Dr. Pearly Jacob has been working as the Dean of School of Management & Commerce, IQAC Director, Associate Professor and Prof In-Charge at Eklavya University, Madhya Pradesh. She possesses a wealth of Corporate, Teaching and Administration experience and a proven ability of successfully managing a team. She has also consistently helped students in enhancing their personality, leadership and employability skills. In all sense, she is a motivator and leader who believes in good team leadership and a hands-on approach to management for bringing increased standards and results. She specializes in Finance and has done projects for the UGC and other organizations. 

Apart from this, she has 20+ years of work experience at leadership positions in corporate and academics, both in India and abroad and has even worked for 5 years as Project Manager in intel INC, heading East African region. Additionally, she has traveled in India and abroad for her leadership and motivational sessions and has been a member of the Global Leadership Program. She has also published research papers in various reputed national and international journals, has authored a book on Stock Market with an international publisher and edited 2 books. 

Last but not the least, she has been writing on Brokers Forum magazine published by BSE Brokers Forum, convened National and International Conference sponsored by UGC, has been keynote speaker for National and International Conferences and has also been a trainer for the MHRD Academic Staff college. Dr. Pearly is a certified reviewer for international journals, has done MBA, PhD (Management) and UGC-NET as part of her education. She has also attended 35 workshops, 25 Faculty Development Programs, 10 International Seminars and 35 National Seminars over the years and is also a Life Member of Actuaries Society.

Eklavya University

What keeps you connected with the education sector and how has your experience been so far with the institute?

There is a little doubt in the fact that education has the power to change the lives of people, as it not only allows them to fulfill their goals, but also help them live a civilized and dignified life. In other words, for human growth and development, we need education. Hence, being associated with the dynamic and challenging world of education gives me immense opportunities and authority to equip young and ambitious students of our society with employment oriented education and capabilities to build our nation. Apart from this, when I teach the curious minds and interact with them, guide them on how to live life in a better way, it gives me immense happiness, satisfaction and pride. So I believe all these factors are the driving forces of my long association with the academic world.

Being the Dean of School of Management & Commerce, what are your key responsibilities towards the students?

I strongly believe that today's students have very high potential and caliber, and it can be brought out by giving them the right opportunities at the right time. Hence my prime responsibility being the Dean of the institution is to make people capable of using their skills and knowledge to full potential, particularly in the Bundelkhand region, as it has a high illiteracy rate as well as a higher unemployment rate than the national average.

Apart from this, monitoring the administration of our organization, supervising the timely completion of the curriculum to ensure it stays updated with the latest trends and developments of the industrial world, making sure that students are being taught properly, helping them properly utilize the given opportunities and resources, and ensuring that the best learning methodologies, right tools and techniques are implemented during lectures comes under the scope of my work. 

Which extracurricular activities are organized by your college to enhance the skills of students?

For the purpose of enhancing the skills of our students, our institution regularly organizes a wide variety of co-curricular activities including book reading sessions, movie discussion, sports tournaments and competitions, roleplays and cultural events like Goonj, so that our young minds can showcase their skills to the world. Other than this, we have a dedicated management platform for them and participatory and experiential learning activities in classrooms. Lastly, we use case studies while teaching them, so that they can easily relate the theoretical concepts with their practical applications. NCC and NSS facilities are also available on campus and they can even leverage our counseling services in need.

How does the curriculum of your institute ensure the future preparedness of students?

Our college has a dedicated Board of Studies, who has the responsibility to review and update the curriculum on a regular basis, keeping in mind the guidelines of UGC and AICTE. And if it feels required, we consult with our stakeholders, industry partners and corporations to collect their valuable inputs and suggestions, make necessary changes in curriculum by including advanced courses and discarding the old one and align it in accordance with the latest trends, developments and requirements of both academic and corporate sectors.

How do you bring in a practical and industry oriented approach towards subjects?

We follow the approach of experiential and participatory learning and regularly take students for industrial visits to educate them about how things work on ground level. Apart from this, we have made projects and internships an integral part of our college's curriculum. Students also get numerous opportunities to interact with corporate leaders and through events like industry interaction sessions and guest lectures. Lastly, as already mentioned, we use case studies while delivering lectures.

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How does your college enhance the faculty skills and train them as per industry standards?

In order to upgrade the skills of its faculty members and train them with the changing outside world, our institution conducts Faculty Development Programs from time to time on the latest technologies like Artificial Intelligence and MS Office. In addition to this, they regularly take part in workshops, seminars and conferences to learn innovative pedagogical approaches, research methodologies, and technological advancements. And if any kind of gap is left in any way, we try to bridge them through e-learning and by providing pre-recorded video lectures to students.

What would you like people to know about your institute that makes it different from others?

We are located in a rural area and ours is the no. 1 University in the whole Bundelkhand region. Additionally, the infrastructure of our institution is very modern and simply best. Other than this, faculty members of our college are highly educated and experienced in their respective fields and subjects and programs we are offering to students at present are exceptionally unique compared to what other universities are offering.

What do you see as the greatest strengths of your college?

The greatest strength of our institution is our students, who not only hail from Bundelkhand region but also from all over India. Apart from this, our highly experienced and skilled faculty followed by state-of-the-art infrastructure makes us strong and resilient.

What biggest challenges do you see, both for higher education in general and how your institution is dealing with them?

The biggest challenges which today's higher education institutions, especially Central and Northern India, are facing is in enrolling students for their courses. In addition to this, many students come from a rural background and they don't have either good communication skills or an idea of what's happening in the outside world. Another hurdle is that students are only interested in getting a degree and not the real education, and also many of them are financially not so sound, due to which they often miss their classes. Also, reputed companies don't seem interested in visiting the campus and recruiting students for unique job profiles. Then there is general lack of competitiveness and missing learning opportunities among northern and central Indian students. 

Hence, to reduce most of these difficulties on its level, first our university provides extra classes and training programs to students to help them improve their communication skills and general knowledge. Other than this, we have created an inclusive learning environment for them with the support of our ultra-modern infrastructure, facilities and industry-driven curriculum.

Any suggestions which you would like to give to the current youths and aspiring students?

I would advise my dear students to set realistic and practically achievable life goals for them. Also, design your own pathway and prepare a plan of action for what you want to achieve in your life. Then chase your dreams with compassion, sincerity, commitment and focused attitude. Never give up, as at the end, you will definitely achieve success.