Dr. Surekha Dangwal is the Vice Chancellor of Doon University, Dehradun. She holds an M.A., an M.Phil., and a PhD degree. With over 35 years of experience in teaching and research, she has also worked as a Professor at the Department of English, Modern European, and Other Foreign Languages, H.N.B. Garhwal University, Srinagar Garhwal, Uttarakhand, since April 1990. She has fellowships from the German-Indo Academic Exchange Programme and Tarleton State University, Stephenville.

Dr. Dangwal is the Chairperson of the Youth Red Cross Sub Committee, a member of the Fee Regulatory Body, Govt. of Uttarakhand, and a jury member of the Jury Member, Planning Commission. She has over 60 papers published and is the author of two books. Besides her academic duties, she has also supervised 20 PhD theses and 30 M.Phil dissertations.

Doon University

You have held key positions at education institutes throughout your professional career. What are the key factors that keep you connected with the education sector?

I have a great passion for teaching, and that is the foremost reason that keeps me connected. This career has three facets, namely, teaching, research, and academic administration. These factors are very challenging and always keep me going. Also, when you teach young minds, you become innovative and always look for creative ways of teaching. I strongly believe that "a class engaged for the satisfaction of students gives immense pleasure and joy, more than anything in the world". Education should bring about the all-round development of the students and mould their character morally. It's all about inspiring them, making them more knowledgeable, thoughtful and innovative, responsible towards society. The teaching profession is the only one that provides students with the opportunity to bring about these transformative changes.

Being the Vice Chancellor of Doon University, what is your philosophy of leadership? How would you describe your leadership style?

Leadership is always leading from the front. My job as a leader is to help the team to perform and achieve excellence through hard work, integrity and ownership. I follow the lion for leadership, my copyrighted concept of creating an alignment between thinking, feeling and doing. A leader is one who leads from the front and makes others follow by influencing, inspiring, supporting and encouraging others. I create a comfort zone for my co-employees so that they express their views without any reservations.

Being the Vice Chancellor, how do you strategize about the key programs and plans for the marketing and administration of your DOON University?

As the Doon University Vice Chancellor, we need a holistic approach to our program strategy and core programs for marketing and campus operations. We establish clear and measurable goals for marketing and university operations that are aligned with the mission and overall vision of the institution. We conduct in-depth market research to understand the current state, trends and competition in the education sector. It helps you identify your target audience, their needs and preferences, and potential growth opportunities. In addition, we collect data on the organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis) to inform marketing and management strategies. Additionally, we create a detailed marketing plan that outlines specific strategies and tactics to achieve the set goals. The plan should include traditional and digital marketing channels such as advertising, public relations, social media, content marketing and events. Consider partnering with local businesses, community organizations, and alumni networks to expand your reach and increase brand awareness.

How does the curriculum of DOON University ensure the best practice of industry?

In every area of our academics, we involve our corporate partners. From syllabus framing to summer internships, we take strong support from our corporate partners. We have unique programs like Campus to Corporate and CEO Talk where we invite top corporate professionals to our campus. This enables us to shape the thought process of our students and help them build their careers. One of the important aspects of higher education is the production of knowledgeable individuals who can provide engineering solutions to social problems. We also have people with significant industrial / research experience recruited as faculty members.

What do you think should be the University’s top priority over the next 10 years?

Over the next ten years, Doon University will focus on a unique multidisciplinary education system. With education, research, training and consultancy, our focus will be on creating future leaders with global values. Our focus will be on imbibing advanced technology and skill sets that will equip students with the unique Doon University value system. Corporate connectivity and bridging the gap between industry and academia will be our main focus.

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What do you think your roles and responsibilities to the University and the students are?

As a leader, my role is to grow the department. I need to take the team along to introduce new programs, nurture existing programs and revise courses to keep our students updated. It is also my duty to work with the teachers to contribute to all the academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities organized by the university.