CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Anita Munda, Roll no-22EDN024 +3 Final
year in 5thsemester examination 2024 has completed here.
Project entitled Autonomous colleges and their functions.

Place: Govt. Autonomous College, Rkl.

Date:
Signature of Supervisor
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The reporter is highly grateful to Miss Mitali rani Patra mam
Dept. of Education of Govt. Autonomous colleges in Rourkela
for her continuous guidance and valuable academic support for
completion of the report.

I would like to extend my gratitude to Miss Mitalirani

Patra mam Dept. of Education for providing me with all the
facility that was required.

Name: Anita Munda

Roll no: 22EDN024
 HIGHER EDUCATION AND THEIR PROBLEMS AND ISSUES:-
INTRODUCTION:-
The British in 1857 introduced the system of
European higher education in India by establishing of
Universities at Bombay, Calcutta and Madras. Higher education
also known as post- secondary, tertiary or third – level
education, is a level of study that comes after secondary school.
It is an optional stage of formal learning that provides advanced
academic and professional knowledge and skills.

What is Higher Education?

Higher education refers to the advanced level beyond the
primary and secondary levels. It typically includes education
provided by universities, colleges, professional school, and
other institutions that offer specialized academic and vocational
programs. Higher education focuses on in – depth learning in
specific fields of study, enabling individuals to develop expertise
and advanced knowledge in their chosen areas.

Aims of Higher Education:-

 Personal development:-
Higher education can help students develop their cognitive
abilities, practical competence, and affective characteristics,
ethical and constitutional values, and intellectual curiosity.
 Critical thinking:-
Higher education can help students develop higher
order thinking skills, such as deep thinking, clear
communication, and focused resilience.
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 Career preparation:-
Higher education can help students identifyand set
career goals, and prepare them for professional setups.
 Economic security:-
Higher education can help students in vulnerable circumstances
achieve economic security and astable future.
 Social change:-
Higher education can promote economic,
technological, and social change.
 Knowledge exchange:-
Higher education can promote the exchange of
knowledge, research, and innovation.
 Lifelong learning:-
Higher education institutions can play a role in
lifelong learning.

Needs and Importance of Higher Education:-

 Increased EarningPotential:-
Higher education leads to better job opportunities and higher
salaries.
 Develops critical thinking and problems – solvingskills:-
Higher education helps develop critical thinking, analysis, and
problem – solving skills.
 Prepare for leadership roles:-
Higher education prepares students for leadership roles
in various fields.
 Page-2
 Promotes personal growth and development:-
Higher education leads to personal growth,
independence, and self-reliance.
 Fosters innovation and entrepreneurship:-
Higher education encourages innovations, creativity,
and entrepreneurship.
 Enhances social mobility:-
Higher education helps individuals move up the social ladder.
 Develops specializedknowledge and skills:-
Higher education provides specialized knowledge and
skills in a specific field.
 Prepares for globalization:-
Higher education prepares students for globalization
and international competition.
 Supports economic growth:-
Higher education supports economic growth and
development.
 Improves quality of life:-
Higher education leads to a better quality of life and
overall well-being.

Problems and Issues relating to Higher Education:-

 Students prefer coaching centre instead of college class room
teaching:-
Generally, it is observed that at under-graduate stage,
students are more interested to attend classes in coaching
centre instead of class room teaching of the college.
 Bright students do not prefer general education at +3 level:-
 Students are very much serious at secondary and higher
secondary stage, but they are not at all serious at +3 stage.
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Generally those students who secure move marks at +2 or
higher secondary stage prefer medical, engineering, integrated
law etc. so after entrance test, those who do not
qualifyareenrolled in +3.
 Practical is neglected:-
It is observed that practical of science subjects are not
organised in proper spirit. Science is content plus something.
That something is process.
 Lack of intellectual curiosity in project work:-
For experiential learning, practical are included in the
syllabus of science subjects. Similarly to develop the intellectual
curiosity, project works are included in the syllabus of subjects
come under social science.
 Lack of opportunity for inter disciplinary research:-
It is stipulated in NPE, 1986 that “ To fulfil the need for
the synthesis of knowledge, inter – disciplinary research will be
encouraged. But unfortunately it can be said that this
opportunity is not available in odisha.
 Rigid separation of disciplines:-
It is observed in our system that there exists a rigid separation
of disciplines, with too much early specialisation and streaming
of students into narrow areas of study.
 Lack of emphasis on learning outcomes and development of
cognitive skills:-
In higher education, too much emphasis is given on
examination results. So what percentage of marks one
hassecured is more important than what a students has
acquired, achieved and learnt.
 Lack of institutional autonomy to innovate and excel:-
There are colleges where we find very good principals
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and teaching and non – teaching staff. They are young and
energetic. The principals are very much dynamic and innovative
also.
 Lack of regulatory system to closedown fake universities and
colleges:-
It is seen that sometimes students face problems and are
not allowed to appear examinations as their admission is not
valid. Their admission is not valid because the institution is not
valid. When the students do not get scope to appear
examination, they start hartal, block the road, as aresult of
which it comes to media and then the Government is acted
upon it.
 Fragmentation of Higher Education:-
One of the major problems of higher education is a
severely fragmented higher educational ecosystem, with more
than 50,000 higher education institutions, a large proportion of
which offer only class room teaching and have fewer than one
hundred students.
 Lack of engaging and supportive learning environment:-
Engaging and supportive learning environment is not available
in many colleges and universities of our country. That’s why
quality learning or education is not possible.
Curriculum, pedagogy, continuous assessment and students
support services are the corner stones for quality learning.
 Absence of regular principals and non-posting of
regularlecturers:-
In context of Odisha, it can be said that most of the
under – graduate colleges are managed by principals in –
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charge instead of regular principals. In case of aided colleges,
the senior most lecturer of a particular college is declared as
principal – in – charge as per the order of the directorate of
higher education on the basis of the recommendation of the
president, Governing body of the concerned college.

 Conclusion:-
Higher education is a vital component of individual and societal
development. It not only provides individuals with the
knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in their chosen
careers but also fosters critical thinking, creativity, and
innovation. Establish a National Higher Education Body. Create
a centralized authority responsible for overseeing the higher
education system, promoting cohesion, and facilitating
collaboration among institutions.

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